Granola Bars

Granola BARS!

2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup rice bran or oat bran

1 cup of nuts, crushed (pecan, walnut, cashew, macadamia, almond, etc.)

3/4 cup seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, flax, sesame, etc.)

2/3 cup brown sugar

• 1/2 cup honey (or 1/4 cup honey, plus 1/4 cup maple, agave, or brown rice syrup)
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup chopped dried fruit (cherries, cranberries, blueberries, apricots, coconut, etc.)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil. Mix together all dry ingredients (oats, bran, seeds & nuts) on the baking sheet. Place the sheet in the oven and toast the dry ingredients for 10-12 minutes, stirring every few minutes to prevent them from burning. As soon as the ingredients are toasted, remove the pan from the oven.
3. While the dry ingredients are toasting, line a 9x13-inch rimmed pan with waxed paper and spray it lightly with cooking oil.
4. Next, place a small saucepan over medium-high heat and add in the brown sugar, honey, butter, cinnamon and salt. Bring the mixture to a strong boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Turn off the heat and stir in vanilla.
5. Place the toasted ingredients in a large bowl, and stir in the dried fruit. Pour the hot liquids into the bowl and stir aggressively until all the ingredients are moist and well combined.
6. Using a wooden spoon or heat resistant spatula, scrape the mixture into the prepared baking sheet, pressing down to evenly spread out the mixture. I found wetting a rubber spatula with water helped to keep the granola from sticking, but still allowed me to press the mixture down hard enough. Set the baking sheet aside and let the bars cool for 2-3 hours until they are hardened. Cut into bars or square and ENJOY! 

I made these and they were awesome.  One mistake I made....don't add chocolate chips...in my head I figured I would have nice chocolate chunks to bite into...well I forgot to factor in that chocolate chips melt when boiling hot liquids are poured over them!  Stick with dried fruits!

 

I love crunchy flax seeds!

 Don't over toast your dry stuff either, another mistake of mine.

 TA-DA.  Crunchy, chewy, and delicious!