Granola bars might look healthy but the reality is, most shop-bought ones are packed full of sugar and other nasty things that sneakily cause our waistlines to expand!  But fear not, as not all granola bars are unhealthy.  I’ve found this yummy recipe that will have you ditching those chocolate bars in no time!

You will need:

- 2 cups oats
- 3/4 cup wheat germ
- 3/4 cup sunflower seeds
- 1 cup peanuts, crushed
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
- approximately 8 oz. dried fruit

Method:

- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.

- Crush the peanuts

- Mix the peanuts, oats, wheat germ, and sunflower seeds in a baking dish.

- Toast the mixture in the oven for 10-12 minutes, stirring every few minutes so that they don’t get burned.

- Prepare a glass baking dish (about 11 x 13 inches) for your granola by lining it with waxed paper lightly sprayed with a nonstick spray.

- Put the brown sugar, honey, butter, vanilla, and salt into a saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly.

- Once the grains and nuts are toasted, mix everything together in a large bowl.

- Mix well and then place granola mixture into your prepared baking dish

- Fold over the sides of the waxed paper or add a sheet on top, and press all over the granola. You want to compact it together so that your bars won’t fall apart when you cut them.

- Wait 2-3 hours or until the granola has totally cooled.  Cut and enjoy!

Tip: Try leaving out the peanuts next time, making the granola ’nutless’ at first, then during the pressing-down part, press almonds into the top of the bars.  Other options are macadamia nuts, dried pineapple, and coconut flakes, dried cranberries, walnuts, white chocolate chips… the list is endless!!

Images and recipe via joyfulabode.com.

Posted by Emily

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Hi folks!! first of all, my apologies for posting today’s entry so late in the day but I’ve been abandoned by Emily this week and am literally swamped… Thankfully, she’s back Monday so just one more day of solitude to go!!

Anyway, today’s post may be late but isn’t it worth the wait??!! I can for a fact say that you’ve never seen such gorgeous sandwiches before, right? They are supposedly aimed at children, to encourage them to eat, but heck I want some myself!! What a creative and unique idea, I just love these! Check out even more designs at Funky Lunch.

So much work and time must have gone into each of these… which one is your favourite? For me, it has to be the flowers and the giraffe. Simply amazing…

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