Berry Pecan Granola Bars

Hello readers! Hopefully you haven't completely forsaken me given my lack of posting activity. I promise I'm picking up the pace over the next few weeks! As I mentioned, I'm attempting to focus on lighter more nutritious fare as we move into summer. Homemade granola bars are both a satisfying sweet treat AND a healthy alternative to a grab-and-go muffin or processed meal bar (though there some nutritious version of those too.)

Makes 12 bars. Recipe adapted from Ina Garten,'The Barefoot Contessa'

2 cups of old fashioned oats
1 cup of pecan pieces
1 cup of shredded coconut
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup golden raisins
3 tablespoons of butter
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the oats, pecans and coconut together in a bowl and then transfer to a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.



While the oat mixture bakes, combine the butter, honey, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon in a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle boil and let boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.



Turn the oven down to 300 degrees. Transfer the toasted oat, pecan and coconut mixture to a large bowl and pour the honey mixture over. Add the dried fruit and flax seed (optional) and toss to combine. Press the mixture into a 9x13 pan coated with nonstick spray and lined with parchment paper. It is very sticky so I used the bottom of a metal measuring cup (also coated with nonstick spray) to press the mixture down and into the corners of the pan. You want to pack it down well so the bars don't crumble apart later.



Bake for 25-30 minutes until lightly golden brown. Let cool for 2-3 hours before you try to cut them. I was able to lift the whole thing out of the pan using the parchment paper. I then cut them into 12 bars. I used muffin liners to separate them in an airtight container.



They are absolutely delicious as is or you can crumble them up like granola as I did here with some fresh berries and plain Fage yogurt sweetened with a drizzle of honey and a bit of vanilla bean paste. I can't wait to try some different variations on this recipe. I would probably go a little lighter on the dried fruit next time.

Other combinations to try:
*Almond Apricot
*Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
*Trail Mix (sunflower seeds, m&m's, peanuts, pretzel pieces)