granola bars

Let me start by saying, I am not a granola person. Yes, I'm a bit of a hippie from time to time, but eating that dry mess of oats does not appeal to me. People are always trying to convince me that it's delicious and "tastes just like candy"...yeah, right. I'll stick to my m'nm's thankyouverymuch. The other day at our local farmers market I was handed a sample of granola that didn't contain soy, dairy, gluten, sugar or corn. Surprisingly I liked it! And even more to my surprise, so did my 2 yr old! I was sold. I payed the $8 (!!!!) for my 10 oz of granola and patted myself on the back for being so healthy. That was about 6 weeks ago and guess what is still on my pantry shelf? You guessed it, about 5 oz of granola. As it turns out, it really only tastes good in the sample size. Anytime I ate more than a small handful my mouth would turn to ash and I felt like I was going to puke. I decided, once again, that granola is not my thing. Until last week.

I was cruising the food network website and this sounded so good and I knew would be easy to tweak to make it gluten and dairy free with just a few variations. I wish I could say this was my recipe, but it's Ina Gartens+a little me :)

These actually ARE good! and they do kinda taste like candy! You don't have to believe me, but we love them. I think I'll have to make them weekly because this recipe made 16 and they're already almost gone just 4 days later! I love that SweetPea thinks she's getting a treat when there is so much good stuff in these too. After I cut them I put them in the freezer so that they'd stay good longer, but they get eaten so fast, I won't need to next time.

Here's the link to the original recipe if you want to check it out

And here is my version...enjoy!

• 2 cups gluten free rolled oats
• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, loosely packed
• 1/4 cup flax seed meal
• 2/3 cup honey
• 2 teaspoons gluten free vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup raisins
• Enough oil to coat baking dish
• Parchment paper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Oil an 8 by 12-inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper.

Toss the 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 

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

Add remaining ingredients and stir well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature.

*Note: I used wax paper on accident beacuse I was in a hurry and didn't notice and it didn't peel off the backs. So, now you take a bite with bits of wax on the back...yummm! use parchment ;)