Cinnamon Roll Protein Bars |Cooking With Amanda

Cinnamon. Roll. Protein Bars.

That are kind of like eating cheesecake. And a cinnamon roll. TOGETHER…WITH PROTEIN.

BOOM!

"Brain explosion" is basically the only words that I can use to describe the current situation of my life at this very moment in time.

Sooo, cinnamon rolls. You like them, I like them. You KNOW when Cinnabon is around the corner at the mall. I also KNOW that you try to put on sunglasses, or put your hair up, or SOMETHING to make yourself look different, so that you can walk by the lady a few times when she's giving out samples, because you're T-R-I-C-K-Y like that.

Or is that just me? Don't answer that.

Anyway.

As we obviously just discovered I have a very real addiction to things that come with spicy-sweet cinnamon flavor and are oozing with thick, rich, velvety-smooth cream cheese frosting. How-EV-ER, there is also the other very real obsession that lingers on the tip of my taste buds at all times: cheesecake.

Now, this healthy-dessert-bar-hybrid-delicious thing (descriptive name right?) was not really PLANNED. The original thought process behind using cream cheese in these protein bars was to achieve some serious cream cheese icing flavor goals that I had the desire to achieve when you sunk your teeth down into these protein-packed, keep-ya-full-until-lunch little snackies.

BUT THEN, something magical happened. When the bars came out of the oven – VOILA – cheesecake consistency WITH all those sweet cinnamon and vanilla notes that come along with the most perfect of perfect cinnamon rolls.

There was nothing inside of me that was even the TEENIEST bit mad at this unexpected turn of events.

I meaannnn, who wants to eat a boring pumpkin protein bar, chocolate protein bar or REALLY any other kind of homemade protein bar when you could mix 6 pantry-staple ingredients in 1 bowl (!!!) and end up with thick, creamy, spicy-sweet, vanilla scented bars that taste like dessert but – PSYCH – are packed with protein and healthy vibes, and are generally just GOOD 4 U.

Andddd, you don't even have to mess up your hair or throw on sunglasses. If you want to sample 6 bars at once, YOU CAN MY FRIEND.

Which, if you want my opinion, is a realllllly good idea.

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Cinnamon Roll Protein Bars Recipe

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Ingredients

16 ounces reduced fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature (not fat free!)
2/3 cup coconut sugar
2 tablespoons honey
2 eggs
2/3 cup vanilla protein powder
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350°F and fill a 9x13 inch pan 1/3 way with water. Place into the oven while it's preheating. Additionally, spray an 8x8 inch pan with cooking spray, and wrap the sides with tinfoil if there are any cracks in the pan where water could get in.
In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and coconut sugar until combined. Add in the honey and eggs and beat just until mixed. I like to scrape down my beaters and beat once more here, to make sure there will be chunks in the bars.
Add the protein powder, cinnamon and salt into the bowl and stir until well mixed.
Pour the batter into the 8x8 inch pan and spread out evenly. Your batter will be thick.
Gently place the 8x8 into the 9x13 pan with the heated water, making sure to not splash any of the water into the batter. Bake until the top just feels set, about 22-25 minutes.
Gently remove the 8x8 pan from the 9x13 and cool on the counter for 10 minutes. Then, cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to overnight, to let the bars set.
DEVOUR.

Notes

Do not skip the water bath. These bars are the consistency of cheesecake and, if you don't do the water bath, they will rise and sink when you take them out of the oven.