These homemade nut bars are not only delicious, but full of healthy fats your body needs to give you the energy to have that amazing day!
It’s Monday, so here we are with another Lemon & Olives Mediterranean Monday post #LOMEDMONDAY. Today’s Nut Bar recipe is something in the same vein as our Pasteli – ancient Greece’s energy bars and one of the first in the world.
Fun fact: It is said that the ancient Greek olympian used to eat them during training.
Nuts are an important part of the Mediterranean diet lifestyle. They reside in the largest category on the food pyramid and come with a lot of health benefits.
Nuts Help The Heart
For example, the Mayo Clinic had a great article called, Nuts and your heart: Eating nuts for heart health which highlights the nutrients that nuts contain to keep you and your heart healthy! They identify: unsaturated fats, 0mega-3 fatty acids, fiber, vitamin E, plant sterols, and L-arginine
All that from a daily ¼ cup amount. That’s what I’m talkin’ about. Do keep in mind however that nuts are high in calories, so stick to that ¼ cup (30g) serving.
This recipe makes it easy to do just that by the way. We bought a 12 ounce bag of mixed nuts that resulted in 2 ¾ cups. That is the equivalent of 11 servings and we were able to make 14 bars! So you can enjoy one of these bars without worrying if you’re consuming over the daily recommended amount.
We also decided to throw in some flax seeds, which are high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids as a bonus.
Honey | Μέλι
Honey has been a staple in Greece since ancient times. Called ambrosia (ἀμβροσία) which means, immortality, it was a food thought to have been consumed by the gods themselves.
They also used it for the health benefits and Hippocrates even prescribed it to people with different ailments and hailed it for its antioxidants.
Today, we prefer to use honey in place of sugar when possible. While it is sugar, we feel it’s better for you, and it’s easier for the body to absorb, which has to be a good thing. It’s natural and if it was good enough for the ancient Greeks (as well as the Egyptians, Assyrians, and Babylonians) it’s good enough for us. Plus, Greek honey tastes so amazing.
We Loved These Homemade Nut Bars
What we loved about these nut bars is that not only where they easy to make, but it’s also a fun and delicious way to eat nuts and rein in all those powerful nutrients that they carry.
You could also get creative and add in all your favorite nuts, or maybe just a single one. The possibilities are endless. The honey holds them together and these are the perfect snack to have while following a healthy Mediterranean diet lifestyle.
Homemade Nut Bars
Ingredients
- ¾ cup honey
- 2 ¾ cups mixed nuts*
- 1 tablespoon flax seeds
Instructions
- Pour honey into pot and bring to a simmer.
- Stir summering honey continuously for 5 minutes.
- Turn off and remove from heat.
- Pour in mixed nuts and flax seeds and mix well.
- Pour onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes to cool.
- Place in freezer for 30 mints to firm.
- Remove, cut into bars, enjoy!**
Notes
**If removing from freezer they’re too difficult to cut, just let them sit out a bit. Also, wrapping each one in parchment paper and storing them in a sealed container in the fridge is what we recommend and personally do.
These look delicious! Did you add dried cranberries, also?