I’ve been a really bad girl this last Sunday…
It’s not what you think!
I haven’t overindulged in sweet delicacies or binged on Asian food…
Quite the contrary!
I have mistreated and abused my poor body in an almost inhumane way. Poor thing… Had it had the ability to do so, I’m sure it would’ve called the cops!
I had it take me to the Fullflex Express Tour featuring Skrillex, as well as many other well known DJs. It lasted pretty much all day and turned out to be the most amazing outdoors show ever!
However, surely you know just how hard it is to find good, healthy food at these types of events, right? One usually has to settle for “decent”. Well… “decent” didn’t even exist at that particular one. The only available options were greasy pizza, oversized hot‑dogs, second grade hamburgers and of course, poutine!
Oh, right, I almost forgot. There were also some two seemingly healthy tortilla sandwiches made with nothing but cold cuts, cheese and mayonnaise.
Hmpft!
Between putting that sort of crap in my body or sending it into starvation mode, I wondered which of the two was the better evil.
I opted for the latter…
I just couldn’t bring myself to putting that sort of crap inside of me. I did eventually settle for the only half decent thing I could find on the premises: a giant soft pretzel, made with white flour, of course, and sprinkled with coarse salt.
That would have to hold me through the day. Well, that and the cereal I’d had for breakfast and a Larabar that I’d brought with me for my morning snack.
Not soooo bad if you’re going to sit around and do nothing all day.
But that’s not what I did, far from there… I told you this was a case of severe body abuse!
Still, it didn’t look too unhappy, did it?
The conditions that day were overwhelmingly hot and humid, the kind of heat that sends sweat running down every part of your body without you even moving a finger.
Of course, I was up on my feet for most of the day, but the abuse doesn’t end there. I danced like I’d never danced before. For hours! In fact, I wouldn’t even call it dancing. It was more like jumping around like a crazed maniac.
I was airborne half the time… for well over 5 hours, NOT including breaks between shows. I’m talking actual “active” time.
I’m telling you guys, the intensity of the music, the heat, the crowd, the lights, the electricity in the air, all of that just transported me to a place I didn’t even know existed. And no, I was not on drugs (although somebody did ask what the f*%k I was on!) 
Sheesh, I only wish I could be that intense every single time I work out!
Oh, right, I forgot to mention that water was also VERY scarce! At $5 a pop, one tends to stay on the dry side…
Although judging by that picture, I was everything BUT dry… not too sure whether I was wet from the water they had sprayed us with or if this was all sweat, but regardless, I was in that same state for hours on end.
I think I burned quite a few calories that day… All that on a severely underfed stomach and a less than optimally hydrated body!
Why am I telling you all this?
Because while I was there, jumping up and down, I was thinking just how darn happy, no, make that darn PROUD I was that my body would be fit and healthy enough to support me through all that. I had the time of my life, and had I been where I was a couple of years ago, none of this would’ve happened. I’d have just stood there and calmly watch the show. I’d have missed out on SOOOOO much!
Now I only have one regret: I wish I’d taken a few more Larabars with me!
I guess you’ve figured out by now that these Larabars I made at home using some of that delicious “Nutella” I recently created.
I’d made way too big of a batch for one person alone to ever get to the the bottom of the jar before it goes bad, so I decided to get creative and make something with it.
WOW! Am I ever glad I did!>
I don’t think I’ll ever buy Larabars ever again. They are so easy to make, I get the feeling I’ll be coming up with a myriad of different flavor combinations.
Plus, by making them myself, I get to add other goodies, such as flaxseed meal and coconut, that Larabars don’t have in them. WIN!
Next time, I’ll try throwing in some protein powder…
INGREDIENTS
- 225g | 1 cup Home made Nutella
- 125g | 1 cup whole raw hazelnuts
- 50g | ½ cup flaxseed meal
- 45g | ½ cup unsweetened shredded cononut
INSTRUCTIONS
- Add all ingredients to the bowl of your food processor and process until well incorportated and hazelnuts are reduced to small chunks.
