Chocolate Zucchini Protein Bars

As promised, I wanted to share with you all the greatness of my recent chocolate zucchini protein bars.  They are really great afternoon snacks and much less expensive than store bought bars.  I actually took the time to do the cost analysis this time, as opposed to my first batch, and they came out to be only $0.38 a piece.  How’s that for super cool?

Chocolate Zucchini Protein Bars
Modified from this recipe.

Super yummy homemade protein bars that sort of taste like zucchini bread.  Makes one 8x8 pan, 10 or 12 bars depending on how knife happy you get!  With my ingredients they are 100 calories a piece, 8g of protein per bar for 10 pieces in the recipe.

Ingredients:
4 eggs
3/4 cup mashed banana
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup chocolate protein powder
1/4 cup ground or milled flax seed
4 tbsp cup-for-cup Stevia
2 tbsp dark cocoa powder
2 tsp maca powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp gluten-free baking soda (double if using this product)
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 cup finely grated zucchini, as dried as possible with towels

How to:
1. Preheat the oven to 375*.
2. Mix the first three ingredients (the wet ones) together.
3. Sift the dry ingredients together (minus the zucchini).
4. Add dry to wet and mix well.  Fold in zucchini and let sit for 2 minutes.
5. Prepare an 8x8 brownie pan with foil and cooking spray.  Fill with batter and gently spread evenly.
6. Bake for 25 minutes. Mine were slightly moist still so I added another two minutes.  Keep in mind that zucchini typically carries a lot of moisture so it will continue to give wetness to the batter even after you take out the bars.
7. Let cool for 10 minutes then portion the bars.  I wrapped mine in foil so they are grab and go-able from the fridge.

I hope you enjoy this homemade alternative to store bought bars.  I know that ever since I’ve gotten to making my own I really enjoy them.  I admit I’d like to figure out how to get a nice crispy texture but I’m not quite sure how to do that.  These guys have a bit of a cake-y or bread-like texture but they’re still perfectly delicious and filling.

Questions: What flavor protein bars would you like to try?
What do think about putting veggies in protein bars?