Now that you’ve rounded the corner on the first month of the new year, you’re probably wondering if you’re going to be able to stick with those resolutions you made at midnight, 30 days ago. Take heart, it’s may be hard to change old habits, but not impossible.
Current research on the matter, varies. One study suggests it takes 21 days to start creating new neural pathways (the path to habit change) while another study cites three to six weeks for new habit development (depending on commitment to change) and a yet another study suggests that it may take as long as three months for a new habit to fully become a part of your lifestyle . What this means is that it takes serious, conscious effort to in order to create the new pathways that will convert your conscious work into an unconscious one, or in other words, a habit. This requires time, patience and reinforcement through repetitive actions.
If your resolution is for better health or diet we have a recipe that may just help this resolve to be less of a chore. It’s one of our favorites and it comes from the book Ultra Metabolism by Dr. Hyman. Brazil Nut Bars are very high in protein (10 g per bar) and fiber (5 g/bar) and delicious. For those of us who have either physical jobs or very little time to eat and need a boost between meals it is an ideal power bar, minus fillers and too much sugar. It is designed to give you sustained energy, not just a sudden burst that wears out.
NOTE: You can find the sprouted grains at New Seasons, it is a specialty cereal in the cereal isle, but if you can’t find it you can use all natural granola (no sugar added). We find that Brazil nuts and nut butter and dried cranberries and grapeseed oil are all cheapest at Trader Joes.
Brazil Nut Bars
Grape seed oil
1 1/2 cup whole brazil nuts
1/2 cup pumpkin raw seeds
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup ground flax seeds
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cup of sprouted grain cereal
1 cup cashew or almond butter
3/4 cup honey
Lightly coat a 9 x 13 in baking dish with grapeseed oil. In a food processor pulse the brazil nuts until ground into a fine powder. Transfer to a large bowl. Add pumpkin seeds, almonds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, cinnamon and sprouted grain cereal.
In a large saucepan on the stove heat the honey and nut butter until very hot and bubbling (about 3 min). Pour over the mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon. Immediately press mixture firmly into baking dish. Let the mixture cool in the refrigerator.
Cut into pieces.
Wrap each individually in wax paper or plastic wrap and store in the freezer.
Nutrition Facts (per bar)
377 calories
30g carbo
5 g fiber
10 g protein
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