B Bars

I admit it, I like granola bars. My whole family likes granola bars too. For a while I bought these individually wrapped tasty treats faithfully during my weekly grocery shopping trip. They went into lunches , they were added to the snack rule, at our house you can eat whenever you are hungry as long as it is a fruit or a vegetable, or 1 granola bar snack per day-no questions asked.

Little did I know. Ugh, where do I start? Well, the nutrition label is the obvious place. I never read it, seriously. I figured that since they were granola bars the had to be healthy and good for you and...safe. Uh, yeah,......I was blind. Most bars that I bought were laden with sugar, salt and ingredients that I couldn't pronounce. And how about the packaging? How safe are those individual foil wrappings? Do they emit a toxin while they are being shipped across the country in a 18-wheeler ? The temperatures in the box trucks can reach upwards of 100 degrees. Just the carbon footprint of the truck alone is scary, now add in the packaging and you've got a hefty price to pay for convenience.

So, I stopped buying granola bars, and I started tinkering with recipes. I found some online and tried them. The recipes were lengthy and cumbersome, not to mention the difficult to find and costly ingredients. For a while I gave up. Then I saw a recipe in Family Fun Magazine July/August 2008 . The granola bar recipe had only 7 ingredients! and was easy to make! I played around with the recipe and B Bars evolved. My family loves them and I feel good about consuming them. This recipe has been shared with dozens of other families who testify there are the BEST bars they have ever had.

I'd appreciate your feedback.

B Bars

2 Cups Quick Oats
2 Cups ground almonds
2 Cups dried cranberries
1 Cup ground flax seed
1 Cup coconut
1 Cup real maple syrup

Preheat oven to 275

Combine all dry ingredients in a stand mixer, use paddle attachment and set mixer on stir or the slowest setting. Stir for one minute until all ingredients are blended. While the mixer is running gradually pour in the maple syrup. Let ingredients mix well for about two minutes.

Lightly grease the bottom of a 9x13 metal pan. Bake for 1 hour and allow the

B Bars to completely cool in the pan.
Cut into 20 squares = 3 long side cuts and 4 short side cuts

Nutritional content (approximate) for 1/20 B Bar
Calories 207
Fat 13 grams
Trans Fat ZERO
Cholesterol ZERO
Sodium 34 grams
Carbs 39 grams
Fiber 8 grams
Sugar 25 grams
Protein 6 grams

Bakers Notes:
-I use my coffee mill to grind slivered or sliced almonds and the flax seed.
-When placing the mixture into the pan I press it down with wax paper and even out the surface with the pressure from my hand.
-Raisins and other dried fruits, baking chips or trail mix would be a tasty addition to this recipe.