G is for Granola Bars! (Jennifer)

Happy Sunday evening, friends!

Today I bring you a recipe for granola bars. Perhaps it's my pending 10-year reunion (oh-my-dear, did I just write that?!), or perhaps it's the recently installed "Couch to 5K" app on my i-Pod, the "I'm going to eat healthier and exercise more" bug has bitten...hard. It could also be that it's June, and as the weather heats up, this winter coat has got to go. Either way, I'm glad I made this recipe for granola bars this weekend.

A note on granola bar recipes: they can be as healthy or as unhealthy as you'd like them to be. Granola bars are very easy to customize! Don't care for dried cherries? Throw in raisins. Don't care for chocolate? Substitute peanut butter chips. The possibilities are endless, so have fun!

Homemade Granola Bars
from Ina Garten (full recipe here)

• 2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
• 1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup honey
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup chopped pitted dates
• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 12-inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper.

Toss the oatmeal, almonds, and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

Place the butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the dates, apricots, and cranberries and stir well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.

Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature.

Review: This recipe is very easy to follow and very easy to customize. I used raisins, Craisins and chopped apricots for my granola bars. I also cut down the butter to only a tablespoon and used slightly less than a 1/4 cup of brown sugar. I also omitted the coconut as half my taste testers didn't care for it. Of these changes, I would probably keep all, but instead of short-changing the brown sugar, I'd go with the full 1/4 cup. I felt they needed just a little more sweet (but I love sweet, so what can I say?). Overall, these were a super easy snack and a fun treat to send with our dear friends who left today to move home to Minnesota! Have a great roadtrip, D + J! We miss you already!

Jennifer