Give A Free Box of Cheerios + Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Protein Bites

This post is brought to you by Cheerios™. This shop has been compensated by #CollectiveBias and its advertiser, all opinions are mine alone. #GiveABox

Before we dive into this delish recipe let’s chat about mommyhood.

Being a mom is truly the best job in the entire world. You can read more about my little man here. There are several things I didn’t expect when it came to motherhood and the challenges of nursing was one of those things. I assumed it would be easy and natural… similar to what the movies show. Well, nursing was no walk in the park. It took work, so much work and there were a few tears involved. 6 months in and I’m a nursing pro. It was worth the struggles in the beginning for sure! Nursing also made me hungry, SO hungry. One of my go-to nursing snacks is protein bites. I needed the little boost of protein and they were easy to have before, during and after nursing baby. Honestly they’re the perfect treat any time of day and you don’t have to be nursing a baby to enjoy them (wink).

Chatting with my mom friends about finding a groove with baby, nursing and the food cravings is nice. So when I was able to buy-a-box-give-a-box of Cheerios^™ I knew my mom friends had to be involved. We chat about nursing and the popular topic of cravings is regularly discussed in our mom group.

Cheerios^™ is offering a buy-a-box-give-a-box coupon program in celebration of their gluten free launch. Each box of Cheerios^™ will have a unique code to enter online. An e-card and mailed coupon for free Cheerios^™ will be sent to a recipient of your choice. My give a box of Cheerios^™ goes to a friend in my mommy group, Savannah. Savannah is the sweetest mom around and such a big supporter of all things Melissa.

You too can buy-a-box-give-a-box! Here’s how:

You will visit the website here. Select to enter the code from your box of cheerios™. Simple enough, right?

Complete the form with your name and email as well as the recipients. Customize the gift by entering a note and you’ve created a fun E-card! Submit the form and the coupon will be mailed.

Protein bites might not be traditionally made with Cheerios^™, but after you try this recipe it will be the new normal to add Cheerios^™. You might be questioning the gluten free mention. Cheerios^™ are made with whole grain oats as the first ingredient, but General Mills developed a process to remove wheat, rye and barley to ensure the oats are gluten free. Same great taste too! How great is that!

Now as promised here’s one of my all time favorite snack recipes.

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Protein Bites

1 cup of Cheerios^™
1/2 cup of peanut butter
1/2 a banana
1/3 cup of chocolate chips

Crush Cheerios^™(leaving some pieces large is acceptable, wink)
Mix in chocolate chips and peanut butter. The mixture will become thick and the crushed Cheerios^™ will mix in well.
Add in the banana.
Roll into bite size balls and enjoy!
The protein bites should be refrigerated as soon as possible. They are also great served cold.

What are some of your favorite snacks? I’d love to hear your go-to snacks!

As you may have heard, some select boxes of Cheerios™ and Honey Nut Cheerios™ produced over two weeks in July at the Lodi, California plant, have been recalled due to a wheat allergen.  This recall only affects consumers with Celiac disease or a gluten-sensitivity. To learn more about the recall, and if your product is affected please go to: http://blog.generalmills.com/.

Thank you for supporting brands that make Melissa Creates possible. xo