Monday, October 4, 2010

No bake Healthy Granola Bars





Know what you Eat - Oats, via their high fiber content, are already known to help remove cholesterol from the digestive system that would otherwise end up in the bloodstream. Now, the latest research suggests they may have another cardio-protective mechanism. Antioxidant compounds unique to oats, called avenanthramides, help prevent free radicals from damaging LDL cholesterol thus reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Almonds the health nuts - 90 percent of the fats in almonds are unsaturated, and the nuts are high in protein, fiber, calcium, magnesium, potassium, vitamin E, and other antioxidants. Almonds help prevent osteoporosis and they regulate blood pressure. Chia(The Magic Seeds) - The chia seeds may have great benefits for diabetics so they are considered as magic seeds. Eating the seeds helps dieters by making them feel fuller faster so they will be less hungry.
I just love granola bars, but the store bought ones are too sugary and lot of additives like partially hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup etc. I have made several attempts to bake one very unsuccessfully. The sides will be burned and the inside will be fine and i will end up eating the burned sides, because there will be no takers and i won't feel like throwing so much hand baked in the trash. This recipe does work and make sure the peanut butter is creamy and not solid and lumpy.

Preparation Time - 10 mins

Cooking Time - 5 mins

Serves - Around 20 bars






Ingredients



Oats (Old fashioned or Rolled Oats with extra thickness) - 1 cup

Oats Quick Cooking(Not instant) - 1 cup

Peanut Butter - 1 1/2 cups(Unsalted & new with a creamy texture)

Whole Almonds(not silvered) - 1 cup

Grated Coconut - 3/4 cup

Chia seeds - 1/2 cup

Honey - 1/2 cup

Dates - 1/4 cup(Chop them finely)

Raisins - 1/4 cup

Oil(Sunflower or Canola) - 1/4 cup

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Cinnamon powder - 1/2 tsp



Method



1) Dry roast Oats both old fashioned and quick cooking separately (do not mix them) in stove top till the raw smell is gone.

2) Dry roast grated coconut, chia seeds and almonds till it slightly browns(make sure they don't become black and slightly brown) or in a preheated oven bake combine the old fashioned oats, chia seeds, coconut, almond for, 350 degrees 7-10 minutes stirring in between till they are roasted and the quick cooking oats 3 minutes till the raw smell is gone.

3) Grind the quick cooking oats to a coarse powder.

4) Crush the almonds into small pieces. (Wrap them in paper towel and use a pounder or put them in plastic zip loc and use a thick bottomed pan to crush it).

5) Combine Oats, Oats powder, Almonds, Chia, Coconut, Dates and Raisins and keep it ready.

6) Combine honey, oil and peanut butter in a pan, add salt and cinnamon powder and heatit till the peanut butter melts and everything is well combined.

7) Now transfer the Oats mixture to the above and switch off the stove.

8) Mix everything thoroughly and transfer the contents to a greased pan and use a spatula to even it out.

9) Now put it in the refrigerator and leave it for 2-3 hours, once the bars are well set, take it out and make bars with a knife and store in a airtight container in the refrigerator. Enjoy these bars as a quick breakfast on any busy day or as a guilt free snack anytime of the day.



Event Participation

This dish goes to Show me your Breakfast event hosted by Divya Vikram.

This dish goes to Original Recipes - Monthly Round up Event hosted by Lorie.







Sending this to Food for 7 Stages of Life - Healthy Fast Food hosted by Radhika and Sudeshna.

26 comments:

Lisa said...

Oh, these sound good. You are so right about the store bought varieties.

I would like to try a version using 2 cups of rolled oats soaked overnight and then drained. Dried cranberries come to mind too. The gears are turning :) Thanks for the inspiration!

Pavithra said...

wow thats so interesting recipe and so so healthy.. love the pict too. I love oates and dry fruits so much i have bookmarked it and for sure i will try it out. Thanks for this recipe .

Pavithra said...

which oil we need to use for this..

Nandini said...

This one looks delicious and tempting! It is healthy with oats too!

Kalyani said...

looks delicious & tempting and a healthy one ...

5 Star Foodie said...

These sound delicious and pretty easy to make too! Very nice! I love granola bars too.

RupaMohan said...

Thanks for visiting my blog.Loved the
granola bars..never thought it was so easy to make..will try..You have a lovely blog

Kitchen Flavours said...

Oh wow.....looks yum......healthy and nutritious.....

Uma said...

yummy bars! No baking makes them more interesting :)

jayasree said...

Tempting granola bars.. love the dry fruits in them.

Suparna said...

hi,
I've never tried no bake bars as yet, ur recipe looks health packed and damn easy to make, this would def. come handy for a nibble at untimely hunger :)Thanks
TC

Parita said...

yummy granola bara..i do dont like the store bought ones..never tried making them at home though..must a try for me:)

Priya said...

Lovely click..wat a delicious and healthy bars Sadhana !

Chitra said...

sounds interesting..looks fantastic:)

DEESHA said...

I love to munch on these before hitting the gym .. very nice

A 2 Z Vegetarian Cuisine said...

Thanks All for your comments.

Varunavi said...

Sounds delicious and healthy snack fo the kids :)

Kalai said...

Wow... No bake?? That's terrific! They look so tasty! :)

sangeeta said...

this looks easy.....are they soft n not crunchy?

Madhuram said...

Very healthy and easy to make bars Sadhana. I was also going to make something like this.

A 2 Z Vegetarian Cuisine said...

THanks for your comments. Sangeeta they are not crunchy unless you bake them but nutty with lot of texture and they awesome without baking.

Renu said...

very healthy !! will try it once

iRaw said...

These bars look so good! I like the idea of using chia seeds too.

Divya Vikram said...

That looks too good! Far better than the store bought ones!

Lore said...

No bake bars are perfect for a hot sunny day when you don't want to turn on the oven but you crave for a homemade sweet treat. Love the different colours!
Thanks for sharing them with the Original Recipes Round-Up.

Cham said...

This one sounds too good with nuts and peanut butter. Seems I missed plenty of ur posts.

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