I expected these bars to be dry and crunchy and I was going to put them in school lunches. Instead they are gooey and delicious and I know they won't last until tomorrow! They seem more like dessert than a granola bar to me. I'm going to make another batch to freeze since they came together so quickly. I left out the coconut and used honey instead of corn syrup.
What a great recipe! I put a bunch of almonds and walnuts in my bars for extra protein. These are very versatile bars, you can add just about anything from M & M's to white chocolate chips to dried fruit varieties to candybar pieces. These bars have now replaced my usual morning breakfast protien bar. I use honey in place of the corn syrup, they come out wonderful. For those of you who think this bar is dry, I have found the solution. Use 1/2 cup butter/margarine instead of 1/3 cup and melt it before you add it. And bake the bars for 15 minutes instead of 20. These bars don't have any eggs in them so it's okay to underbake them quite a bit, as they will harden up after a few days of sitting on the counter (if they last that long!) Thanks for the recipe, it's a good one!
This is a great recipe! I used all natural crunchy peanut butter and honey instead of corn syrup... it was perfect. I also skipped the sunflower seeds and used 3/4 cup of chocolate chips. Everyone raved!
ok susbstitutions.... agave nectar instead of brown sugar/corn syrup... it's lower glycemic index (but more expensive) and coconut oil and a bit more nut butter instead of regular butter. Coconut oil burns as energy instead of being stored as fat and can help pull fat from reserves to be used for energy and i used sunflower butter instead of peanut b/c its much healthier but also more expensive i also added about a 1/3 c of flax for coagulation (helps stuff stick w/o the butter) and for extra fiber and good fats. used walnuts sesame seeds raisins and choc chips as my mix ins....... they are AMAZING. i have been experiementing w/recipes for awhile and this is by far the best. After i put the mix in a pan i spread some more sun butter on top and then sprinkled go lean crunch (or granola) for some crunch it was a great add on. and we have been keeping them in the fridge which somehow makes them even better.
Really great. I used corn syrup and honey. Honey alone would work but I didn't have enough. This is a keeper and NOTHING like a bagged cookie.
These granola bars are very very good I dropped the cho. chips and added 1/4 cup of flax seeds and 1/4 cup of sesame seeds instead of the chocolate chips to make them more nutritious. My husband and two boys love them and they are a great snack anytime. Thanks
My husband is a coach and I like to send healthy goodies for his athletes to have at their meets. I have made MANY failed attempts (yes they were healthy but were no more then dried out logs of nutrition). This recipe is a keeper! To cut back on the fat I'd omit the coconut (sorry... my fave too). I used a low-fat margarine amlonds instead of sunflower seeds Hershey's cinnamon chips instead of chocolate and used only 1 1/3 C oatmeal with 2C high protein cereal from Trader Joes. These were so yummy (even BEFORE baking!) that his athletes were lucky to get any. Not bad for a quick hunger fix while awaiting an event or for my kids who can be pretty picky! Thanks Karen. These are a keeper.
I really enjoyed these bars. I used 1/2 cup butter honey instead of corn syrup and 4 teaspoons of vanilla. I also added some soy protein powder to the mix. The chocolate chips coconut sunflower seeds and raisins were omitted. I added Craisins to my bars. I baked the bars for 15 minutes and they were crumbly at first but the bars hardened by the next day. I will make these again and I was so surprised how good they came out. The next time I bake these bars I will use 3 cups of rolled oats.
Wonderful recipe. Probably would be good no matter what you did! Due to allergies and cupboard situation I came up with the following which is Sooo delicious: almost 3/4 c. soy butter for peanut butter honey for corn syrup strong brewed coffee for vanila frosted mini-wheats and multi-grain cheerios (crushed) plus 1c. wheat germ for the rolled oats no brown sugar milk-free spreadable margarine for the butter no raisins more choc. chips no sunflower seeds. baked for 15 min. Super way to get rid of 'forgotten' cereal in the cupboard!
Sorry to say I wasn't as thrilled with these as others seem to have been. I did leave out the coconut and sunflower seeds and substituted Sun Maid Dried Fruit Bits for the raisins. They were easy to make but I felt they were a little greasy - I don't really think with all the peanut butter and corn syrup there was much reason to grease the pan. Basically they are ok if you are looking for a snack you can make healthier than cookies but nothing I would make again. My peanut butter loving husband and oatmeal loving toddler aren't interested so I've got a lot of bars to eat!
