Hey friends and happy Wednesday! Today I thought I'd share a recipe that we've been loving in our house lately. These energy bars are DELICIOUS. They're no bake (so easy), made with whole and healthy ingredients and they're so simple to make. Trust me, if I can make these, you totally can do. Plus, is it just me or do you find that when you're loving how your kitchen looks, you're also more inspired to cook? Haha

Our kitchen space is one of my favourite places in our house. I love how clean and modern the area is and because it's not a huge space, we've had to be very deliberate in choosing every element, even our appliances. Our stove was actually the first major decision we made when we were picking out our appliances for our home. We love a gas range but in this home, it wasn't an option (gotta love making those tough budget decisions *sigh*) but when we found this Samsung dual convection range we both knew it was the best bet for us. Confession: James does more cooking than I do so he had more say in our appliances than I did and while James loved it for it's culinary benefits (five burners and two dual burners and dual convection), I loved it for it's clean lines and modern look. Because it's low profile and the knobs are on the front, it doesn't block the view of our backsplash (bonus). From there, we knew we wanted the rest of our appliances to be in the same series so that we had visual consistency. Plus, I love that the Samsung Over the Range Microwave eliminates the need for a hood fan in our kitchen (simpler and cleaner for our minimalist kitchen!) and the Samsung French Door Refrigerator has the water dispenser on the inside for cleaner lines visible (you sensing a trend here?).

To compliment the clean lines and minimalist vibe in our kitchen space we finished off with the Wilma Barstools from The Brick. They're modern, comfortable and go perfectly with our contemporary aesthetic. So, with our space looking fabulous I've lately been inspired to get in the kitchen a bit more. Also, James and I made it one of our goals for this year to cook more and try new recipes and today's post is the result of just that.

First, let me share the backstory of these incredible bars.... in the fall when James' parents were visiting from England we took them to Banff and when we visited the gondola, we stopped to grab a snack and I picked up an energy bar from a local company. It was so delicious, I devoured the bar in minutes so when I took a look at the ingredients, I felt optimistic I could replicate something similar on my own. The next time we visited Banff I made James pick up 5 of the bars so I could attempt to recreate the delicious and healthy snack. After a few trial runs I've created a bar that's very similar with a few of my own added ingredients.

What's best about these bars (aside from the fact that they're made with healthy and wholesome ingredients and they're delicious) is that they're no bake. Just combine the ingredients, set in a pan and refrigerate to have delicious energy bars perfect to take with you on the go!

Here's what you need for these yummy healthy snacks!

One Cup Brown Rice Cereal (I use Nature's Path 'Crispy Rice' cereal) // 1 Cup Large Flake Oats // 3 tbsp Chopped Dried Apricots (About 6 or 7 apricots) // 1/4 cup Chopped Peanuts // 2 Tbsp Unsweetened Shredded Coconut // 3 Tbsp Craisins (unsweetened, chopped) // 1 Tbsp Chia Seeds // 1 Cup Natural Peanut Butter // 1/3 Cup Honey // 2 Tbsp Cocoa

Begin by adding the peanut butter, honey and cocoa into a medium pot on the stove and heat to medium to melt. While those are melting, add the other ingredients to a large bowl and roughly mix by hand. Once the mixture on the stove top has melted and mixed well, turn to low and add the other ingredients to the pot. Stir with a wooden spoon and mix well until the ingredients are all covered with the peanut butter mixture. Then pour the mixture into a pan or tray lined with parchment paper and using a wooden spoon, pat down until the mixture is packed well and even. Put in the fridge to cool and set overnight and the next day you have delicious energy bars! Makes about 12 bars that are perfect for taking with you on the go!

I hope you guys LOVE these bars as much as we do! They're a hit in our house and with everyone who's tried them!