Bicycle Bars

This morning I had to do a fasting breath test at the doctor’s office. By 10:30AM I was on my bike dragging myself uphill toward home and was downright hungry. Then I remembered… my bar. I reached back into my bag at a red light, and managed even to take a photo before devouring my breakfast on the road.



During September I schlepped back to California after adventures in Nepal. While there, my mother pulled out a recipe for protein bars from Sunset, and since I was on a health-baking kick I was enticed. “Ooh, these look tasty. But 240 calories?!”

“You don’t have to eat the whole thing, Phoebe.” She’s right, of course.

Protein bars are everywhere. The other day on a break at work I ran into CVS looking for a snack- an apple, banana, or jug of soymilk would have sufficed, but of course CVS didn’t have any of these luxury items. However, they do carry more “energy” “protein” and “health” bars than they do laxatives. Curious, considering the correlation... In general, protein bars are a bit frightening because they contain more ingredients than candy bars, often have similar nutritional value, and sit inside me like a brick. I passed on the bars and stole a pear used in one of our frou-frou specialty drinks from the bartender instead.

With some minor substitutions, and a few improvements (mostly chocolate), I think I have created a tastier, lower fat, higher omega bar for an on-the-bicycle-breakfast. Lactose intolerant friendly, of course.

Lactose Free Bicycle Bars Recipe

Cooking spray
Dry Ingredients
½ cup granola or cereal (I used Kashi Almond Flax GoLean)
½ cup oats
1/3 cup oat bran
2 tablespoons brewers yeast
4 tablespoons flax meal
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup chopped roasted almonds
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup raisins
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped (about ½ cup)

Wet Ingredients
¼ cup tofu, processed or whipped into a smooth yogurt-like consistency
¼ cup low fat soy milk
1 egg
½ cup honey
minced zest and juice from ½ of a lemon

Line a sided cookie sheet or jellyroll pan with greased wax paper.

Mix together your dry ingredients in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, mix together all the wet ingredients. Add the dry to the wet ingredients.

Spray your hands with cooking oil (this will get sticky). Pour the batter into the lined pan and spread it out evenly using your greased hands. Stick it in the freezer for 20-30 minutes.

After it’s chilled, preheat the oven to 300 degrees, pull the pan out, and cut your bars with a knife into either into 16 or 24 bars. For 16 cut once lengthwise and 8 across, or for 24 cut into thirds lengthwise. Distribute the bars onto two greased cookie sheets. They can be close together as they won’t rise or spread through cooking.

Bake 15-20 minutes, or until the bars are lightly browned. Let them cool completely, then freeze or store in an airtight container. I like to wrap mine individually so they’re ready to grab at the drop of a helmet.


Nutrition Estimate for 16 Bars (Does not include brewer's yeast): Calories 164. Total fat 5.4g. Carbohydrates 27.7g. Dietary fiber 3.4g. Sugars 13.6g. Protein 4.7g.

Nutrition Estimate for 24 Bars (Does not include brewer's yeast): Calories 110. Total fat 3.6g. Carbohydrates 18.5g. Fiber 2.2g. Sugars 9g. Protein 3.2g.