Way back in the summer of 2003, I went to Ottawa to visit my friend Kathleen for her birthday. Kathleen comes from a huge family on her dad’s side – 18 brothers and sisters – and the weekend I was visiting, there was also a family reunion happening. Katy mentioned that there were a couple of cousins in town from Alberta that would be hanging out with us for part of the weekend.  Lo and behold, later that afternoon, a bouncing ball of energy burst into the kitchen and in a matter of about 15 minutes had insulted my car, quizzed me on Harry Potter and started calling me R-Dawg. This is how I met Brooke.

B-Dawg passed on this recipe for Homemade Granola Bars a few years ago, and I have made it countless times since.  They’re fairly nutritious because there’s no sugar in them, and you can even experiment using unsweetened applesauce instead of oil, agave nectar instead of honey. I’ve done a cinnamon raisin version, added a scoop of natural peanut butter, and some dark chocolate and dried cherries would also be great (like the Kashi bars). The only warning I have to give is to watch these while they bake. I’ve probably burned about half of the batches I’ve made! I’ve baked them on a cookie sheet, in a glass pan, spread in a non-stick sheet pan, and burned them in everything, so I can’t really say which I prefer. It’s best to just keep a close eye on them, and turn down the heat if they’re getting too brown too fast. They’re so filling and especially delicious with a cup of tea.

Homemade Granola Bars

Source: Brooke

Ingredients

1 cup vegetable oil

1 cup honey

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup coconut

+ crushed flaxseed, dark chocolate, cinnamon, raisins, natural peanut butter

Directions

  1. Blend oil and honey with electric mixer. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well.
  2. Combine baking soda and salt with flour, then add to honey mixture. Mix well and add remaining ingredients.
  3. When ingredients are well mixed, spread batter on a cookie sheet/glass baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.
  4. Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes.
  5. Cut into squares while still warm. Remove from pan when cool.