High Protein Chocolate Macaroons

2 1/2 cups of oats

8 scoops of chocolate protein powder (vanilla, plain or white chocolate also work)

1/4 cup of cocoa

1/4 cup of stevia

1 cup of fat free greek yogurt

Grind 1 cup of the oats into flour in a magic bullet or blender. In a large bowl combine the oat flour, 1 1/2 cups of oats, 8 scoops of protein powder, 1/4 cup of cocoa and 1/4 cup of stevia and mix well. In a small pot, warm the greek yogurt on medium until the yogurt becomes runny and slightly hot to the touch. Pour the heated greek yogurt onto the dry ingredients and mix well until all of the ingredients are completely mixed throughout. Spray 2 cookie sheets with non stick spray. With a tablespoon, drop a heaping spoonful of the mixture onto the cookie sheets one at a time dividing the recipe into 18 portions. Place trays into the refrigerator to cool for 1 hr before eating. I store the macaroons in a Tupperware container in the fridge with the layers of macaroons separated by sheets of aluminium foil or parchment paper.  

Each macaroon ends up being approx 110 calories with 14 grams of protein, 10 grams of carbohydrates and less than 2 grams of fat.

This is also the recipe that I use to make my homemade protein bars by placing the entire mixture into an 8x8 pan sprayed with non stick spray, placing in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hr before cutting into 9 squares. The protein bars end up being approx 220 calories, 28 grams of protein, 20 grams of carbohydrates and less than 4 grams of fat each. They make a perfect pre or post workout meal.

This recipe makes the macaroons quite chewy. If you want them harder or more dry than you can choose to add another 1/2 cup of oats and also not grind the 1 cup of oats into flour and just use all of the oats whole. I also sometimes grind flax seeds with the oats to add to the mixture or replace 1/2 cup of the greek yogurt with 1/2 cup of natural peanut butter, still heating both the greek yogurt and peanut butter together in the same pot before adding the mixture to the dry ingredients.