What was your favorite thing in your lunch box as a kid? I loved a fresh-picked peach or plum from our trees or an oatmeal raisin cookie.
These days I occasionally have time in the morning to pack a lunch for my husband; I like to do this because well, I love the man. Granola bars are are an easy treat to throw into his bag as a mid-morning or late- afternoon pick-me-up. However, store bought granola bars, no matter the brand or the store, are loaded with sugar. The pick-me-up granola bar can also be nicknamed the throw-me-down-sugar-crash. I have a recipe for making granola from scratch and I just altered the recipe by adding bananas and unsweetened apple sauce to make the granola moist and stick together for the perfect granola bar shape.
Of course, you can chose your own creation by adding cranberries, pistachios, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, or even dark chocolate. Just remember that dried fruit is high in sugar, so do what I do and chop it in small bits, so you can get more flavor spread out by using less fruit.
Homemade Granola Bars
Need:
- 1 cup Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (Gluten Free)
- 3/4 cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- One Ripe Banana
- Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
- 1/4 cup flaxseeds
- 1 cup of your choice of nuts
- 1/2 cup of your choice of dried fruit
- cinnamon
How:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl mash banana and applesauce together and set aside. On a baking sheet toast nuts and coconut until the coconut is light brown. Add the remaining ingredients to the mixing bowls and mix well. Then transfer to a baking dish, moisten your fingers with water and pat the top, so the ingredients are firmly packed inside the baking dish. Bake for 20-25 mins or until golden brown on top. Allow cooling time and then slice into squares.
