I have surprisingly few photographs documenting all the traveling my family did during my childhood. We did road trips, ski weekends, bus tours, and long hikes in a fairly expansive list of countries, but the evidence is sparse. The few pictures we have together as a family are rigid and awkward: everyone stands a little stiffly next to each other, bodies perpendicular to the ground, arms at sides. Smiles often closed-lips. The only feature linking us as a family is the identical white flashes against our round-framed glasses – we are all heavily nearsighted. I promise we actually did have fun!
Post graduation, it’s harder to find time for a family trip. With multiple schedules in seemingly perpetual misalignment, there are few travel windows available. I’ll admit that I’m lazy about the actual planning and I am quite averse to long flights so I’ve been a bit of a bottleneck in the whole situation.
But we’re a family who experiences countries through food, if not photographs, and that’s where services like Try the World can be so handy! I recently received the Sweden box, which came stuffed with an assortment of unfamiliar snacks and treats: elderflower syrup, lingonberry jam, and rosehip fudge to name a few. They disappeared quickly, devoured in a whirlwind mix of authentic and inauthentic meals.
One such completely inauthentic use of the ingredients provided: Löfbergs ground coffee energy bites. They’re vegan and 100% free of refined sugars, plus they pack a crazy protein, fiber, and flavor punch. Sweet potato, banana, and black beans are my new magical combo base for baking everything! I’ve been snacking on them pre and post-workout; this fitness-friendly brownie type concoction is definitely becoming a daily habit.
A big thank you to Try the World for providing the service and snacks for this post – can’t wait to bring international exploration a little closer to home!
Löfbergs Coffee Energy Bites Recipe (makes 16)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup quick oats
- 1 cup roasted sweet potato, mashed
- 1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed & drained (low sodium/no salt preferred)
- 1 very ripe banana
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt (if unsalted beans)
- 2 - 3 tbsp of Lofbergs ground coffee
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a blender, pulse the oats until they turn to a coarse flour. Blend in the remaining ingredients, working in batches as needed, until you have a fairly smooth batter.
Press the batter into the lined baking pan, pushing it into all corners. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the center is just set.
Let cool and set in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes, then slice into 16 squares.