It’s been quite a Monday over here and I’ve been full-speed ahead since my feet hit the floor at 5:15 a.m. My first stop was the Y to teach 6 a.m. BodyPump and then back home to clean myself up and feed my starving belly. Strength training makes me so hungry!

I got a little crazy with my breakfast this morning! I was not feeling oatmeal and it was a little chilly so cold yogurt didn’t sound good either. I spotted a loaf of Great Harvest 9-Grain on the counter next to the bananas and the idea of French toast popped into my head. I soaked the bread in a mixture of one egg with cinnamon and unsweeted almond milk and then cooked it in the skillet with the bananas on the side so they could caramelize a bit. I topped the toast with Justin’s Maple Almond Butter, bananas, blueberries and a drizzle of maple syrup.

I headed over to Metro after breakfast and taught the 9:30 a.m. circuit training class and tried to start organizing myself for the week.

I broke around 12:30 for lunch and came home to check on Sul and make a salad. Arugula blend with red peppers, carrots, apples, feta, dried cranberries, almonds, avocado and a TJs Masala Burger. All topped with a lemon dijon honey vinaigrette.

My afternoon was busy, busy and full of meetings and then I taught the 5:45 hot class at Y2. Dinner wasn’t very exciting but delicious…leftover pizza!

And now for the homemade granola bar recipe!

This recipe is so simple and you can really customize it based on what you have in your pantry.

You literally just dump everything into a bowl, mix until combined.

The mixture is pressed into the bottom of a loaf pan and placed in the freezer for a couple of hours.

Remove the bars from the freezer, cut and individually wrap. I’m storing my bars in the freezer so that they will stay fresh and I can grab one when I want it.

Peanut Butter, Coconut and Fruit Granola Bars

Ingredients:

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup dried fruit (I used a mixture of golden raisins and dried cranberries)
2 tablespoons agave nectar (or honey)
2 tablespoons unsweeted applesauce (or use all agave or honey)
1/4 cup peanut butter (or nut butter of your choice)
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/3 cup shredded coconut
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons chia seeds or flax seeds

Directions: 

Place all ingredients in a medium bowl and stir until mixture is well-combined. Line a 9 x 5 loaf pan with wax paper or foil and firmly press oat mixture into the bottom of the pan. Freeze for at least 2 hours or until ready to cut. Cut into 6 bars and individually wrap and store in freezer.

Yield: 6 bars

*Recipe adapted from my friend Rachael.