- You will have to scrape the sides and push the mixture to the bottom quite a few times. You might find that pulsing helps the mixture stay longer at the bottom of the bowl.
- When all is good and well incorporated, transfer the mixture to a small square pan and press down firmly and evenly to form a rectangle of approximately 8 x 6 (I used a 8 x 8 pan but only used 2/3 of its surface)
- Use a spatula to make the top and sides as flat and smooth as possible.
- Cut into 12 bars and refrigerate. These bars will keep for a few weeks providing that your Nutella has just been made, or that your egg whites are as fresh as can be!
- *Tip: Wrap individually in parchment paper for extra portability.
I stopped reading at poutine! That is one of my favorite things!
JOANN!!! Shame on you!!!
I make something like these bars all the time. We love them. They are so easy to put together, nutritious and filling that I always have to at least double the batch each time I make them
I couldn’t agree with you more. The only thing I find they lack is a little bit more protein, but I shall work on that!
Say, have you tried freezing yours? If so, do they freeze well? Mind you, I guess most versions would keep for a fairly long time, so long as one doesn’t include anything too “perishable” in them like I did with my egg whites.
I am really happy to hear that you had such a fabulous time
. A year ago I also could have jumped the whole day. These days I am so out of shape that I would probably have to bring a folding chair to sit and watch the show. So it’s good for me to be reminded to start taking care of my health.
Thanks for the recipe and the inspiration!
And love those bars! The recipe is so easy that there is no excuse not to give it a try
Right on, Elana! Time to get back into shape… just get up and dance! (and leave that chair back at home, will you?)
Glad you like this recipe. You are so right. Incredibly easy to do, so handy to have around! They really make for a fabulous snack. I’m totally addicted now!
I’m happy you had such a fun time! And you look so happy! I love it. I’ve never had a larabar but I’ll try this with your other Nutella version when I make some more. I know if I made these today, I would just eat and eat and eat. So… not today.
They sound delicious, though!
You never had a Larabar? OMG, they are so good. They would probably help curb your sugar cravings too, in a much healthier way!
Don’t make them today, though, because they might be healthy, but they’re still a tad high in fat and calories, so if you’re gonna eat and eat and eat, it might not be such a good thing. Wait a couple of days…
Wow! I’m so glad you enjoyed your Sunday like that! Une image vaut mille mots and you definitely glow with happiness in your picture.
As for myself, I was in a air conditionned environment because otherwise I would have melted to nothing with that freaking humidity! 5 $ a bottle of water is a total ripe off btw! I hate it when they do that.
Ok, nutella used to be one of my most favorite things in the whole wide world. Chocolate & hazelnut = my kind of heaven. I was so sad when they changed the original recipe. I never eat it anymore. It doesn’t taste the same as when it did when I was a kid back in France. Every wednesday morning (we didn’t have school those days in the early 90″), I would sit in front of the TV watching my favorte cartoons with a bottle of nutella and a demi-baguette that I would share with my sister. Oh I’m all nostalgic now. It’s crazy how a taste can bring back memories, just like the sens of smell. Older people say that Coca-cola doesn’t taste the same either. It was never a healthy drink but now it’s even worse with corn syrup instead of cane sugar (the other day, I saw a package advertising their product as being made with sugar instead of corn syrup and I felt half like crying/half laughing— c’est la fin du monde when the only choise of “healthy” we have in a normal grocery store is between processed cane sugar and corn syrup). Stupid food industry!
Anyways, I’m making both these recipes asap (with my beloved new Cuisinart!) but you have to tell me where I can find egg whites in a box? I never came across that before or maybe it’s because I’ve never looked for it. Maxi/IGA/Metro/Loblaws?
Also, if these bars would be ok a couple of weeks in the frigde, would it be also ok to put them in the freezer? or do you think it would crumble after thawing?
I cannot tell you how excited I am to make these 2 goodies! Thanks again for sharing! I need to find those egg whites!
