Thursday, August 23, 2012

Chia, Goji, Oat and Nut Butter Chewy Granola Bars (Gluten Free)


I've been into chia lately, mainly because Dr. Oz talks about it all the time and I get a lot of questions about it at work. I finally got sick of giving the answer "I've never used it before, sorry", so I started experimenting with it a bit more (see my chia "pudding" post).

The other day I tried adding chia to granola bars. I found a great recipe on the Nativas Naturals website and did a little manipulating. The actual bars are bigger than this, I just cut them up into "Granola bar bites".




Chia, Goji, Oat and Nut Butter Chewy Granola Bars
(Makes 12 bars)

Ingredients
2 cups old fashioned oats
1/4 cup peanut butter (just peanuts)
1/4 cup almond butter (just almonds)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 banana, mashed
1/4 cup maple agave nectar
1/2 cup puffed cereal (I used Kashi)
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 Tbs chia seeds
1/4 cup dried goji berries
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Add everything to a large bowl
3. Using clean hands, mix all ingredients together.
4. Spread the mix onto a baking sheet and press down so that it's even thickness (the mixture may not spread throughout the entire baking sheet, and that's ok. I made mine really thick so there was still some space leftover on my baking sheet)
5. Bake 15-20 minutes (depending on how thick you make them!)

Estimated Nutrition Facts
(Serving Size: 1/12 of the recipe)
I made these at work once and most people loved them, but others not so much (this is pretty typical for my demos, especially the ones that aren't loaded with sugar!). I thought they were really delicious, but even more delicious when crumbled on top of some vanilla Greek yogurt.


QUESTION:
Do you like your granola bars to be chewy, or crunchy? I like both, but typically I prefer chewy (I do love Nature Valley bars though, which are very crunchy!)

Any fun plans for the weekend? I have a really fun plan for tomorrow after work...... KICK SOME BUTT IN THE FINAL FOUR! GO BUCKEYES!!!

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12 comments :

  1. oh what a great idea for granola bars! I love the ingredient list in this!

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  2. I like crunchy savory bars like Mojo. I've had too many bars when I went to climb Kilimanjaro six months ago, and didn't have any since then. I think it will take me a while to want to eat them again! :)

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  3. Love this recipe! I've really been digging Chia Seeds lately.

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  4. i love chia seeds. i sprinkle them on pretty much everything!

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  5. Yumyumyum! These look amazing (and super healthy).

    I'm with you...I like crunchy and chewy, but tend towards chewy...feels more indulgent somehow. =)

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  6. Look at all the goodness in those bites...how could you NOT like them??? On greek yogurt, yes!! I prefer crunchy.
    Weekend? Outside runs x 2, movie and lots of cleaning...which I hate doing.
    Have a GREAT one, Gina!!

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  7. i've been meaning to try chia seeds, too. do you know anything about the calcium absorption from them?

    i like soft, chewy granola bars for sure.

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  8. These look great! I like both crunchy and smooth granola too...

    I thought of you while I was in the store yesterday---the two women working in "nature's marketplace" were discussing a specific supplement, and one said, "Two people have asked me about it in the last 10 minutes. Must be Dr. Oz talked about it yesterday."
    Ha.

    So Dr. Supplements is annoying people all over the place!

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  9. loveeeeeeeeeeeeeee chia seeds!! i have so many of them from a company that sent them i dont even know what to do with them anymore haha. i need to get back on the overnight chia oats bandwagon!

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  10. Since I have never tried chia seeds, I love getting ideas how to use them... I like chewy granola bars. Yours sound good!

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  11. these bars sound good, funny they look like they'd taste sweet. Chewy or crunchy so hard to choose. If I had to pick I'd say crunchy.

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  12. I'm just like you! I love chewy but if I dig the Nature Valley crunch too.

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