As mentioned in that post a few days ago, Mrs J has no intention of trading Joy for Thin. But that doesn’t mean that she’s not going to change things up a bit. She’s got her trainers on again and it actually feels pretty good.

Mrs J loves cooking – these days she even enjoys baking. She figures a change in diet is nothing but a cooking and baking challenge, really. And any cooking and baking challenge is fun and joyful, no?

Today’s challenge: Make protein rich and transportable muscle-making workout snacks. Mrs J could really use some more muscle and certainly doesn’t want to lose any that she already has because of a lack of protein in her diet. But eating chicken breast all day, every day, isn’t particularly practical. Or joyful. Whereas experimenting with baking is!

Here’s her first ever attempt.

Combine 7.5dl of oatmeal with 150g of whey protein powder, 2.5 tsp of baking powder and 1/2tsp of salt.

In another bowl combine 2.25 dl of apple sauce, 1.75 dl peanut butter  2.25 dl of milk and two large eggwhites.

Pour the wet mix over the dry mix and make sure you have an even batter. Spread it into a baking dish lined with oven proof paper. Any part of the pan that’s not covered by the paper should be oiled lightly.

Bake in the oven at 175°C for 35 minutes. Cover with some foil at the end if the top gets too dark. Let cool a little before removing from your baking tray and cutting into pieces.

Dust them with some powdered sugar or sweetener if you like (Mrs J likes). Wrap them in some foil or sandwich paper and keep them in the fridge until you go out for your next workout!

Mrs J got 24 pieces out of this recipe, you might choose to make yours bigger or smaller. Being able to choose your own size is one advantage of the home made protein rich snack, another is that you get them at a fraction of the cost of buying brand protein bars. Even considering that whey protein powder is quite expensive, you’ll save a bundle. Which you can spend on dangly earrings or whatever else that brightens up your day.

Win-win-win!