Homemade Granola Bars

As I promised last week, I’m going to show you how to make granola bars. A great on the go snack for you and the kids.

You will need:

2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats/Jumbo Oats

1/2 cup nuts, roughly chopped

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup total extra mix-ins (about 1/4 cup of 3 different ingredients, such as dried fruits, coconut, chocolate chips, etc).

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with parchment/wax or foil and lightly spray with cooking spray. Place the oats and nuts on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly toasted. Place the nuts and oats in a large bowl. While the oats are toasting, add the honey, butter, and brown sugar to a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. When butter mixture is ready, remove it from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Pour this mixture over the oat and nut mixture and stir to combine. Add any extra ingredients (except for chocolate) and stir to combine. Make sure none of the oats are dry. If you are adding chocolate, wait about 15 minutes for the mixture to cool a bit before adding the chocolate and then stir to combine. Place all of the oats mixture in the prepared pan. Use a rubber spatula or the bottom of a greased measuring cup to press the mixture into the pan. Chill the granola bars for at least 2 hours. Lift the bars from the pan, using the edges of the foil or parchment and place them on a cutting board. Cut into desired shape/sizes and serve. These store very well in the fridge or freezer. You may want to wrap them in a bit of parchment/wax or foil paper before putting them in a container or plastic bag in the fridge, so that they don’t stick together.