{"id":396,"date":"2018-05-04T23:16:07","date_gmt":"2018-05-05T04:16:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/neverdonewithfun.com\/?p=396"},"modified":"2019-11-23T12:48:13","modified_gmt":"2019-11-23T18:48:13","slug":"samoa-cookie-inspired-coconut-toffee-protein-bites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/neverdonewithfun.com\/staging\/5228\/2018\/05\/04\/samoa-cookie-inspired-coconut-toffee-protein-bites\/","title":{"rendered":"Samoa Cookie-Inspired Coconut-Toffee Protein Bites"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"No-GuiltGirl Scout cookie season comes too soon after the holidays. You’re still weighed down by those extra holiday pounds when the smiling little girls come knocking at your door. You haven’t even had a chance to give up on that New Year’s Resolution when the order form starts making the rounds at the office. Who can even think about ordering cookies when you just started<\/em> your January diet?<\/p>\n

Um, this girl.<\/p>\n

Samoas, also known in some parts of the country as Caramel Delights, are my favorite. Chocolate, caramel, and coconut in one cookie is perfection.<\/p>\n

But the sugar is those cookies is far from perfection. It leaves me bloated, de-energized, crashing — and craving more sugar endlessly. Not where I want to be, in January on the heels of the holidays, or any other time.<\/p>\n

So I got to work in the kitchen experimenting to come up with a healthier version without all of the refined sugar.<\/p>\n

I’ll warn you: These little bites can be dangerous. Just because they’re naturally sweetened, with real ingredients and almost no refined sugar, doesn’t mean you should eat the whole batch in one sitting. But when you try one, you might be tempted.<\/p>\n

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.<\/em> Read my full\u00a0<\/em>disclosure policy<\/em><\/a>\u00a0for all the boring details<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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No-Guilt Coconut-Toffee Protein Bites<\/h3>\n

Samoa Cookie-Inspired, Without the Chemicals and Sugar Overload<\/em><\/span><\/h5>\n

I love my sweet treats. Chocolate, cookies, any baked good (preferably with frosting) … all the sugary goodness is my weakness. So when Girl Scout cookie season starts, even if I’m 100% committed to the New Year’s diet, you can always count me in for a couple of boxes. Even if they go in my freezer until the diet has fallen by the wayside.<\/p>\n

But over the past year, I’ve worked hard to clean up my eating and curb my sugar addiction. Because for me, that’s what it is: an addiction. One cookie turns into four cookies turns into a whole box of cookies, and then the downward spiral continues from there.<\/p>\n

The easiest way to get sugar under control is to cut it out entirely. But that’s easier said than done, and the ritual of after-dinner dessert has been ingrained in me since childhood. I just don’t feel like dinner is over unless there’s something sweet to top it off.<\/p>\n

Enter nut butters and protein bites.<\/p>\n

The combination of oats and nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew – you can’t go wrong with any of ’em) has become my go-to after-dinner treat. Combined with a little bit of natural sweetener and some chocolate chips, the end result is a protein-packed snack that tastes like a cookie but fuels your body so much more effectively. It satisfies, keeps me full, and gives me the extra energy for a post-kiddo-bedtime workout.<\/p>\n

In fact, I love these protein bites so much that I keep them in the freezer so they’re a little less accessible. It’s easier to restrict myself to just one or two if they’re frozen.<\/p>\n

This version uses cashew butter and pure maple syrup for a buttery caramel taste that is further enhanced by the salty-sweet flavor of the milk chocolate toffee bits sprinkled in for a bit of indulgence.<\/p>\n

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\"Coconut-Toffee<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/g><\/svg><\/span> Print<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t

No-Guilt Coconut-Toffee Protein Bites<\/h2>\n\t
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\n\t\t\t<\/g><\/svg><\/span> Prep Time<\/span> 10<\/span> minutes<\/span>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t<\/g><\/svg><\/span> Total Time<\/span> 10<\/span> minutes<\/span>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t
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\n\t\t\t<\/g><\/svg><\/span> Servings<\/span> 12<\/span> <\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t
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Ingredients<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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