Nutty Seedy Energy Bars

I adore bars.

All kinds of bars.

Dark chocolate bars. Lemon bars. Pecan bars. Granola bars….and Wine bars.

Some of my favorite bars are those that are super sticky and chock full of crunchy nuts and seeds.

Like these bars…

These energy bars are vegan, gluten free and made with real food.

You can use any seeds you want. I chose flaxseed, sunflower, pepita and chia.

Same with the nuts. I went with blanched almonds, cashews, and pecans (chopped up).

You can toast them or keep them raw. I prefer the taste of toasted nuts and seeds, especially when it comes to pepitas. To each his/her own.

Combine almond butter, chopped + pitted medjool dates, maple syrup, and water in a pot on low heat.

Make sure to separate your pits so they don’t end up inside the bars! They look eerily similar to pecans. Consider yourself warned.

Mash the mixture with a spoon until it becomes a paste. It happens pretty quickly so don’t walk away form the stove! You don’t want to burn the precious almond butter.

Then add in the seeds, nuts, dried cranberries and coconut flakes.

Stir stir stir and then evaluate.

Yes, I invite you to take a few bites straight out of the pot to evaluate your mixture.

If it’s not sweet enough, add some more maple syrup.

If it’s too runny, add some more nuts and/or seeds.

If there are too many nuts + seeds (yes, that’s possible), stir in almond butter one tablespoon at a time until the mixture clumps together. If you have too many nuts and seeds, the bars will fall apart!

When you’re satisfied, pour the mixture into a pan (lined with parchment paper) and press down until everything is evenly packed down.

Then stick it in the refrigerator and wait patiently.

After it has cooled down, cut into squares.

These would make lovely (and delicious) holiday presents!

Nutty Seedy Energy Bars

Adapted from Green Kitchen Stories

Ingredients:

• 1 cup medjool dates, chopped and pitted
• 2/3 cup almond butter
• 1 T maple syrup
• splash of water
• pinch of salt
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup pepitas
• 1 T chia seeds
• 2 T flax seeds
• 2/3 cup chopped nuts
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup sweetened coconut flakes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 275* F. Toast nuts and seeds for 5-10 min. Combine dates, almond butter, maple syrup, salt and a splash of water in a small pot and heat on low heat. Stir until the mixture becomes a paste. Mix in toasted nuts and seeds, dried cranberries and coconut flakes. Pour mixture into a shallow pan or cookie sheet, lined with parchment paper. Press down until mixture is evenly packed down. Refrigerate for 20 minutes. Cut and serve.

Tips:

• You can purchase various nuts and seeds from the bulk section at your local grocery store
• Use medjool dates for best results
• The oil from the almond butter seeps out a bit, so you might have to blot the bars with a paper towel.
  

Happy crunching!