Chewy No-Bake Trail Mix Squares

Hiya! Happy Friday the 13th!! To me it's just another day, but I have to give a shout out to all my buds heading out on their bikes today! Drive safe & have fun my friends!!!

Because I had Monday off, this week has absolutely flown by - short work weeks are the best :)

Lately I've been reading alot of posts about meal planning, food prep and make-ahead lunches. I always have great intentions of planning ahead and buying only the groceries I need for the meals that I plan, but I always stray. I really need to start doing this because I know that I would save SO much money each week rather than heading to the grocery store to pick up random items several times per week. It's shameful really because my fridge and pantry are busting at the seams. We have so much food here, we could probably last a month without ever setting foot in the grocery store if we put our minds to it! Another reason I'd love to do some food prep each weekend for the upcoming week is that I much prefer whole, homemade meals and treats to the store bought alternatives. I like to know where my food is coming from and what it contains.

I found a no-bake granola bar recipe by Lindsay earlier this week and I've been thinking about making it because I think it'd be a great treat to take to work each day. I've tried a couple granola bar recipes in the past, but I haven't found something that I'm absolutely in love with....that is until now! Taste-wise my granola bars turned out to be something fantastic; the only problem is when it comes to being adhesive, I had an epic fail. No matter how long I left them in the fridge to set, the little suckers would not come out of the pan without being crumbly. Luckily, I had some plain Greek yogourt to eat up, so I took one of my crumbly squares, put it onto a plate and topped with some yogourt. Hello Dolly! This was freakin' delicious. The tart yogourt is a perfect compliment to this sweet and nutty square.

I love it when a fail turns into an unexpected success :)

The original granola bar recipe can be found here. Of course, like granola, you can add any add-in imaginable to make a creation that is perfect for tickling your own tastebuds :)

Chewy No-Bake Trail Mix Squares
Makes 18 - 24 squares

These bars turned out to be phenomenal! I love that we now have some homemade bars to snack on that are full of raw nuts, dried fruit and delicious, healthy  ingredients. I also love that I was able to use up some things in my pantry that otherwise may have gone to waste. They are so healthy, but when you top them with a dollop of yogourt, they transform into something truly decadent.

2 1/4 c large flake oats
2 tbsp flax seed
1/4 c chia seeds
1/3 c raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1/4 c raw sunflower seeds
1/2 c chopped raw almonds
1/3 c large shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 c carob chips
1/3 c dried cranberries
1/4 c dried blueberries
2/3 c creamy peanut butter (I used regular, but all-natural would definitely be my preference)
1/3 - 1/2 c pure maple syrup
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Add all of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine.

In a small bowl, combine your peanut butter and maple syrup. Microwave for 1 - 1 1/2 minutes until the peanut butter has melted. Mix well. Stir in the vanilla.

Pour your wet ingredients into your dry and mix well.

Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper. Press your granola mixture into the pan. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours.

Remove from the fridge and cut into squares. I like mine served with plain or vanilla Greek yogourt. Your family can eat these all week as a filling and delicious breakfast, dessert or snack! I'm also planning to freeze a few squares so that I have some pre-made treats in the weeks to come. 

The dry ingredients.

Mix the wet & dry ingredients together.

Use your hands to tightly press the mixture into your pan.

Carefully cut into squares.

Notice how you can see each and every ingredient?

Voila! Transformed into a decadent dessert.

Enjoy!

What is your must-have ingredient in granola? Mine is peanut butter & coconut!

Do you have any superstitions about Friday the 13th? 

Enjoy your day,

Andrea
xoxo

Maple Cranberry Granola Bars

Wowza! My last 24 hours have been a whirlwind! Last night we went to a local bar to watch two talented Canadian country artists: Gord Bamford and Aaron Pritchett. If you've never heard of these two and you love country music, look them up ~ they're both doing really well on the country scene and they put on a darn good show! The venue was awesome, we were there with great friends and we had a great time. Unfortunately, it was a really late night and I got about 4 hours of sleep before I had to get up and get moving for work this morning. I am slowly coming to the realization that I'm not 21 anymore and 4 hours just ain't gonna cut it when I'm expected to be a functioning adult for an entire day. I love being in my 30s, but there are some things about getting older that I just can't come to terms with :-)

When I got home from work today, I decided to try my hand at homemade granola bars. I saw a recipe on Kris's website earlier this week and I've been thinking up my own recipe ever since. This is my first attempt and I think I did a pretty good job. There are so many variations you can do when making granola bars; I'm already making notes on an apple granola bar that I am going to try in the very near future.

Maple Cranberry Granola Squares
I made 8 bars, but next time I will be making them into 12 squares. This recipe makes very dense granola bars and I found the bars to be more than what I would want in a serving.

2 c. oats
1/4 c. walnuts, finely chopped
1/3 c. dried cranberries
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tbsp ground flax seeds
1/3 c. almond milk
1/3 c. maple syrup
1/4 c natural almond butter (or your favourite nut butter)
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix together the oats, walnuts, cranberries, cinnamon and flax seeds.

I grind my own flax seeds. I decided to add flax at the last minute and it was a perfect addition!

It was already looking pretty promising!!

In a separate smaller bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients. Add to the dry ingredients and mix well.

Let your mixture sit for 5 - 7 minutes.

Transfer your mixture to a flat surface that you can cut on. Press the mixture out into a square. The bars should be approximately 1/2" thick.

Cut into 12 squares (like I said above, I did 8 bars but because these are so dense, I found them to be too big for one serving).

I like my kitchen tools to be able to multi-task. A pizza cutter works great for cutting the bars.

Transfer your squares to the baking sheet. Bake for 16 - 18 minutes. You will want to gently flip the bars after 10 minutes of baking so that both sides get nice and golden brown. I like a granola bar that is crunchy on the outside but a little chewy inside. You can adjust your baking time to suit your tastes because these are good crunchy or chewy. NOTE: The granola bars are soft & chewy the next day. They still taste great, but I am going to do some work to see if I can't master a crunchy bar.

Remove from oven and let cool.

When I tasted my first bar, I thought they were a little boring on their own, so I decided to fancy them up with some chocolate glazes (doesn't everything taste better with your fave chocolate ~ I certainly think so :-)!

I drizzled some with dark chocolate (can you say yum?!) and my absolute favourite was a white chocolate glaze sprinkled with unsweetened coconut. They were delish!! I have a feeling a chocolate nut butter glaze would also rock these bars....see what I mean, the possibilities are limitless!

I am super-excited to pack one of these bars for my post-workout snack tomorrow. I just love delicious, homemade snacks ~ don't you?

What are your favourite type of granola bars? Do you have a favourite mix-in? What about topping?

Now I'm off to catch up on my beauty sleep, so I wish you all a good night!

Andrea