Sunday, May 9, 2010

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars



I love granola bars. I especially love those ones that come two to a pack - the crunchy oats and honey ones? I always try and tell myself that I am being so healthy, but I know in my heart of hearts that I am really just eating a couple of nice crunchy cookies. Just keeping it real.

However, that doesn't keep me from eating them, and so I was happy to discover this recipe for homemade granola bars on CHOW (and if you don't know this very fun foodie website, you should check it out). Not only does this recipe make pretty great granola bars, but it is a great way to use up those odds and ends of nuts and raisins and seeds and perhaps even chocolate chips that are hanging around in almost-empty bags in your cupboard. If you are anything like me.

The trick with this recipe is to cut up them up into bars while they are still warm, so they don't harden into crunchiness and then break into a million pieces when you try to slice them up. I learned this lesson the hard way when I made my cashew brittle chunks. Give the tray about 10 or 15 minutes on the cooling rack once you take it out of the oven and then cut them into bars or squares or whatever you like. (I like bars, but that's just me.)



Here's the super-easy recipe.


Homemade Chewy Granola Bars, adapted from CHOW

Combine 3 cups rolled oats, 4 cups assorted mix-ins (nuts, dried fruit, chocolate chips, dried coconut, wheat germ, or whatever similar ingredients you have on hand), , 1/8 cup of molasses, and a can of sweetened condensed milk. Press into a greased pan and bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top is lightly browned. Cool on a rack and cut after about 10-15 minutes.

No comments:

Post a Comment