Granola bars, of course, fit that niche. But have you had any lately? My experience is that they either taste like sawdust or a block of sugar. On top of that, they're pricey.
So I was thrilled when The New York Times ran a recipe for "energy bars" -- chopped nuts and dried fruit, glued together with some flour and egg, seasoned with cinnamon and salt. Baked, cooled, and cut into bars. VOILA!
I made my own version with nuts I had the fridge. Almonds, pine nuts, walnuts, and pistachios. But it would have been fine with pecans and unsweetened coconut or whatever other nut-like substances you like and have on hand.
All I had in the dried fruit department was raisins, but now I'll stock up on some dried apricots and dates and cranberries to give it more zest next time out.
I wouldn't swap out the maple syrup, and it needed all that sweetness. And surprisingly the small amount of salt is a lovely touch.
So here's my version of "energy bars." Very nutty. Not too sweet. And helped me use up last bits of nuts I had hanging around in the fridge. Making it extremely economical.
INGREDIENTS
Oil
2 eggs
4 T maple syrup
1/2 tsp of kosher salt plus a bit more
4 T flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups nuts - use whatever combination you love or happen to have on hand
1 1/2 cups of dried fruit (apricot, dates, raisins, cranberries, whatever you like or happen to have)
PREP
1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Prep the pan: Lightly oil the bottom and sides of an 8x8 metal baking pan; line the pan with parchment (or foil); lightly oil the surface of the liner
3. Coarsely chop the nuts and dried fruit (raisins and cranberries don't need chopping)
4. Whisk the egg and maple syrup and salt in a large bowl until smooth.
5. Add flour and cinnamon. Whisk til smooth.
6. Add nuts and dried fruit. Mix.
7. Spread the mixture in the pan
8. Bake about 30 minutes or until it's nicely brown and firm to the touch. Sprinkle with a little kosher salt.
9. Cool completely IN THE PAN on a rack.
10. Slide out the slab and cut into bars.
I stored mine in zip-lock bags, but a tin or any airtight container will do.
Put it where you can GRAB AND GO.
So what's your go-to for a speedy (non-cooking) breakfast and mid-afternoon snack? Maybe there are some decent tasting, ready-made, affordable "energy bars" that I haven't yet discovered.
This sounds yummy, Hallie . . . . thanks for sharing the recipe.
ReplyDeleteMy go-to is usually coffee, so I'm excited about having something to go with it!
I recently (re)discovered instant coffee... I'm embarrassed to admit...
DeleteI just eat some Greek yogurt and throw some granola in and sometimes fruit too.
ReplyDeleteDitto, Brenda. Elisabeth
DeleteThat's my go-to, too.
DeleteThose look yummy! I think I'll make some for my granddaughter, subbing in whole wheat flour. (For myself, I might be tempted to throw in some chocolate chips....)
ReplyDeleteI usually grab a string cheese stick or a handful of almonds when I need a nosh, but lately I've had homemade Chex Mix around and a little bowl of that is satisfying.
The original recipe has whole wheat flour which I do not have... and YES on the chocolate.
DeleteThose look good! Lately, I've been munching on Cheerios with whatever nuts are lying about. Sometimes munch on them for breakfast, too. No milk, just the crunchy Cheerios! -- Victoria
ReplyDeleteOne of my daughters used to insist on cereal served WITHOUT milk.
DeleteFor breakfast, I make a pan of "bars": two cups rolled oats ground in the food processor, a cup of milk, a teaspoon of baking powder, and a mix of dried fruit (raisins, dried cranberries and chopped dried apricots, all plumped in hot water). Bake in a greased pan at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Cool and cut into bars. No carbs. I'll try your recipe, too.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds great and super easy, Margaret.
DeleteThose sound delicious, Hallie, and very easy. I will try them, although I don't need any grab-and-go food these days. Neither does Irwin, since I am home a lot and have plenty of time to cook and prepare food.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was more active, I would make breakfast cookies with olive oil that had very similar ingredients to your bars, but more flour, so they would be like enormous cookies. Very tasty. Very handy. My kids loved them.
"Enormous cookies" for breakfast... what's not to like??
ReplyDeleteThose sound really good! I don't really have anything for 'grab and go', though I've been known to bring apple and cheese slices for a snack.
