Does something ever just bug you? And you could just move on but you become obsessed with winning. I feel this way about the long list of ingredients in store bought granola bars. And attempt after attempt of making my own failed. I could only make delicious little baggies of granola but not the bars I wanted. I finally won! I've made these three times in the last two weeks and they disappear quickly and hold their bar shape. If you don't want chocolate add some chopped fruit instead. If you are not a coconut fan add more oatmeal. If you don't have flax don't worry about it. If you can't eat nuts add dried fruit or more oats. The ratio of dry to wet ingredients seems to be the key from my very unscientific experiments! Oh and I can only say these hold together for three days because that's the longest they've lasted in my house. But I am still counting it as a win, good enough for me!
Better Than Packaged Granola Bars
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups oatmeal
1/2 cup coconut
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
3 tbsp flax
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup chopped chocolate or mini chocolate chips
Recipe
- Preheat the over to 400 degrees. Bake the chopped walnuts on a baking sheet for 4 minutes. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix the dry ingredients oatmeal through sea salt together in a large bowl.
- Mix the wet ingredients olive oil through vanilla in a medium bowl. Tip: If you measure the oil first and use the same measuring cup the honey will slide right out.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Then add the chocolate until well mixed.
- Dump mixture onto the parchment lined baking sheet. Using a spatula firmly press down on the mixture and shape into a rectangle. To shape the edges and get the oats really pressed down, I take the extra parchment paper and fold over the mixture and press down. If you don't compact the oats enough you will have a crumbly granola bar.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. The oats should just begin to brown. Check at 20 minutes as oven temperatures can vary.
- Do not cut into bars until granola is completely cool. About two hours. Then using a very sharp knife cut into bars and enjoy!
