Lemon "Cheesecake" Bars and Spring Update!

Hello everyone!  I sincerely apologize for being M.I.A. for so long this has been a crazy week and a half with school since I'm leaving for spring break a day and a half early :)  I promise I'll have a lot more posts over my vacation since I will have more free time!

Anyways, I am so excited to share this down right AMAZING recipe with you all because it actually tastes like your eating a rich, decadent dessert.  When my parents tried them, they said these had more of a cheesecake texture.  Who doesn't like cheesecake, I mean really?  Here I give you...

Lemon "Cheesecake" Bars!

and a close up view

Like. YUM.  That looks like cake.  It basically is cake.

These turned out super moist and had a very refreshing lemon flavor which I loved, and I am usually not a fan of lemon flavored things.  And whats best about these is that they are a high protein-low carb treat!  Perfect for late night cravings or a midday pick-me-up.  

My inspiration for this recipe came from a similar recipe I found online for "Lemon Protein Bars" from Jaime Eason.  The exact link here ---->  http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/video-jamie-eason-lemon-protein-bars.htm

The only difference really between Jaime Eason's Protein Bars and my Lemon Cheesecake Bars is that I used coconut flour instead of oat flour, in order to reduce the amount of carbs slightly.  Since coconut flour is much more absorbant then other flours, I had to do some research and get the exact conversions from oat flour to coconut flour and they still turned out perfectly!  So here is the recipe everyone :)

Lemon "Cheesecake" Bars

(makes 16 squares)

- 1/3 cup coconut flour

- 2 scoops vanilla whey protein powder

- 1 lemon crystal light mix (2 qt.)

- 5 egg whites (use actual egg whites from an egg)

- 8 oz apple sauce

- 1/2 cup stevia

- 1/4 tsp salt

- 1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and combine well.  Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl, and add to the dry ingredients.  Stir the mixture together, making sure the protein powder isn't clumpy.  Your batter should be somewhat thick, almost like brownie batter.  If it is too think, add some water to loosen up the coconut flour a bit.  Be careful not to add too much liquid however, because then your bars will be so moist that they will break apart when you hold them! Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes in a 4x4 baking pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray then check them.  Coconut flour bakes somewhat quicker then regular flour, so just eyeball it.  They should be golden brown along the edges and when you stick a knife in the center it should come out clean!  Also, they should feel slightly firm toward the center.  Let them cool for about 15 minutes and then feel free to dig in!

After they had cooled, I cut them into 16 squares and put them in the fridge.  They were so good cold.  Tasted like straight-up cake.  AND they are 100% clean and healthy.  

One serving is 2 squares, which has exactly 78.8 calories, 1 g of fat, 8.5 g of carbs, 2.7 g of fiber, and a 8.9 g of protein!  If that isn't guilt free, I dont know what is!  I'd recommend crumbling one of these bars in some greek yogurt, and frozen for about 30 minutes, then top it with another crumbled up bar on top!  It takes like the chucks of cake they mix into Coldstone ice cream but 10x better for you!!  

Please give these a try and let me know how you like them! :)  I always appreciate the feedback!  Goodnight everyone!