Homemade Granola Bars

I always take stock of my pantry before I embark on making granola bars. This is probably one of my most flexible recipes (adapted from one of my favorite blogs – SmittenKitchen.) Today’s batch included bittersweet chocolate chunks, pepitas, walnuts, coconut and cranberries. For the nut butter, I always use homemade almond butter. It never tastes quite the same without it so be nice to me at Christmas time since I usually make an extra large batch of jars to give away as gifts.

1 & 2/3 cups Oats (gluten free if desired)

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup oat flour (or 1/3 cup oats, processed till finely ground in a food processor or blender)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 to 3 cups dried fruits and nuts
1/3 cup nut butter (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 tablespoons melted butter
1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
1 tablespoon water
*See below for additional ingredients/instructions for turning these into lactation bars.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Line an 8×8 pan in one direction with parchment paper, allowing it to go up the opposing sides like a sling. Lightly grease the parchment paper and the exposed pan.

Stir together all the dry ingredients, including the fruit and nuts. In a separate bowl, whisk together the vanilla, melted butter, liquid sweetener nut butter, and water. Toss the wet ingredients with the dry until the mixture is evenly crumbly.

Spread in the prepared pan, pressing the top firmly with plastic wrap to help you  ensure the bars mold to the shape of the pan.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until they’re brown around the edges. Don’t be afraid to get a little color on the top. They’ll still seem soft and almost underbaked but don’t worry, they’ll set completely once cooled.Cool the bars in their pan on a cooling rack. Alternately, after about 20 minutes you can use your parchment “sling” to lift them and place them on the rack to cool the rest of the way. Once cool, use a serrated knife to cut the bars into squares.  If  they seem crumbly, chill the pan  in the fridge for 30 minutes, which will fully set them and then cut them cold. In humid weather, it’s best to store bars in the refrigerator. They also freeze well.

Lactation Bar Variation:

Use the recipe above but substitute 1/3 cup oat flour for brewers years and add 2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal to the dry ingredients.

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