Whoa, wait a minute… a BOTTLE of Nutella? What is this new devilry? I never heard of “drinkable” Nutella. The Nutella that I know is an unbelievably high in fat chocolate hazelnut spread, made mostly from palm oil and sugar, with traces of hazelnut and chocolate. You had that in a drinkable version? Tell me more!
As for the egg whites, you can find them in all major grocery stores in the egg / dairy section. Costco also carries them in packages of 3 containers. That’s where I get mine, for I consume A LOT of the stuff!
I haven’t tried freezing the bars, but I wouldn’t see why they wouldn’t freeze well. I have some in the freezer as I type so I will let you know how good they are when I thaw them. That’s if I even bother. I sort of get the feeling that they will be just as good, if not better, in the frozen state!
Now I am very excited for you to try these recipes and tell me all about your experience! =D
LOL! I didn’t use the proper English word. I use both the word “pot” and “bouteille” to describe a “jar” in French, so I badly translated it to “bottle”. So, it was actually a glass jar
A spread just like here, but I think they weren’t using palm oil back then and maybe more hazelnuts, because the taste is not the same nowadays. It was definitely more “hazelnutty”. My mom used to hide it, and we were allowed to have it only on Wednesdays and Sundays, because even back then she didn’t think it was healthy. So we would just eat it directly from the jar and use toasted baguette as spoon 
Ok, I’m doing my grocery shopping tomorrow so I will definitely grab some egg whites. I cannot believe that I never knew it existed like that! I guess I always went for my regular brand of eggs and never looked around that section.
I will let you know how it turns out. Sadly, I don’t have a costo card so I can’t buy there. And after reading your latest salmon recipe, I’m really really craving it. I wish I had a barbecue, but I’m in a appartment and have no space.
I hope you’re enjoying the great weather!
Ahhhhh, ça explique tout! Funny how a single word can change so many things.
Good luck on finding the egg whites, but really, this shouldn’t be too hard.
As for the barbecue, no biggie… Just ask your landlord to hook you up with one of these babies!
(wishful dreaming, I know…)
First, love that you made your own larabars. Second, is that weird that poutine was something being served? Third, glad to hear you spent the time airborne. I would’ve expected nothing less. Now I know what all that bicycle riding was for.
Haha! There are more Larabars coming this way, let me tell you! Wow do I ever love these things!
Are you seriously asking if it’s weird that poutine was being served there? Man, poutine is being served EVERYWHERE here. And it comes in hundreds of different varieties. Would you believe that they even have, in some fancy restaurants, a super decadent version of the dish with foie gras in it? OMG, my arteries… I think they should make that stuff illegal!
And hey, I had a thought for you while I was there halfway between air and solid ground. You would’ve had a blast, I’m sure! No time for food creation while enjoying the beats, though…
Hey, great story about Bluesfest! Sorry I missed it. Just a note asking that you post any new Larabar knockoffs. Can’t wait to try this one! I love Larabars but they are way too expensive. Okay, I did just buy five about half an hour ago but prefer to make them at home. Lemon being my fave — hint, hint!!!! Hahahaha
Trust me, Elle, there will be many more coming, and I will be posting every single one of them!
Mental note taken about the lemon. I’m thinking lemon meringue pie… how does that sound?
Looks absolutely delicious! I reckon I could eat about 100 of them!
Ooof… all in one go? Hello calories! Me thinks you should at least divide that into 2 snacks…
Thanks, Spencer!
Those look super amazing!!!
Congrats on your success and so glad you had such a great time!!!
i really enjoyed reading your story – i can only imagine how unhealthy festival food would be! your bars here look fantastic – thanks for sharing!
xo
http://allykayler.blogspot.ca/
That looks like such a great time! Totally worth the lack of food for one day
At least you had your Larabars, those things are lifesavers aren’t they? I love your idea for a “nutella” one. Yum!
These are genius, I need to try ASAP!
Thanks Marla! Hope you like ‘em!
Might I say that you have the most AMAZING Pinterest page? I could literally spend HOURS on your page alone. Of course, you blog is just gorgeous too!
Thanks so much!! Linking back to these bars tomorrow