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A better RX Bar...


leahcarn

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Last time I went tramping (hiking) overnight, I lugged frozen beef and pumpkin stew halfway up a mountain. It worked, but I have a feeling O/H would have been happier with more lightweight food. Also, there is obviously a time-limit on tramping with this sort of food.

 

We can't get RX bars here, but I understand the concept is a shelf-stable-ish bar with carbs, fat and protein.

I am also limited in wanting the final product to be low fodmap, which rules out dates, and most dried fruit.

There is a local store here that does an egg white protein powder, and that could be mixed with cashew butter for a low fodmap fat, but does anyone have any ideas for carbs to mix in?

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Can you eat purple yam? I'm also low FODMAP and it is OK for me, but we're all different. And will you have access to hot water? My international grocery store sells powdered ube -- a dehydrated purple potato. It reconstitutes with and absorbs hot water to form a porridge of sorts. With neutral temperature water it doesn't work quite the same, it comes out sorta mealy. It is NOT sweet like a purple potato. I can't describe the flavor for you though. 

 

I'm not in a Whole30 right now, but I'd guess this is Whole30 compliant? Maybe someone else could chime in on that. I started eating it because it's high in iron and easy to travel with. I nuke it with water and stir it into eggs, or bake it right into an ube-egg omelette. Makes for a pretty purple omelette!

 

lucie

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I can't do the orange sweet potatoes or I get symptoms, but I can do Japanese and white ones. I'm not sure why, I've read that it could be due to the sugar composition in the oranges that was selectively bred into them to get their sweet flavor. I don't have much access to the purples, but when I do...I fill the cart!

 

I do want to play with making ube bars this spring. How hard can it be, right?! ;)

 

lucie

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If I get it to work, an energy bar made with powdered ube.

 

I would recommend trying to get a little closer to the whole vegetable. From what I'm seeing, you can get bags of dehydrated powdered Japanese sweet potato, but often it is mixed with sugar, and I wonder how much of the nutrition is intact after all that processing...maybe use the sweet potato cooked and pureed as a base for the bar?

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There's no sugar in my ube. When I can find purple yams, I use them. But this is a camping/hiking/energy bar option in testing so I'm not thinking meal replacement. I suggested it as a non perishable lightweight option for Leah.

Interesting point about processing and nutrition, eithet way it's something I eat once or twice a week is all. Not a major source of food.

Lucie

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I had a first attempt, trying to use items I had in my kitchen so I didn't have to buy anything, and it was a bit of a fail. 

 

I used 100g egg, 70g white potato, and 20g cashew butter to give a product that was 50% fat by calorie, and around the same protein as carbs. I shot for this ratio because, back when I was tracking food, it's what I do best on. 

 

I boiled and mashed the potato, stirred in the cashew butter and egg, then baked them as someone on here suggested, in a muffin tray to get small servings. 

 

The first problem is that they came out looking very muffiny - they are a pale gold colour and rose in the middle. The texture appears to be omelette, but the appearance is all muffin (I was hoping they would look a bit like Nom Nom Paleo's tuna cakes, fail!). I don't even know if I am allowed to eat them on whole30. I hate wasting food though, help??

The second problem is that mashed potatoes and egg both take up a lot of physical space. The mixture I made, made 3 quarter cup cakes, and they are only ~100 calories each. So I think I am going to have to buy egg white protein powder, and potato flour maybe? Is potato flour allowed on whole30?? To try and up the energy a bit without changing the mass. Then rely on the cashew butter to stick the raw bar together.

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Is potato flour allowed on whole30?? 

Potato starch is fine on Whole30 to use for thickening sauces or breading meat. It is not alright for baking with, would be the same as any other flour on Whole30, no making baked goods.  :(

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Potato starch is fine on Whole30 to use for thickening sauces or breading meat. It is not alright for baking with, would be the same as any other flour on Whole30, no making baked goods.   :(

 

Ladyshanny, does that make my RX bars non-compliant in any way, shape or form? 

Or only if I heat them during processing?

Or only if I start with non-whole-food ingredients? 

Also, can I eat the ones I made or are they SWYPO?

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Help? Anyone? Does an RX bar have to have dried fruit rather than veges to be compliant???

 

definitely for sure not. You can make things out of veggies, fat and protein to have during exercise/hiking and they certainly do not have to have fruit in them to be compliant. I think ladyshanny was worried because it sounded like the thing you ended up with was "muffiny" and seemed like it could be considered a paleo baked good. However, context and intent is important.

 

Personally, if I saw someone trying desperately to get the texture of a muffin so they could satisfy their urge for muffins, I would discourage them and tell them this is not compliant. If they proceeded to eat these in their own home when they could just as easily be eating veggies, fat and protein, I would discourage them from doing so. But thats not what I see here. Fueling during a long hike is not easy. The impulse to make your own "bar" that better meets your nutritional goals is a good one, even if they end up looking more "muffiny" than you originally intended. Have at it, and let us know if you come up with something that works! 

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