In honor of National Macadamia Nut Day, I’m sharing an adaptation of one of my favorite macadamia nut recipe I posted on my blog last year that has remained a staple in my kitchen ever since! These little bars are hands down my favorite snack/treat/energy bite! Their texture is like cookie dough, their flavor is bright and buttery, and they contain all natural wholesome ingredients that make them totally acceptable as a post workout replenishment or afternoon pick me up. Having Celiac’s disease, I’m always looking for delicious wheat and grain free treats that are made with delicious alternative ingredients to make my taste buds and my body happy. Since my favorite nut in the world is the macadamia nut, I used them to make a smooth and creamy base that made these bars extra delicious! People give macadamia nuts a bad rep because they’re high in fat, which we’ve been conditioned to be afraid of. But they’re actually great for you, as studies have shown they reduce bad cholesterol, which is good news for your heart! (1). Their higher fat content, which is almost all monounsaturated, makes them a bit less dry and more creamy than some other nuts. Instead of going the chocolate route, I decided to go for a brighter flavor and make them a blondie/lemon bar hybrid because I had lots of fresh organic citrus in my kitchen from the farmer’s market that looked so great I couldn’t resist loading up! Here’s how I made them:
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup macadamia nut butter (I’ll show you how I made this below)
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup grade B maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Zest and juice of 1 Meyer lemon
- Zest and juice of 1 Navel orange
- 2 eggs
- Pinch of salt
Directions
1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 2) Add all ingredients except the mac butter, eggs, and lemon to a bowl. 3) Now, make the mac butter. Add approximately 1 cup of macadamia nuts to a food processor. You won’t use all of the butter this amount yields, but it processes easier with more macs in the shredder. Turn it on and let it go. Macadamias are a more oily nut, so you may not need to stop and scrape the sides until it’s buttery and smooth (3-4 minutes), but if you notice it getting caught up scrape it down and turn it back on. 4) Add 1/2 cup of the mac butter, the zest of 2 lemons and their juice, and the eggs to the bowl. 5) Mix it all up until ingredients are well combined and press evenly into an 8×8 baking dish sprayed with coconut oil or lightly greased with ghee. I topped mine with shredded coconut before popping in because it looked pretty! 6) Bake for 25 minutes. Remove and allow to cool before enjoying! SOURCES:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18356332
