Homemade Granola Bars

I'm not usually the biggest fan of granola bars. You know the ones, they come prepackaged in a cardboard box with a picture of a white haired man on the front. Claiming that they "Don't contain any high fructose corn syrup," but the label on the back clearly says "corn syrup" and "corn syrup solids," but thank the Lord it's not HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP! Gotta love food marketing! You can even get them in fun flavors like S'mores and Chocolate Dipped! I've never really understood how and why these are marketed as "breakfast" items. I think anything that is chocolate dipped is CLEARLY a dessert! I guess since they contain oats, the people who make them believe that qualifies them as breakfast. To each his own I guess! Anyway, we are heading to the St. Louis Zoo tomorrow and I will be packing a lunch and some snacks to take with us. The zoo doesn't charge admission and there is free parking all around Forrest Park, and so if I choose to pack a lunch instead of buying food at the zoo, this makes for an EXTREMELY cheap (not to mention fun!) family outing. Who doesn't love cheap fun! Yes, it's probably easier to just grab something to eat from a stand at the zoo but #1. I'm not a huge fan of spending half of our monthly eating out budget on one day of food at the zoo, which gives us the choice of corn dogs, pizza, cheeseburgers, fries, you know, typical zoo food. Now, I'm not saying that I don't like those kinds of food but if I'm going to be indulging on pizza, I don't want to be paying $7 a slice (that my kids will take two bites of and the rest will go in the trash) and #2. The lines for food are LONG during lunch hour on a Saturday. If I pack us a lunch, it costs a fraction of what lunch at the zoo would cost, my kids will actually (hopefully) eat it, and we can sit down and eat it wherever we are! No walking around looking for restaurants/stands that have what we want to eat. I usually just pack a cooler that will fit beneath our stroller for our cold food and put anything that doesn't have to be kept cold in the diaper bag. Tomorrow's lunch includes chicken salad (that uses leftover chicken from tonights supper, always a plus to use up leftovers), carrots and hummus (our fave!), watermelon, homemade "Jello" jigglers (just 100% juice and unflavored gelatin), and homemade granola bars. Finally, back to the granola bars! I made some homemade granola the other day to go with yogurt for breakfast and snacks and it got me thinking that I should make some granola bars to bring with us to the zoo. Now, I've already said that granola bars aren't my favorite snack. What I really should have said is that granola bars in a box from the store aren't my favorite snack. HOMEMADE granola bars, on the other hand are another story. These babies are delicious, not to mention easy! I made a pan yesterday, that was meant to go to the zoo with us, but we already ate them.....ALL. Yeah, they are good! So today, I had to make another pan. Yesterday, I made a chocolate chip version (definitely more of a dessert version) and today, I made an almond, raisin/craisin version. Both are equally yummy! The base is the same and you can just change up the flavor by adding pretty much anything you like. Peanut/almond butter, coconut, any nut/seed, dried fruit, or chocolate are good add ins. If you are buying granola bars from the store, do me a favor and try making these at home. They will save you tons of money and they taste SO. MUCH. BETTER (almost like a no bake oatmeal cookie!). Not to mention, they are probably better for you since they don't have all the artificial junk and preservatives that the store bought ones do. They take about ten minutes to whip up from start to finish so they really can't be beat! Try out this recipe and see what your family thinks! We are huge fans!

Homemade Granola Bars:
Base:
2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup puffed rice cereal
1/4 cup butter (I used real butter so I can't say if they will turn out with margarine)
1/4 cup honey (mine is cinnamon flavored, and adds a nice little taste to the bars)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
Once you get the base made, you can add any mix ins that you prefer! These are also great if you have to have a gluten free diet. Just be sure to get certified GF oats!

For the base you mix the oats and rice cereal in a large bowl (if you have add ins like nuts, coconut, dried fruit, also add these to this mixture. Do not add chocolate chips, they will just melt). Place a medium sauce pan on the stove and add the butter, honey, and brown sugar. Cook until it boils and continue to cook for 2 minutes after it begins to bubble, stirring so it doesn't boil over. Remove from heat and add vanilla (if you are using peanut/almond butter, add now). Pour the hot mixture over the oats/cereal mixture and stir to coat. Press mixture into a buttered 8x8 (thicker bars) or 9x9 (thinner bars) pan. If you are doing the chocolate chip version, you can add on top before you press, but they may melt a little so you can wait until it cools a bit then press the chips in. Let them set up for 2 hours and cut into 12 (more or less, depending on what size you like) bars. Keep bars covered for up to 1 week. Enjoy!

 The base has only six simple ingredients, which you more than likely already have.

 My assistant. Such a big helper.

 Stirring the oats and rice cereal.

 Note from Gav, always make sure you sample your work.

Yummy! Obviously the chocolate chip version. I didn't include a picture of the craisin/raisin almond version, but they are yummy as well. *Note-these will not be as hard when they set up as store bought but you can put the pan in the refrigerator before cutting/serving and they will set up a little more.  

I'm so excited for our zoo trip tomorrow! We haven't been since Owen was a tiny baby and I know both boys will love seeing all the animals. We are also planning a stop at Trader Joes, which is right near the zoo. I LOVE that grocery store! We will be stocking up on healthy pantry items that we can't get at our local grocery stores. If I could shop here weekly, I totally would! I just can't justify driving an hour, one way to buy groceries every week. If I lived in Leoti, that would be another story!

 I always enjoy cooking treats for us at home, especially when they turn out as great as these granola bars did. Always a bonus when you can make something at home that would have cost you twice (or more) as much as something you buy at the store. This mama loves to save money! Give these granola bars a try, I'm betting you won't be disappointed!