Granola Bars

I love granola bars. Crunchy or chewy, it doesn't matter. I just like the combination of oats with nuts or dried fruit, or (especially!) chocolate. 

But commercially sold granola bars are full of a lot of things that aren't fruit or nuts or chocolate or oats - unpronounceable things and often high fructose corn syrup - which I try to stay away from. So when I saw this recipe on Pinterest, I decided to give it a go. 

Major Success!  Now there's always a stash of these in the fridge. They go to work with my husband, Judith eats about one per day, and I love them too. Obviously, I can't (and don't) take credit for the recipe (although I've modified it some), but I'm blogging this tutorial to show you how easy it is.

Notes and Variations:

I prefer to make no-bake bars, and that's what the pictures will show. The original recipe poster prefers to bake hers, and directions are included for that option as well. If you're going to bake your bars, do not line your pan with plastic wrap! Use foil instead!

I like my chocolate melted throughout the whole granola bar, so I add the chocolate chips to the hot peanut butter and honey. If you want the occasional chocolate chip in your bar, add them to the oat mixture, and be sure to let your peanut butter and honey cool a little before you add them to the oat mixture or your chocolate chips will melt anyway.

As you can see in the pictures, I chose to use peanuts this time around. I also like to use almonds or pecans. Any nuts work, or they can be omitted altogether.

Granola Bars

Ingredients*

3/4 c natural peanut butter

1/2 c honey (or brown rice syrup)

4 cups rolled oats

1-2 T chia seeds

1-2 T flaxseed meal

1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts

1/4 c mini chocolate chips

*Everything except the first three ingredients is optional! You could also choose to add dried fruit or coconut, or anything else that strikes your fancy.

Directions

Assemble your ingredients.

Combine the oats, chia seeds, flaxseed, and nuts in a medium bowl.

Heat the peanut butter and honey - you want them to be warm enough to mix well together, but not so hot that they're boiling. (I microwave the mixture for one minute.) Stir until well combined.

Note: your mixture will likely be darker than mine - the peanut butter that I'm using for this tutorial is some that I made myself, and the color is very, very light.

Add the chocolate chips to the hot peanut butter mixture and stir until chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. (It'll look a lot like fudge - and if you decide at this point to forgo the granola bars and just eat peanut butter-honey fudge by the spoonful, I'm sure no one will blame you!)

Add to the oat mixture and stir until absolutely totally combined.

Note: you will probably need to use your hands instead of a spoon to make sure everything is combined - the chia seeds and flaxseed meal tend to accumulate in the bottom of the bowl and not get incorporated - make sure you get them in!

For no-bake bars:

Line a casserole dish with plastic wrap, making sure there's some hanging over all four sides. I use a 11”x7” or 8”x8” pan because I like thicker, skinnier bars, but you can use a 9x13 if you'd rather have flatter, wider bars.

Press the mixture really firmly into the pan. I mean it - mash it down as much as you possibly can. If you don't compact it well enough, you'll end up with really crumbly bars.

Refrigerate for at least one hour. Remove from pan by pulling up gently on the plastic wrap. Cut into bars.

Because I like to send these in my husband's lunch, I wrap each bar individually in plastic wrap. I feel somewhat guilty about all the plastic waste this creates, and I've been toying with other possibilities - like storing the cut bars in an airtight container in the fridge, and reusing one small baggie or container to pack them in his lunch.

To bake the bars:

Line a small casserole with foil (not plastic wrap!). Press the mixture really firmly into the pan. Bake at 350° for 20-30 minutes (this will depend on your pan size!). Bars are done when they're golden. Cool for a few minutes on a rack, then remove from the pan. Cut them while warm, or they'll be impossible to cut neatly!

Happy Baking!