I love granola. I love granola bars. I basically just love anything sweet. I have an unhealthy love for sweetened foods. I ate 3 of these bars before I could even snap the photos! Oops! I stopped eating sugar (as far as possible) a few months ago and one thing I surely do miss are those Kind bars. I LOVE those things... but now that I don't regularly consume processed white sugar I’ve noticed a difference in how I feel. Overly sweet things burn my mouth and hurt my stomach. So this recipe calls for brown rice syrup. It is high in calories, has zero fiber, and has very small amounts of vitamins or minerals. BOTTOM LINE: brown rice syrup is not a health food, however I believe that it is still better than using corn syrup, evaporated cane syrup or whatever else you could alternatively use for this recipe. The BENEFIT to using brown rice syrup is that it isn’t as readily available and you can’t usually walk across the street and purchase a cookie made from it. This means that your consumption of processed desserts might be limited to when you have the time and resources to purchase and make these things. So. Eat in moderation. Enjoy in moderation. #winning. 😉 Salted Pretzel Trail Mix Bars
Recipe adapted from: Angela Liddon’s Glow Bars (from the website ohsheglows.com)
Ingredients
- ½ c old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 c quick oats
- ½ c brown rice crisp cereal
- 1 c salted pretzels, slightly crushed
- ½ c raisins
- ¼ c cashew, chopped
- ¼ c unsweetened coconut flakes
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- 2 tbsp flax seeds, ground
- 2 tbsp sunflower seeds
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1/3 c natural chunky peanut butter
- ¾ c brown rice syrup
- ½ tbsp vanilla
Directions
- In a large bowl mix old fashioned rolled oats, quick oats, brown rice crisp cereal, pretzels (slightly crushed), raisins, chopped cashews, unsweetened coconut flakes, chia seeds, ground flax seeds, sunflower seeds, and cinnamon. Stir Stir Stir!
- In a small saucepan, combine the brown rice syrup, peanut butter, and vanilla. Cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture combines and forms a smooth syrup.
- Pour the hot melted peanut butter syrup over the dry ingredients and mix with a large spoon until well combined. The ingredients will start to get stiff and firm.
- Transfer 2/3 of the ingredients into a 9×9 pan and the other 1/3 into a bread pan. Spread evenly in the bottom of the pans and pack it in as this helps the bars to stick together later.
- Place pans in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up.
- Remove pans and cut into bars, wrap in plastic wrap and place in zip lock bags or airtight container to to preserve freshness. Store in refrigerator or freezer.
- Eat and enjoy!
