This is the story of a MAJOR fail gone marvelously right!
So much so, this has become a big fave of mine, I miss having them in the freezer. I will HAVE to make another batch soon. They were just the most convenient thing to have around. They were good at room temperature, they were even better right out of the fridge, and were just plain awesome straight out of the freezer.
I loved having one or two of these right before a morning workout. Seeing as how I just can’t eat straight out of bed and often end up working out on an empty stomach or, at best, a handful of berries, these little drops were just SO great to have readily available.
Plus, they made for an awesome light morning or afternoon snack too! They’re so highly portable, you can just throw a few of them in a ziploc bag and shove them in your purse or something.
Oh, and did I mention how great they happened to taste? OH MY WORD! Granted, I am a huge fan of carob, but these drops truly delivered in that area. Talk about EXPLODING with carob flavor. And what to say of their intensely dense and chewy texture? Quite simply, I was sent straight to seventh heaven every single time I would bite into one of these.
To think I came “THIS” close to chucking the entire experiment…
You see, this was supposed do be a no bake, high protein kind of bar. However, the texture of the batter did not turn out AT ALL like I’d envisioned it.
I stood there in total disbelief for a while, scratching my head and wondering what I was gonna do with all that batter. I just couldn’t bring myself to throwing away all those perfectly good ingredients just because they refused to play together and mingle like I’d asked them to.
At that point, I had not added all of the ingredients, so I was hesitating between adding more in an attempt to save the day, but risk wasting even more perfectly good food if the plan backfired on me.
I chose to live dangerously and add more ingredients to the less than optimal concoction that lay before me. Just by looking at it, it was obvious that I’d better fire up the oven. These “no-bake” bars would definitely have to be baked.
Although I would’ve loved to keep these grain free, rolled oats seemed to be a very good fit and thought they would be my best shot at saving the day.
Looks like I made the perfect decision. To this day, I can’t think of anything else that would’ve worked quite so well. Quinoa flakes, maybe, if I’d had any on hand. But I didn’t. And it would’ve required a hell of a lot…
So they’re not grain free… oh well! So be it. But hey, all is not lost. They can still be kept gluten free simply by using uncontaminated oats.
I know some of you will probably wonder about the almond pulp. Could almond meal be used instead?
Well, to be honest, I’m really not sure it would work here. I know I always say that I believe almond meal and almond pulp to be totally interchangeable. However, this recipe here might be the one exception to that rule. I think the pulp did play a big role in the texture of the batter. Almond meal just wouldn’t achieve that same texture. It could probably be used still, but one might have to use a few extra tablespoons of liquid to compensate for that which is present in the pulp.
So if you really want to give these a try but don’t have access to the pulp and really don’t care for making your own milk, I guess you still could. Only, you have to expect the end result to be slightly different.
And hey, who knows, they might turn out to be even better! 
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups almond pulp Leftover from milk
- 1 cup date paste
- ½ cup carob powder (you can sub cacao powder)
- 4 scoops (140g) unflavored whey protein powder
- 1½ cup rolled oats
- ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- ½ cup dried cranberries
INSTRUCTIONS
- Add almond pulp, date paste, carob powder and whey protein to the bowl of your food processor and process until well combined.
- Add rolled oats, shredded coconut and dried cranberries and mix until just incorporated.
- Place in the refrigerator and allow to chill for about 15 minutes.
- While dough is chilling, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat your oven to 400F.
- Drop dough by the tablespoonful onto the lined baking sheet (I used a one tablespoon spring action ice cream scoop)
- Place in the oven and bake for about 8 minutes. The drops will be soft as they come out in the oven. Place them on a cooling rack and start a new batch.
- You will probably need to cook your drops in 4-6 batches, depending on the size of your baking sheet. Make sure to put the dough back in the refrigerator between batches.
- Allow the drops to cool completely then transfer them to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 7 days. They also freeze really well and can be eaten straight out of the freezer, so it's no use trying to get away from them!
Nothing wrong with these ones not being grain free
Don’t you love it when a recipe turns to be something totally different and then even better? I do too love having my regular healthier to go snacks in the house. They don’t normally last too long even if a double or triple the batch. My husband eats them all pretty good!!
I’ve always been very lucky so far, it’s never happened that I failed so miserably that a recipe ended up in the trash. I really wasn’t sure about this one though, but it turned out to be one of my greatest successes. LOVED those little drops. I can guarantee you that if you make these little drops, they will NOT last very long… you can basically eat them like chips!
And you can’t even freeze them to try and stop yourself from eating them…
I would probably use these pre and post workout and many times in between.
LOL, why not? I have nothing against that! And stick a few under your pillow, just in case? You never know when you will wake up in the middle of the night in urgent need of a snack!
Certifiably yummy! ;-/)
Just you wait until you taste them, friend!
i just made these! i was going through my blogs this morning thinking how to make some breakfast for 3 little girls–one who is extremely allergic to many foods–her mother entrusts me to make the right things for her–and most of the time, it’s how we eat anyway–nutrient dense ingredients…i had all the ingredients, including date paste which i made 2 days before….i had an additional challenge, my husband is cooking up a storm in our kitchen and i only have one little corner to cook from, so i needed a simple recipe–sans the baking powder, baking soda, salt etc etc etc–and this recipe called my name : )
for those who are wondering, i did use almond meal, however, i did have to add a splash or two of almond milk because the batter was very dry…i can imagine if you are using fresh pulp, you’d have the amount of moisture you’d need…
these were a breeze to make–and i ate half the batter!…girls loved them as their breakfast goodness…i am keeping this recipe on file because my girls train everyday for their sports, and i need something like this that gives them endurance…
thanks for helping me start the day right!
Oh wow! Thank you so much Eva for sharing this! I am so happy to hear that they work with the almond meal also! Just like I thought, you did need to add a little bit of extra moisture. Good to know. I am just thrilled to hear that they had great success with you and your girls! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this awesome feedback, you have no idea just how much I appreciate! YOU TOTALLY ROCK! =D
Ooh, these are certainly interesting! I love that someone’s already made them with almond meal. I didn’t even know that carob powder was a thing. And grain free is always nice, but I don’t think the oats take anything away from these. Still way healthier than 99.9% of other baked goods recipes out there.
Oh my, Erin, you should definitely give carob powder a try! I’m almost certain that you would love it. I sometimes prefer it over cacao, for it has a much sweeter flavor, and much more intense too. At least I find. This is just the kind of thing that you should have around the house for when sugar cravings strike!
And I’m sure you could play with the flavors a lot,too! 
It’s sweeter?! I gotta find this stuff! Off to search for it.
LOL! And I thought I had a sweet tooth! You’re too funny Erin. LOVE your enthusiasm. Hope you find it, I want to hear your thoughts!
Perfect. I need something exactly like this between work and working out. Any advice as to where I could buy carob powder online in Canada? It’s a hard job finding anything specialty up here, but there are so many health-food online stores I just don’t know where to start!
I really wouldn’t know where to buy online, Christina, sorry abou that. However, I find that it’s rather easy to find locally in stores. Most standard grocery stores carry it around here, and of course, whole / organic food stores also have it. Good luck finding it, and if you do find a good online source, make sure you let me know!