Breakfast Bars: High Fiber & Protein, Gluten-Free, Vegan, Sprouted

For a long time I’ve been on a quest for a healthy breakfast that will also help with weight-loss. I love my toast with almond butter, but I am such with carbs that I will gain weight on that (or certainly not lose it). I lose weight on Atkins, but my cholesterol goes sky high and, well, it hardly feels healthy.

What was I looking for? A high-fiber, high-protein, gluten-free bread that was really low on the glycemic index. Am I asking too much? Even if I am, those are the parameters that I needed to work with given that I need to be gluten-free and seem to have Metabolic Syndrome.

What I came up with is also vegan, and you can sprout the gluten-free “grains” and seeds to get an even better breakfast, as sprouted grains are much easier to digest and full of enzymes and increased nutrients. The sprouting process brings the grain kernel to life for germination.

Annie’s Breakfast Bar
Makes 10-12 cookies/bars

Ingredients
1 cup raw, hulled sesame seeds
1 cup rice bran
1 cup quinoa flour
1 cup coconut flour
2 1/2 to 2 3/4 cups water or unsweetened almond milk
2 tablespoons – 1/4 cup agave (if you need sweets, make sure you add another tablespoon or two)
2 teaspoons vanilla (optional)

Directions
Non-sprouting version
Preheat the oven to 350.
1. Combine all the ingredients in a big bowl.
2. Add water, almond milk, or milk until the mixture is the texture of cookie dough. Pat the dough into bar or cookie shapes.
3. “Butter” a cookie pan with coconut oil, and place the bars on it.
4. Cook until golden brown, about 18-20 minutes.

Sprouting version
Follow the directions for the non-sprouting version except 1) don’t use dairy milk for a liquid, and 2) stop after you have added the liquid and let the mixture set for up to 24 hours before adding more liquid if needed to return the dough to a cookie-dough like texture before forming the bars.

Serving: 1 bar
Calories: 180
Fat: 7.28g
Carbs: 23.51g
Fiber: 6.66g
Protein: 5.25g

Glycemic Index
Sesame seeds: very low
Rice bran: low
quinoa flour: low
coconut flour: low
agave: low
Note that high fiber foods lower the glycemic index, so the addition of the high-fiber coconut flour and rice bran are great additions to the ingredients.

I eat this “bar” with 1 cup of 2 percent Greek yogurt on top for an addition 19 grams of protein! I also sprinkle about 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and/or cardamon powder over it all, stir it together, and make a nice mixture like one could with a strawberry shortcake. (The cinnamon and cardamon are both anti-insulin spices.) This brings the calorie count to about 330. If it’s still not sweet enough add a little agave syrup. Add fresh fruit when in season.

I feel great on this breakfast. It tides me over to lunch, I’ve started to lose weight, and I am not craving carbs. Most importantly, my body feels like it has gotten what it needs with this. Yay!

By Annie B. Bond, best-selling and award-winning author of five green living books, thousands of blogs,  and all the tips in the Greenify Everything app. Called “The Godmother of Green” by Martha Stewart Sirius Radio.