#no-bakes

When I was a little girl in the late '70's, my mom belonged to a natural foods co-op. She bought dried beans and banana chips by the pound, baked all our own bread, and milled baby food for me and my sisters from scratch. She also made these delicious no-bakes out of natural peanut butter, oats, honey and chocolate chips that she stored in the freezer, and would pack for the many car-trips and picnics my family indulged in.

Sadly, the original recipe and the cookbook that inspired her have been lost over time, but every so often I get a hankering for that remembered sensation of chewy oats suspended in freshly ground peanut butter, redolent with the flavors of honey and cinnamon, melting on my tongue straight from the freezer. All the no-bake recipes I've come across these days are heavy with commercially processed PB, and overly saccharine with the chalky addition of confectioner's sugar, so I realized I needed to go back to the drawing board for this one.

To recreate this 30+ year-old recipe, I was inspired by my original no-bake memories without feeling like I was totally confined by them. These days, my adult taste buds prefer almond butter over PB, and I always have agave on hand for its lower glycemic rating. I had fun playing around with variations however, so for old-time's sake, I did a replication of my mom's version as well.

Almond Agave No-Bakes

makes: eight 1.5x1.5-inch bites

  Ingredients

1/2 cup natural roasted almond butter

3 Tbs. agave

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 cup GF old-fashioned rolled oats (such as Bob's Red Mill brand)

vegetable or canola oil for pan

Directions

Lightly oil a 3x5-inch or 9x5-inch loaf pan and line with was or parchment paper; set aside. Combine almond butter, agave, salt and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, 2-3 minutes until ingredients are fully incorporated and mixture is viscous. Stir in oats and press evenly into the prepared pan with a non-stick spatula. Chill in refrigerator at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours. Remove and cut into bites or bars, wrap tightly in wax or parchment paper and store in the freezer up to 2 weeks.

  VARIATIONS:

Chocolate Covered Almond Agave Bites

1 recipe Almond Agave Bites

1/2 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate (3 oz.), melted

Directions

Make and chill the almond agave bites for 30 minutes. While still in the pan, pour the melted chocolate over top and smooth with a spatula. Return the bites to the fridge for 30-45 min. until the chocolate has completely set. Remove and cut into bites or bars, wrap tightly in wax or parchment paper and store in the freezer up to 2 weeks.

  Peanut Butter & Blueberry Protein Bites

1/2 cup natural roasted peanut butter

5 Tbs. agave

1 Tbs. hot tap water

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup GF vanilla protein powder blend

1/2 cup GF old-fashioned rolled oats

2 Tbs. dried blueberries

Directions

Lightly oil a 3x5-inch or 9x5-inch loaf pan and line with was or parchment paper; set aside. Combine peanut butter, agave, water, vanilla, salt and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, 2-3 minutes until ingredients are fully incorporated and mixture is viscous. Stir in protein powder, oats and blueberries, and press evenly into the prepared pan with a non-stick spatula. Chill in refrigerator at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours. Remove and cut into bites or bars, wrap tightly in wax or parchment paper and store in the freezer up to 2 weeks.

  Original PB & Honey Bites with Chocolate Chunks

1/2 cup natural roasted peanut butter

3 Tbs. honey

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 cup GF old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips or chunks

Directions

I made no-bake cookies for the first time ever (by myself at least)

THEY SET UP!