With my life right now getting thrown for a loop, the only thing that keeps me sane is my workouts. My mother in law right now is taking away some of my time. The current government can take away my job. No one can take away my exercise progress. My new running goal is to complete a half marathon in miles. I don’t plan to run a race, I just want to know I can do it. I have worked my way up to seven miles on Saturdays. I add a mile when my body gets used to the current mileage. This is my second week running seven miles and it felt better, but I need another week before I increase the mileage again.

This week I am doing another simple dessert. With the stress, I don’t want to do something more elaborate. I am starting with a recipe from Recipe Master for Peanut Butter Cookie Bars. I love peanut butter cookies. No doubt about it. I like that you can get a good hit of protein with these. You could use these to augment your protein needs. I am definitely looking forward to these.

Here are the original stats:

Here’s what I changed:

• I swapped the sugars for their sweetener equivalents to reduce the sugar.
• I am not adding chocolate chips to reduce the calories and sugar.
• I replaced the all-purpose flour with almond and coconut flours to reduce the carbs.
• I increased the servings from 16 to 24 to reduce the calories.

Here are the final stats:

Here is the final recipe:

Low Sugar Peanut Butter Cookie Bars

Makes 24 Bars

• 1 cup (250 g) creamy or crunchy peanut butter
• 1 cup granulated sweetener
• 1 cup packed light brown sweetener
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt

1. Set your oven to 350°F (175°C). Prepare a 9×13-inch baking pan by greasing it lightly or lining it with parchment paper to make it easier to remove the bars later.
2. In a large bowl, blend the peanut butter, granulated sweetener, and brown sweetener until the mixture is smooth. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, beating until everything is well combined.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, and salt to ensure even distribution.
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, mixing until just combined.
5. Evenly spread the dough into the prepared baking pan, using a spatula to smooth the top.
6. Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes. Look for golden brown edges and use a toothpick inserted into the center to check for doneness—it should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
7. Let the bars cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, cut into squares.