In it for the Long Run

wellness | intuition | curiosity

Nut Butter Dates aka Deconstructed Larabars

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First of all I want to start by saying I am not the snacking police (aka the worst job ever). In general, I’m not a fan of hating on food or using scare tactics to encourage people to be healthier. I’d much rather encourage people to eat their veggies than to throw shade if someone is eating fast food.

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Guess what? Snacks happen. Food between meals. Lately I feel like they’ve been demonized or at least harshly criticized. First we had to only eat carrot sticks then we find out that if we’re not eating some form of protein during out snack the snack police will give us a disapproving side eye and silently judge, because that’s how I imagine a snack police would operate, on passive aggressive judgement. Oh yeah, and god forbid you have any sugar, because sugar is the worst and you’ll get an extra long stink eye for eating sugar.nutbutterdate6

Ok, I’m being dramatic but snacks are a reality and rather than trying to be perfect we should aim for “the best we can with what we have.” That mindset is what will protect your sanity, because as nice as it would be to have homemade erraythang with the perfect proportions of carbs/fats/protein to keep you happy and satisfied, that’s not always reality. Instead, look for sometime that will keep you full, satisfy your craving and has some kind of nutrition.

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Hunger happens, and snacks definitely happen. I’ve been having one of those “dammit is it really already 1am” kind of weeks where sleep just hasn’t been long or restful and when that happens the snack beast emerges from her hangry cave to growl incessantly. What I wish I could do is curl up and nap it out, but instead I’m trying to feed (and hydrate) the snack beast responsibly.

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My current obsession, that satisfies the snack beast, has been nut butter dates, or as my sister calls them “deconstructed larabars.” I didn’t have much feeling towards dates on their own. I love them for recipes, but found them to be a bit on the sweet side. But a couple weeks ago I forgot to buy larabars (my usual go to snack) and instead of busting out the food processor I thought it could be fun to “deconstruct” one of my favorite larabar flavors using a date. That’s where the cashew coconut combo was born. I tried a bite and not only were the flavors a great match (I mean the larabar concept alredy told us that) but the texture was more satisfying than a straight up bar. I found that stuffed dates are way more fun to eat than bars and take a lot less time than homemade larabars (my other go to snack).

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Then the wheels started turning and I got into full snack-innovation mode. And well, I don’t like to brag but I have a lot of nut butters. I went a little crazy one afternoon and I just HAD to share all these fun flavor combos.

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My Favorites:

  • Coconut Cashew (cashew butter with unsweetened coconut shavings)
  • Sunbutter Delight (sunbutter with sunflower seeds)
  • Almond Butter for days
  • Honey Pretzel Peanut Butter
  • Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter
Deconstructed Larabars
Recipe Type: healthy snack
Cuisine: vegetarian
Author: Georgie
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 2
Creamy nut butter and sweet chewy dates are a match made in snacking heaven. Skip the pre made snack bars and make this deconstructed larabars instead.
Ingredients
  • 5 Pitted Dates
  • 3 tbsp of your favorite nut butter
  • Optional:
  • 1 tsp of your favorite seed, nut or coconut flakes
Instructions
  1. Slice pitted date down the middle so just the bottom half is still attached
  2. Take approximately 1-2 tsp of your favorite nut butter and spread it between each half and squeeze the date back together
  3. Optional:
  4. Top with your favorite seeds, nuts or coconut flakes

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So forget about the snacking police, it’s ok to be hungry. If you have an extra five minutes in the morning to make these babies, you will NOT regret it. But if you have to pick up a premade snack do the best you can with what you’ve got. Don’t feel guilty for feeling hungry. Luckily the biggest snack police are in our own heads so shake ’em off if they try to guilt you with their side eye.

Your Turn:

What’s your go-to snack?

What date/nut butter combo should I try next?

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Comments

  1. Lately I am all about apples and unsalted cashews or a apple and a heaping spoonful of nut butter with lots of cinnamon. These look adorable and DANG delicious! Happy Friday! XOXO

  2. Considering the picture of my current supply of nut butter that I posted today this is right up my alley! I also have dates and planned to use them in the food processor but this is an easier idea when hunger strikes.

  3. Yum, these look great! I have a 2.5 lb bag of dates at the moment, so I’ll have to try it out. And I actually posted a recipe for homemade larabars today hahaha 🙂

  6. love/love. dates are seriously the best! and when you add a little fat to them… ugh. so good. i love eating mine with coconut peanut butter. that’s jam.
    the only people i’ll throw shade at for eating unhealthy are my parents. i use scare tactics to try to keep them alive as long as possible. oooops!

  7. These look phenomenal! I’ll definitely be giving them a go. I reckon if you have any chocolate nut butter in your stash that would make for an amazing filling. You could top with cacao nibs or even a couple of dark chocolate drops.

  9. My go-to snack pretty much everyday is an apple with peanut butter. and sometimes when I’m craving something sweet after dinner (sometimes = every night) I dip dates into my peanut butter jar! oopssss

  11. I have been eating dates and homemade almond butter for so long. It’s one of my favorite snacks ever! I havent tried with these other flavor combos, but I may have to. It’s a serious problem 🙂

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