T-4 Days until the Boston Marathon!!! I am getting extremely excited and nervous. We are heading up to Boston pretty early Saturday morning, so we just have to get through tomorrow! I have already written my post on my pre-race thoughts, so keep your eyes open for that when I post it early Friday night! I’m sure that many of you have already read Christina’s Pre-Race Thoughts. We are hoping and praying that her knee recovers completely!
In other news, I have a really delicious and healthy (okay, so some butter is involved) granola bar recipe to share. However, in all seriousness, I do consider these bars healthy. They are filled with real, whole ingredients…something that is very difficult to find in your average pre-wrapped granola bar from the food store. If you are interested in cutting down on the butter, I experimented a bit and found that replacing half of the butter with unsweetened applesauce works really well. So, that means you would use a 1/2 stick of butter and 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce.
This past winter I began coaching crew at the high school that I went to. My older sister, Danielle, has been coaching there for several years and they needed extra help so I decided to lend them a hand. The reason I am telling you all of this is because that is where these amazing granola bars come from. One of the girl’s Mom bakes something for the team every weekend–either these granola bars or her granola. Both her granola bars and granola are amazing and are huge hits with the team. I was lucky to get the recipe for her bars…my next mission is to get the granola recipe! These are delicious and filled with a healthy dose of seeds and nuts. This recipe makes more of a chewy granola bar rather than a crunchy bar. The bottom line is that they are fantastic and you must make them! Seriously, round up the ingredients and bake!
Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1 egg white
- 1/2 cup almond/peanut butter
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
- 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds, toasted
- 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds, toasted
- 1/4 cup flax seeds or ground flax
- 1/2 cup wheat germ
- 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 12″ x 9″ pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Mix the egg whites, almond/peanut butter, brown sugar, and honey. Add the melted butter and combine. Mix in the oats, wheat germ and all the toasted seeds and nuts. Stir to combine and add the chocolate chips.
- Press mixture into baking pan. Bake until the edges begin to brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool for 1 hour before cutting into squares.
**I toast all the seeds and nuts before adding them to the mixture by placing them on a single layer cookie sheet in a 300 degree oven for about 10 minutes. I let them cool slightly before adding them to the mixture so the chocolate chips don’t melt.
Questions:
(1) What is your favorite flavor or ingredient when it comes to granola bars?
Without a doubt, Peanut Butter!
(2) Do you tend to like a granola bar that is crunchy or chewy?
I usually gravitate more towards the crunchy varieties of granola bars; however, these bars are an exception!!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
OMG those granola bars looks so yummy. I love chewy bars…except i NEVER liked those nutrigrain ones with the fruit stuff inside. Yuck. My favorite thing in granola bars is chocolate and nuts
I rely on granola bars so much, so it’s awesome to see healthy alternatives to the sugar laden store bought varieties! I personally like granola bars that are loaded with dried fruit and nuts. I especially love whole flax seeds. I know you don’t get as much nutrients from them, but I like the crunchiness.
{ 1 trackback }