Granola Bars

I have to apologize. Again. I have not been a good blogging friend. Life has been busy and I have not been keeping up with the blog, and I am sorry about that.

But today is a crazy blog day - it's reveal day for two different challenge, so two posts are coming your way.

The first is this one, for this month's Secret Recipe Club.

This month, my assigned blog was Little Bit of Everything, a super delicious blog written by Julie, a super talented, fun and creative cook and baker.

There were so many recipes that I wanted to try from Julie's blog, but the one that stood out to me was her granola bar recipe.  I mean, it's a healthy food that can be breakfast on the go, easily adaptable, and it's totally kid friendly, to boot! Perfect choice for me!

Granola bars are pretty simple to make, and these were no exception, although there were a number of steps involved, as well as a whole bunch of dishes.

First, rolled oats, coconut and nuts (or, in my case, sesame seeds - wanted to make sure little man could enjoy these, too!) are mixed together.

The mixed ingredients are then quickly toasted in the oven until they get nice and toasty-golden brown.

The toasted oat mixture is then mixed with wheat germ and cinnamon, and I also added a tablespoon of chia seeds, just to give a bonus power boost to the bars.

Then, finally, a quick syrup of butter (okay, coconut oil for me - again - keeping it little man friendly), honey, brown sugar and vanilla is boiled and then mixed into the dry ingredients.

Once the mixture has been evenly moistened, add some dried fruit (craisins, for us)...

...then press the whole thing into a pan and bake!

The finished bars smelled super, and looked pretty darn good, too.  And I baked them in time to have them perfectly cooled and ready to go fr when little miss returned home from school.

I mean... how's that for an after school snack??

Julie, thank you so much for the delicious inspiration and for all of the wonderful recipes on your blog. I can't wait to come back and try many more of your recipes!


Granola Bars
(only slightly adapted from Little Bit of Everything)

2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 tablespoons coconut oil
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 - 1 cup dried cranberries (or other assorted dried fruit) (to taste)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 12 baking pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper.
Toss the oatmeal, sunflower seeds and coconut on a sheet pan and bake for 10 - 12 minutes, stirring often for even browning. Toss the mixture into a large mixing bowl, add the wheat germ, cinnamon and chia seeds (if using). Mix well.
Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees.
Place coconut oil, honey, brown sugar, vanilla and salt into a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring for a minute. Pour over the oatmeal mixture. Add the dried fruit and mix well.
Pour into a prepared pan. Using a small piece of parchment or wax paper, lightly press the mixture into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into bars or squares.
Store in an airtight container.
Enjoy!