Puffed Wheat, Almond and Coconut Granola Bars

Blogging Marathon# 64: Week 3/ Day 1

Theme: Wholewheat Dishes

Dish: Puffed Wheat, Almond and Coconut Granola Bars

Day 2 of 'Wholewheat dishes' and I'm using it in puffed wheat form today. My husband has been asking me to make granola bars at home for quite some time, so I tried these granola bar recipe from Cooking Light magazine.

Recipe calls for goji berries which I have never used before. I bought some from the bulk section of Whole Foods -- they are quite expensive, but they are supposed have many health benefits. If you can't find them, then use any other fried fruit that you like.
Original recipe was actually made from puffed barley, I couldn't find that anywhere but found this puffed wheat cereal instead, which was perfect because it fits right into this week's theme :-) This cereal is very slightly sweetened and worked beautifully in this recipe. I'm assuming you can use any puffed grain here.

These granola bars are very easy to put together -- just mix dry and wet ingredients, bake until set and serve. They are great to eat for breakfast on the go or as a quick afternoon snack. Even my picky 8 year old seemed to like them. They are nutty, chewy and slightly sweet. They keep well for about 3~4 days at room temperature.

Puffed Wheat, Almond & Coconut Granola Bars

Ingredients:

• 1¼cups Puffed Wheat Cereal (or Puffed Barley Cereal)
• 1cup Old fashioned Rolled Oats
• ⅔cup Dried Goji berries
• ⅓cup Almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped
• ⅓cup Unsweetened, flaked Coconut
• ⅓cup Almond Butter
• ⅓cup Honey
• 1tbsp Olive Oil
• 1tsp Vanilla Extract
• ½tsp Salt
• 1tbsp Sesame Seeds

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9"x9" square baking dish and line with parchment leaving a little overhang for easy removal.
2. In a microwave safe bowl, combine almond butter, honey, olive oil, vanilla extract, salt and microwave on high for 1 minute until bubbly.
3. In a medium bowl, combine puffed wheat cereal, oats, goji berries, almonds and coconut.
4. Pour almond butter mixture over the puffed wheat mixture; toss well to coat.
5. Press into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle with sesame seeds, press lightly to adhere.
6. Bake for 10~12 minutes or until set. Cool completely in the baking dish before cutting.

 

Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 64.