Grain-Free Granola Bars

 

(This recipe is taken from Joyful Abode, Emily’s blog – please click on the following link to visit her site: http://www.joyfulabode.com.  My notes on the recipe are in bold/italics.) 

You will need:

• 2.5 cups assorted nuts and seeds
• 1 cup dried fruit
• 2 cups shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (works with canola/vegetable oil too)
• 1/2 cup honey
• splash of vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• generous sprinkle of cinnamon
• some more cinnamon

Roughly chop 1 cup of the nuts and seeds. Place in a bowl.

Use your food processor to pulse the other 1.5 cups of nuts and seeds into a finer “chop.” Add to the bowl.

Add your fruit.

Stir in the dried coconut.

In a saucepan over medium-low heat, combine oil, honey, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon. Cook until the mixture bubbles, then pour over the fruit/nut mixture.

Stir to combine completely.

Press your mixture into a parchment-lined pan of some sort. Press HARD.  (Emily notes that you have to keep pressing hard for a while.  This action is what will make or break the bars.  Strong pressing will hold them together.  I’d add that storing them in the refrigerator will help with that, too.)

Cool 2-3 hours, then remove from the pan and cut into bars.