These guys. Oh BOY are they ever good! The original recipe came from Salted Plains, a great recipe blog that I follow. I don’t even remember how I came across this recipe, but I’m so glad I did. If you want a quick treat packed full of fibrous protein and satiating healthy fats, then this is the one for you.
I’ve made this recipe two weeks in a row. The ingredients come cheap and when buying in bulk, there’s always more for round two. Ways to save?:
Save packaging: Buy the ingredients in bulk and bringing your own containers, either weighing them on the way in the store or reusing plastic bags you’ve saved from previous outings.
Save kitchen supplies: Reuse the parchment paper you line your baking dish with, if you choose to use it. This recipe doesn’t dirty up or burn the parchment paper, so it can be reused multiple times before discarding.
Save money and time: If these ingredients don’t suit you, or you don’t want to buy too many new ingredients, look at what you have at home and swap in/out ingredients you already have for like ingredients in the recipe.
Save the granola bars!: Store these guys in bulk, instead of wrapping them individually, in a sealed container in the fridge rather than on the counter top so they last longer. Pop them in the freezer if you can’t get through them in a week, or top them on a smoothie bowl and double up instead!
Get started! I don’t know what you’re waiting for…
RECIPE: Clean Granola Bars
(adaptation from Salted Plains)
servings: 12
time: 35 minutes
taste: mildly sweet & earthy
action: satiating & digestively activating
INGREDIENTS
2c gluten free quick cook oats, somewhat shredded for easier adhesion
1c gluten free flour blend (I used a mix of brown rice flour, garbanzo bean flour, and arrowroot powder)
1tsp cinnamon
1/2t Himalayan pink salt
2T ground flax seed
1/3c cacao nibs
1/3c raisins (no sugar added)
1/4c raw sunflower seeds
1/4c raw pumpkin seeds
1/2c shredded unsweetened coconut (optional)
1/2c melted coconut oil (left to cool slightly)
1/2c maple syrup (or lightly melted raw honey)
1t pure vanilla extract (alcohol free)
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 350F and prep a rectangular or square baking dish (approximately 9” x 13”) with coconut oil or parchment paper (reuse after).
Melt the coconut oil (and honey, if using) on the stove top on low heat, stirring or whisking often. Remove from heat as soon as melted and leave to cool briefly.
In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients (everything up until and including pumpkin seeds). Mix with a spatula to incorporate, breaking up raisins and any flour clumps as you go.
Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well with a spatula, making sure all dry ingredients become wet.
Press mixture evenly into pan and place in the oven for 22-25 minutes, removing when the edges and top are slightly browned.
Remove from oven and let cool in baking dish for 10-15 minutes before placing on a cutting board to cut. Once cooled, slice two even lines along the width and three even lines lengthwise to make 12 bars.
Bars can be saved for a week or more in a container in the fridge. Eat on their own or add to a smoothie bowl.