Congratulations, you made it to the end of the semester! If you’re anything like me, you’re probably swamped with work and are struggling to find the energy to do it.
Lucky for us, we can get extra energy from some quick and easy snacks! Of course, you can drink four cups of coffee and two cans of Monster to stay alert, but the energy we get from caffeine is only short-term.
According to Healthline, caffeine is a stimulant so it can make us feel less tired. However, it is best used for short bursts of energy.
We wouldn’t recommend that you completely stop drinking caffeine, but you should try out some of these sweet recipes that will give you energy for the entire day!
Oatmeal and baked oats
Yes, this is quite a bland and boring recipe but, if you chop up some berries you can add extra sweetness to your oatmeal. Both the berries and oatmeal give you energy, so it’s a win-win situation! If you have some, adding in some nuts will also greatly benefit you.
If oatmeal by itself isn’t your thing, try baked oats. You can’t go wrong with this recipe as it tastes like cake, except it’s even more nutritious! Here is our favourite (vegetarian-friendly) baked oats recipe:
Ingredients
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50 g Oat flour (or blitz porridge oats to make flour)
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100 ml Almond milk
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50 g Vanilla greek yoghurt
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¼ tsp Baking powder
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A good splash of maple syrup (optional)
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A handful of fresh or frozen raspberries
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Any white chocolate
1. Combine your oat flour with greek yoghurt and almond milk until fully combined. If you like to use protein powder add that now.
2. Add in your baking powder and if you want some extra sweetness add maple syrup or honey.
3. Stir in raspberries, these can be fresh or frozen, along with some chopped up white chocolate.
4. Pour your mix into a muffin or oven-safe dish and bake for 20-25 minutes.
5. To top it off add some melted chocolate and extra raspberries!
Banana and strawberry smoothie
Although simple, nothing beats a good smoothie. These are great for breakfast or a snack. The bananas and strawberries are both great at giving us a boost of energy!
Ingredients
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2 cups of strawberries, fresh or frozen
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Banana
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½ cup of Greek yoghurt or dairy-free coconut yoghurt
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½ cup of any dairy or nut milk of your choice
1. Cut strawberries in halves and banana into quarters
2. Add milk and yoghurt to your blender, followed by your fruit and blitz until smooth.
Tip: by using a frozen banana or strawberries you can keep your smoothie colder for longer without watering it down with ice.
Peanut butter and banana bars
Yes, this is basically more cake but sweet treats are a must when studying! These peanut butter bars are so simple to make and you can even bake them in bulk and keep them in the fridge for 10 days or the freezer for three months.
Ingredients:
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½ cup of peanut butter (or any nut butter you prefer)
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¼ cup (50g) Brown sugar or coconut sugar
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2 large bananas
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Egg or egg substitute
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½ cup nut or dairy milk of your choice
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1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
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2 ½ cups of oats
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1 teaspoon of baking powder
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½ a teaspoon of salt
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1 cup of chocolate chips (these can be left out or substituted for anything you like!)
1. Preheat over to 177 degrees. Line a 9inch square baking pan with parchment paper and make sure to leave some paper over the sides.
2. In a large bowl mash the bananas. Whisk together with your peanut butter, egg, milk, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla extract and chocolate chips. The batter should be a little bit thick.
3. Pour evenly into the pan and bake for 25-28 minutes, or until the centre is set (it will look relatively soft).
4. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for 30-60minutes then another hour in the fridge. The bars can be difficult to cut if they haven’t been chilled.
5. Once chilled, drizzle some extra chocolate and peanut butter on the top. Cut into slices and enjoy!
These are just three tasty recipes you can try out when you’re studying or have a long day of work ahead of you!