Raw Super-Crunch Granola Bars!

Super-Crunch granola bars are tasty and will keep you regular. No, seriously, that’s a LOT of fiber!

A few days ago I made these fantastic and super-healthy raw granola bars from a whole mess of seeds and nuts. Pumpkins seeds, steel-cut oatmeal, flax seeds, quinoa, sunflower seeds, and almonds are all considered very good for your digestive health as well as being natural cholesterol-reducers. The final bars are dense with nutrients; sweet, seedy, nutty, and tasty.

And they’re extremely easy to make!

You Will Need:

Equipment & Special Needs:

• A food processor
• A food dehydrator
• parchment paper
• canola oil cooking spray
• a rolling pin

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces dried dates (the chopped kind with no pits)
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 2/3 cup “angel flake” shredded coconut
• 2/3 cup honey
• 1/2 cup steel-cut oatmeal
• 1/2 cup pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds)
• 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup golden flax seeds
• 14 cup red quinoa
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Roll out the mixture between two sheets of lightly oiled parchment paper. About a half-inch thickness is ideal.

Now Do This:

First soak your chopped dried dates in about two cups of warm water. Allow them to soften for 30 minutes. Drain off the water and puree the dates in a food processor until smooth. Into a large mixing bowl combine the date puree and everything else. Using a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon stir it all into one big sticky mass.

On a cutting board spread out a sheet of parchment paper and spray with a light coating of canola oil. Spread the granola bar mixture on the parchment and spray the top of the mixture with a little more cooking spray. Cover with another piece of parchment and press down with your hands to flatten. Using a rolling pin gently flatten the mixture until it’s about a half-inch thick.

Peel off the top layer of paper and discard. Using a sharp, long knife cut the granola (and the paper) into squares about 6-inches on a side. Place the squares (on the paper) on your dehydrator racks and set the temperature to 135º F.

Dry the granola bars for about eight hours and then test your granola bars. If they hold their shape but are still sticky you can cut each into smaller bars. I cut my bars about one-and-a-half inches wide and six inches long, but you can cut them any size you want, of course.

Return the cut bars to the dehydrator and finish drying. It took me another ten hours to dry to the consistency I desired. I wanted the bars to hold their shape but not be hard as rocks. A total of 18 hours was needed. They were totally worth the wait!

Dehydrating these bars took about 18 hours total. But they were worth the wait!

If you like this recipe, check out my recipe for super-crunchy, super-healthy granola!

http://spencerhgray.wordpress.com/2012/06/11/pings-super-crunchy-super-granola/