May 9, 2024

No-Bake Snack Bars by Heather Mangieri, MS, RD, CSSD

These no-bake bars are quick to prepare and make a great snack!

Ingredients:
1 cup rice cereal (such as Rice-Krispies or equivalent)
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking oats (whole or ground in food chopper)
1/3 cup nut butter (almond, cashew, peanut, etc)
¼ cup chopped dried fruit (your choice)
¼ cup chopped nuts (walnuts & almonds work great but use what you like)
¼ cup brown rice syrup (or honey or molasses)
1 Tbsp honey (save for the end)
2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
3 Tbsp ground flaxseed
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon

To Prepare:
1. In a large bowl, combine the rice cereal, oats, flax, cinnamon, dried fruit and nuts. Mix well. A large bowl is recommended because you will need extra room for when the other ingredients are combined later.
2. In a small saucepan, bring the syrup & brown sugar to a boil (stir constantly); remove from heat.  Stir in the nut butter and vanilla.
3. Pour the hot nut butter mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients, stirring well (mixture will be thick.) Use a piece of wax paper to press the mixture into an 11 x 9” pan (that has been sprayed with cooking spray.)
4. Let cool.
5. Drizzle the 1 Tbsp of honey over the top of the pressed, cooled mixture. Cut into 12 bars.
6. Wrap each bar individually in plastic wrap.  Store in the refrigerator.

This recipe makes 12 bars. Each bar contains 140 calories, 6g Total Fat, 19g Total Carbohydrate, 4g Protein.
Enjoy!

Heather Mangieri is a national media spokesperson, registered dietitian and owner of Nutrition CheckUp in Pittsburgh, PA. For more information visit nutritioncheckup.com. You can follow Heather on Twitter @nutritioncheck and join her Facebook community.

Choosing Health Resolutions that Stick! By Andrea D’Ambrosio, RD

How to Choose Health Resolutions You WILL Keep:

What is the point of making a resolution for living better, healthier lives if it is not maintainable? Here are my 4 best tips for weight loss and great health. All my tips are achievable and sustainable!

1. Focus on “life-long change” – Ditch all those fad diets, the hunger strikes, the elimination diets and take charge of your health with real foods that taste good! Remember that any valiant effort to lose weight that involves deprivation and/or extreme exercise is unsustainable; you will eventually default to your old habits. Strategies that are enjoyable are sustainable!

2. Fill up with Fibre: Fibre fills us up on few calories; it slows digestion, lowers cholesterol and stabilizes blood sugars. Choose whole grains (ie. oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice, barley) and b-fast cereals with more than five grams of fibre per serving. Add 1.5 Tbsp of chia seeds to cereal and yogurt to boost fibre at a meal or snack.

3. Take the stairs: Taking the stairs burns twice the number of calories as walking. Stair climbers also have greater leg strength and better aerobic capacity. Climbing just two flights of stairs daily could equate to a 6 pound weight loss per year. Similarly, if you did six flights a day, this could be a 18 pound weight loss over one year.

4. Learn to cook! We have become increasingly dependent upon processed, convenience and restaurant meals. Similarly, our taste buds have become accustomed to crave these types of high fat, salt laden and high sugar foods. Cook your own food more often to improve your dietary quality and decrease your reliance on processed foods. Your waistline will
thank you for it!

Andrea D’Ambrosio is a Registered Dietitian and owner of Dietetic Directions, a dietary counseling and education company in Waterloo, ON. (www.dieteticdirections.com). Follow her on twitter @DambrosioRD or like her page on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/andredambrosiord