I used to love baking. Well, I still do, I just don't do it as much. Since the "Clean Eating" bug hit our family we don't use much flour or refined sugar. (I do not mean to say that we eat excellent all the time, we just eat worlds better than we did before.) But we still like treats. I know Lena and I enjoy them and my husband LOVES them. And we like to keep that DaddyMan happy. These Chewy Oat Bars disappear fast in our house. I really like making them because they require little baking, yet still make the house smell good, they are healthy, very tasty, and you can pretty much add whatever you want to them! Here is what our recipe generally looks like:
3 c. oats
1 c. unsweetened coconut flakes
1/3 c. sunflower seeds
1/2 c. chopped raw almonds
2 c. pitted dates
maple syrup
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. sunflower seed butter
1 c. raisins
1 or 2 c. dark chocolate chips
I sometimes don't always measure, so, those measurements are more like a guesstimation.
Chop your almonds. Mix together oats, coconut, almonds, and sunflower seeds. Put on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, checking and re-mixing every 5. Then let cool.
Blend the dates until they become almost a paste, or just chopped up as small as possible. If the dates are too dry I will sometimes add a little syrup to help them blend together a little better. In a saucepan on low heat combine the honey and sunflower seed butter and mix together until warm. In a clean bowl mix all of the ingredients together but the chocolate. It works best to use your hands for this part, but make sure everything is cooled off. Hot honey hurts! You can add the chocolate two different ways. Either way, melt the chips. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. You can spread the melted chocolate down on the parchment paper first and then add the oat/honey/goodness mix on top of that. Then use more parchment paper to firmly press down the oats into the pan to make its form. Or you can press the oat/honey/goodness mix into the pan first and then drizzle melted chocolate over the top. Place it in the fridge for a couple hours or until it is firm enough to cut.
You can add dried apples and cinnamon for a different flavor. Use white chocolate or no chocolate!You could use peanut butter, almond butter, or cashew butter. Add dried mango, banana chips, and roasted brazil nuts for more of a tropical flavor. The possibilities are endless!! We keep our bars in the fridge. I couldn't tell you how long they stay good for because they disappear so quickly in our house!
Because they have honey in them we had to wait until Lena was over a year old to share them with her. And she only gets the edge piece that have little to no chocolate on them. She loves them! They are her cookie, her sweet treat. And I feel good sharing them with her because they are home made and pretty healthy. A win for all!
Enjoy.
