snacks:

cranberry and almond muesli bars

Published 12th May 2017

For years I would get to the muesli bar aisle of the supermarket and spend way too much time reading labels trying to decide which muesli bars were the best for our family, with the conclusion being – very few.

Muesli bars are one of those awesome snacks that are so handy to take with you wherever you go, without getting squashed like bananas. They are (when made well) nutritious, tasty, filling, convenient and something that I like to recommend to my clients, as they can satisfy that sweet craving without having to be a block of chocolate or ridiculously energy dense.

So, I decided to do some googling myself, but all I came across was predominantly muesli bar slices, which contained flour, too much sugar and wouldn’t have the delicious crunch that I love in a muesli bar. I then went through a long process of trial and error until I finally came up with these tasty, nutritious muesli bars that will keep the whole family happy. The best thing about them is you can tweak the ingredients slightly, such as different types of nuts, seeds or dried fruit, and you end up with a completely different tasting bar. I have a few different versions of this recipe, which I will share in time.

They will keep at room temperature for at least 2 weeks.

 
 
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Ingredients:

  • 3 cups traditional rolled oats

  • 1/2 cup slivered almonds

  • 1/3 cup pepitas

  • 1/3 cup sunflower seeds

  • 1/4 cup chia seeds

  • 1/2 cup sultanas

  • 1/2 cup cranberries or craisins

  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut

  • 75g white chocolate, chopped

  • 135g butter

  • 1/3 cup honey

 

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a 24cm x 32cm slice tin with baking paper.

  2. Place oats and dried fruit into a large bowl

  3. Using a non-stick frypan, over medium heat, toast the almonds, pepitas and sunflower seeds until golden. Place into bowl with other ingredients.

  4. Toast coconut until golden brown and add to bowl with other ingredients.

  5. Add chopped chocolate and mix all ingredients together.

  6. Place butter and honey into a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until butter melts and mixture starts to bubble.

  7. Add butter and honey to the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.

  8. Press into prepared slice tin and cook for ~15 minutes or until it starts to brown.

  9. Allow to cool completely in tin, then slice into muesli bar sized slices. For a tin this size, you should get ~24-26 muesli bars.

  10. Store at room temperature in an air tight container.