I’m not sure where the weekend went but I don’t remember any of it. Most likely because I was poisoned by my friend’s smoke machine at his Halloween party on Friday. This guy goes ALL OUT for Halloween and he crushes it. Especially since he has a girlfriend this year and his girlfriend had great snacks like peanut M&M’s and puppy chow. Aka crack. I think I ate my bodyweight in those chocolate nut balls of joy. I think it’s how I deal with social anxiety. Or that’s just my excuse for giving myself a stomach ache.
Parties already give me anxiety, but add on the stress of having to come up with a unique and funny costume or just dress like a ho fo sho, anxiety is HEIGHTENED. I’ve always been a social person, but anxiety is something I’ve always dealt with in some way. And it definitely continues to get worse as I get older and know how certain situations will go down. For example, our gym had a Halloween party Saturday night at a bar in town. I wanted to go and planned to go, but I didn’t want to dress up or drink. So I knew parking would be a nightmare then everyone would talk sh*t about not wearing a costume then ask why I wasn’t drinking or push drinks. And even though all of these things aren’t that big of a deal, I would much rather stay home and not deal with them at all.
But you know what? Missing out on these social situations with friends is a major bummer. So it’s something I need to work on. I would just much rather have a dinner party with fun cocktails in my own house, where I can wear ho fo sho slippers instead of a costume. That just sounds way more fun.
Oh sh*t, today is Halloween. Are you making my Edible Cookie Dough Bites for a Halloween treat tonight? Instead of handing out super sketchy candy that literally never goes bad (so scary) to random children I’ve never met and know nothing about, I’ll be eating these cookie dough bites by myself in our house with the lights off. Social events give me anxiety, but children give me even more anxiety. And I refuse to purchase candy that has ingredients like potassium sorbate, hydrogenated soybean oil, and high fructose corn syrup. No thank you!
Man, I am fun AF. And incredibly contradicting since I just said I ate my bodyweight in peanut M&M’s. Ugh, I’m the worst.
Happy Halloween, you beautiful soul! Instead of eating sketchy candy and opening your door to complete strangers, make these granola bars instead and keep that door closed! I listen to true crime podcasts, I know what happens to people who open their door to strangers! Don’t be that statistic!
Baked Pumpkin Spice Granola Bars
- Yield: 8 bars 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup pecans
- 1 cup walnuts
- 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup cashew butter
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper for easy removal later.
- Place pecans and walnuts in a food processor and pulse to break down into small pieces.
- In a large bowl, use a spatula to mix together the pulsed pecans and walnuts with coconut, cashew butter, maple syrup, pumpkin, flaxseed meal, chia seeds, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and egg. Once combined, fold in 1/4 cup chocolate chips.
- Press batter into baking dish and spread evenly throughout. Place in oven to bake for 20-25 minutes, until the middle is cooked through and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 20 minutes before removing from pan.
- Melt the remaining mini chocolate chips in a microwave or double boiler then use a spoon to scoop the chocolate and wave the spoon back and forth to spread the chocolate on top of the bars. Slice into 8 bars. Store in refrigerator.
Notes
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More Bars!
Chocolate Dipped Caramel Nut Bars
Chocolate “Peanut Butter” Cookie Bars
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Minority here, but I love Halloween. I never Trick or Treated as a kid because we lived way out in the country. We started going last year with my daughter in the neighbor my MIL lives in- so we know everyone. It’s honestly kinda fun. My kid loves it- sketch candy and all 🙂
Maybe a little personality conflict over there? I feel the same way!! That being said, I’ll sure try this recipe =)
Omggg! This look sooo good! I cannot wait to try them out! Where do you buy cashew butter and what brand do you recommend? Whole Foods? I’ve been loving your recipes lately!!!
xoxo
whole foods! and whatever brand doesn’t have weird oils or sugar!
Hi Juli!! I absolutely love your recipes and fashion choices! I’m doing this weird elimination diet (similar to what your husband just did with the bloodwork), and they’ve said I’m very reactionary to coconut. I’m wondering if you have any ideas for a substitute for coconut in this recipe, or for paleo baking in general. They look so good!!! Thanks for your help!
i’m sorry i don’t have a substitute for this recipe! i haven’t tried making these any other way!
I love your recipes. All the ingredients are typically stuff I have in my house and I don’t have to go searching in random specialty stores to find them. You make the world a better place.
that’s awesome, glad i could make your world a little better! xoxoxo
Just made these bars tonight and they never got hard in the oven. Did I do something wrong ? They are super soft to the touch.
hmmmmm I’m not sure. i’ll have to retest these to make sure i didn’t mess up the recipe. i’m so sorry!
Hi Juli, I would love to make these for my daughter (aip paleo) but she as tree nut allergies. Can you suggest a replacement for the cashew butter and I think the egg will be okay but if not, would a gelatin egg work do you think. Thanks for the wonderful recipes.
you could use sunflower seed butter instead!
My best tip for surviving social occasions without booze- HOLD A DRINK! That way you can say yes to the first person who offers you a drink and then everytime someone asks you if you want one just show them your full glass and say- I already have one thanks! Seriously nobody notices that you aren’t actually drinking at all especially at a party or where there are lots of people around. I was in my first trimester of pregnancy and did this through an entire Christmas season and nobody noticed. I do it often now when I only want one drink- I nurse the first one and then hold the second one.
So these look amazing but im abnormal and don’t like pumpkin. If I omit the pumpkinpuree will the bar end up too dry?
Thanks!
i haven’t tried them without pumpkin but i think it would still work! just can’t say for sure since i haven’t tried it that way
Hi! I made these with almond butter, because it’s what I had available at the time, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about them at first. After some fridge time they are phenomenal – but it made me curious about how you decide which kind of nut butters to use/if different nut butters bring out different flavors/if there is any kind of pairing of nut butter to flavor. If those are your paleo-profesh secrets, I won’t be mad if you don’t tell – just curious! PS Thanks for existing and putting all of your goodness out there for randoms like me!!
i like cashew butter for a lot of baked goods because it doesn’t have a strong taste to it so you can add a lot of different flavors to it! i find that almond butter has a distinct flavor so i don’t use it quite as much!