Recipie: Healthy Fruit & Nut Granola Bars

I've really got into healthy baking recently and thought I’d start sharing my own recipes on this blog. In this post I'm going to show you how to make healthy fruit & nut granola bars, some people may say these are not healthy however I believe they are in moderation because they have lots of essential fats and protein which are good for you. These bars would be a perfect snack before or after exercising or simply as a little healthy snack if you’re hungry because they will fill you up and provide you with lots of energy.

I have created this recipe myself and it’s taken a lot of trial and error although I am very happy with the result and I hope you enjoy making them.

The ingredients in this recipe can be adapted to suit your preferences; for example you could use different nuts or dried fruit- search through your cupboards and see what you have!

To make 9 of these granola bars, you will need....

150 grams oats

100 grams granola (I used fruit and nut granola from Tesco)

20 grams plain flour

100-150 grams nuts (I used cashews, brazil, almonds)

100-150 grams dried fruit (I used cranberries, apricots, raisins, dates)

20 grams dedicated coconut

50 grams dark chocolate chips

40 grams sunflower seeds

40 grams pumpkin seeds

1 tsp vanilla extract

3-4 tbsp crunchy peanut butter

70 grams Butter

3-4 tbsp honey

I have very roughly estimated the measurements above because I don’t tend to weigh out ingredients with this recipe so if you make them yourself- you can simply change up the amounts.

The method for these bars is very simple. To start you need to melt together the peanut butter, butter, honey and vanilla together in a pan over a low heat until everything is melted and combined together.

Take the butter mixture off the heat and then get a big mixing bowl and throw in all the dry ingredients together.

Next, pour the butter mixture in with the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly until everything is combined. I realised at this point that I didn't have enough liquid to bring all the dry ingredients together so I had to melt some more peanut butter, honey and butter to help bring the ingredients together. The mixture shouldn't be too runny however all the oats and nuts need to be almost stuck together like a flapjack mixture should be.

Now your mixture is done, you need to get a greased brownie tin and pour in the mixture. Then place the tin into a pre heated oven for about 15-20 minutes depending on your oven, mine took about 16 minutes.

Once the time is up, check to see if yours are lightly golden brown and if so, take them out and place aside to cool.

When the bars are cooled down, cut them up into 9 squares then place them onto a plate- ready to be enjoyed by your family and friends!

I hope you liked this recipe post from me and that you enjoy making these yummy, healthy bars yourself- if you do, let me know how they turned out and if you liked them!