ReplyDeleteLove your recipe for energy bars or are they homemade granola bars? My idea of a breakfast on the go would be your homemade bars because they sound perfect. Actually, I would rather have homemade instead of store bought "energy" bars because you never know everything that goes into production of these bars.
ReplyDeleteI usually eat a banana for breakfast.
Love these. Would be great to take for golf. I made myself a PDF of the recipe. Now if only the snow would melt...
ReplyDeleteGood stuff. I’ll be making them this weekend. Thanks for the recipe. Store bought food of one sort or another seems to be recalled for this and that bad thing every week, some times several items. Now we can’t trust our food supply. Well, not the processed and some protein sources. I think I’m becoming jaded with things made “in the market” rather than at home. I used to just worry about secreted peanuts since it hasn’t always been forced to label it’s deadly presents. Oooooo, Deadly Presents. Such a title. :).
ReplyDeleteThank you for this recipe Hallie. I already make granola but never thought to make bars. Homemade is so much healthier than commercial bars because they don’t contain lots of ingredients that are not necessarily good for us.
ReplyDeleteI’ll try the recipe including sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds with pecans that I have on hand presently.
I’m at the airport wishing I had a few of those in my bag! They just don’t feed you on planes anymore!
ReplyDeleteThey look delicious. Grab and go? Whatever is around.
ReplyDeleteSpeedy and delicious, but without sugar, including the incredible amount of sugar in dried fruit? For breakfast, smoothies. I bought a Ninja and pretty much every morning make myself a smoothie, usually with avocado, almond milk, spinach, protein powder and almond butter. Or sometimes with berries, almond milk, and cream. Yummy, and somehow the avocado or berries makes the smoothie taste sweet. However, my caveat--I live in California, where it's easy to get good avocados. As for energy snacks, a handful of nuts or seeds, or maybe some berries. Period. No cooking, no sugar.
ReplyDeleteMy go-to is those little yellow tomatoes— so delicious— I eat them every day . That’s my snack. With maybe five almonds.
ReplyDeleteI also love Nature Valley granola bars, just the plain cinnamon ones, but that’s more for breakfast on a plane.
I love these NYT energy bars. I also swap out the nuts and dried fruit for whatever I have on hand. Another quick breakfast or afternoon snack I find satisfying is an apple (Pink Lady or First Kiss only, please!) with a smear of creamy peanut butter.
ReplyDeleteWhat a good idea, Hallie. And these days, our docs are telling us, especially those of us with more miles on us, to push protein. Nuts, eggs, and seeds all help. I think I would swap out some of the nuts and add a tablespoon or two of a mix of hemp, chia, and sesame seeds (I keep it already mixed in the fridge, to sprinkle over salads, etc.). A good maple syrup substitute is agave syrup, which has a lower glycemic index (although it is higher in fructose, if that is a concern). I like Edith's chocolate chip addition, too!
ReplyDeleteSteve likes walnuts and dates together, so we always have dates in the pantry, and I will have two of them as an iron-rich snack, nibbling to make them last longer. We always have all kinds of nuts around, so a handful is always handy. And of course, a square of dark chocolate, preferably with a cup of coffee.
Forgot about the dried fruit: we always have dried cherries on hand, thanks to the daughter who lives in the Cherry Capital of the world, and they play well with all the other ingredients.
DeleteThe Hubby keeps a box of Nature Valley granola bars on hand. Not too bad if we buy from Sam's Club.
ReplyDeleteI used to make granola - it tasted good and lasted forever, but haven't done it in a while.
Sadly, my "go to" pop of energy in the afternoon is a couple of dark chocolate non-pareil candies with a cup of tea. LOL
Looks like a good recipe, Hallie. I don't have any nuts in the house, but if I had nuts and the need to create a healthy snack, this would be great, especially to take on a road trip. My go to snack is crackers and cheese or crackers and peanut butter.
ReplyDeleteThese sounds delish, Hallie, and much more healthy than any of the store-bought ones. I make my own granola (so good!) but I usually have it with fruit and plain Greek yogurt for breakfast. I tend not to snack on it because it's addictive. I use all kinds of nuts and seeds, and dried cherries.
ReplyDeleteFor a quick keep-me-going snack, I'll eat a few raw almonds or cashews.