Homemade Granola Bars 2

 

This is Ina Garten's recipe on Food Network and it is SO good!  First I didn't think they were going to hold together but once they cooled they did pretty well.  I think it would be good to just bake it all together for a short amount of time and use as granola too. 

Homemade Granola Bars

2 cups old fashioned oatmeal
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
3 Tb unsalted butter
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup chopped pitted dates
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup dried cranberries (I only used cranberries but I'd like to use dried apricots next time)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter an 8x12 baking dish and line with parchment paper.

Toss oatmeal, almonds, and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned.  Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

Reduce oven temp to 300 degrees.  Place butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.  Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture.  Add the dates, apricots, and cranberries and stir well.

Pour into prepared pan.  Wet fingers and lightly press mixture evenly into pan.  Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown.  (I only cooked mine for 18 minutes because I wanted them more chewy than crunchy.  They came out perfect at that time.)  Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares.  Serve at room temperature.

This post is linked to:
What's Cooking Wednesday at Turning the Clock Back
Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam
Show Us What You're Working With at Me and My Bucket
Slightly Indulgent Tuesday at Simply Sugar & Gluten Free
Delicious Dishes at It's a Blog Party
Tasty Traditions at Coupon Cookin'
Recipe Swap Thursday at Prairie Story
Family Food Fridays at Get Healthy Cheap
Tip Day Thursday at Around My Family Table
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