CRAZY DELICIOUS HOMEMADE FRUIT AND NUT BARS
When you think of fruit and nut bars, the first thing that comes to mind is usually something along the lines of super healthy and not very tasty. Well, here's a recipe that will change that bar sterotype up a bit! These yummy bars are energy-packed with oats, cranberries, nuts, and more. Once you make these babies, you'll never want to buy store bought bars ever again!
Combine all of your dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Combine your wet ingredients into a saucepan and when fully mixed, pour over the dry ingredients.
Spread the combined mixture evenly over the tin foil lined and buttered baking pan.
Place the pan into the fridge for 1 hour, take it out and square it, then put in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
Now here's the recipe!
1 tsp. plus 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups Honey Bunches of Oats (or any other nutrious cereal!)
1 cup (sliced almonds
1/2 cup whole cashews
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup unsalted creamy peanut butter
2 Tbs. firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
Directions:
1. Line an 8-inch (20-cm) square baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving about 1 inch (2.5 cm) of overhang on 2 opposite edges to use later as a handle. Grease the foil with the 1 tsp. butter.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the cereal, almonds, cashews, and cranberries. Set aside. 3. In a saucepan over medium heat, stir or whisk together the agave nectar, peanut butter, brown sugar, the 2 Tbs. butter and the salt until the mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. 4. Immediately pour the hot peanut-butter mixture over the cereal mixture in the bowl. Using a wooden spoon, stir until the cereal, cranberries, and nuts are evenly coated and distributed. 5. With lightly buttered hands, press the mixture firmly and evenly into the prepared pan. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. Then lift out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Use a sharp buttered knife to cut into small bars. Then transfer the bars back into the pan and put in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Take them out and store the bars in the refrigerator in an airtight container, with sheets of waxed paper between the layers (or use cute printed out stickers like we did!), for up to 1 week. Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Healthy in a Hurry, by Karen Ansel, MS, RD and Charity Ferreira (Weldon Owen, 2011).
Don't these bars look amazing and not grossly bland like store bought ones do? We definitely think so. These bars are great for taking as a snack or eating for breakfast. No matter when you eat them, enjoy their deliciousness!