Six out of six Tormanens like these

Last Sunday while the kids were in Sunday school, I was sitting out in the van flipping and dog-earring my way through the March 2011 issue of Everyday Food.   One of the recipes that I dog-eared was Emeril's nutty granola bars on page 36.  We like them.  I'll make them again.

• 3/4 Cup Honey
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 1/3 Cups slivered almonds (6 oz)
• coarse salt
• 1 cup raisins or other dried fruit (I used cranberries - a Tormanen household staple) 
• 1/3 cup creamy almond butter (I used organic peanut butter from Costco - a Tormanen household staple)
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 325. In a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup honey and butter over low. Cook, stirring, until butter melts, 2 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, combine oats, almonds and a pinch of salt. Drizzle honey mixture over oat mixture and stir to combine; wipe saucepan clean.  Spread mixture evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes, stirring occsionally. Let cool completely on sheet, 10 minutes. Return to large bowl and add dried fruit; stir to combine.

3. Lightly butter an 8-inch square baking dish. (I'll make this again, but I'll use a bigger pan - they came out almost too thick for my littles when I used the 8x8) In saucepan, combine 1/2 cup honey, almond butter, and brown sugar over medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil and sugar dissolves, 10 minutes. Drizzle over oat mixture and stir until combined; transfer to baking dish. With a spatula, firmly press granola into dish. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour, then cut into 16 squares or bars. 

Store in an airtight container at room temp, up to 5 days.

258 calories per bar; 11 g fat; 6 g protein; 38 g carb; 3 g fiber

Comments

[Sara-Jane Bunting]

Thanks for the great recipe, I am going to make these for my boys too, perfect for school lunches and nothing processed in there at all!

[Jen]

I saw this in Everyday Food too. I thought they looked good and healthier than what I usually buy. I'll have to give them a shot.

[Anna K]

Made these today, but I was out of peanut butter and don't generally have almond butter on hand...so I used Nutella. They're great, a chocolate-y twist. I'll definitely make them again..and the other versions as well! Kiitos!