Do you love sweet and salty, nutty, creamy, chewy and satisfying snack bar treats? Do you also want to eat healthy?
I do! As much as I strive to eat healthy, on some days I just don’t have time to wait for, look for and eat wholesome foods or meal on-the-go. This granola bar recipe is perfect for those who want to be more prepared with healthy eating habits anytime. It makes a quick and easy recipe that sustains my energy level without sacrificing the taste. Those little small bites are perfect snack food for hectic days.
I’ve dabbled in various granola bar recipes over the past few years by replicating various recipes from blogs or website here and there. Each time, I was excited thinking into that this recipe would become closer to “it“—my ultimate go-to, delicious and no-bake granola bar recipe that I will always enjoy that perfect texture and flavor profile, and can make anytime. I either improvised and tweaked the ingredients many times, and still wanted to get that perfect mix of flavor and texture. Now I believe I’ve got it down finally.
The best part about this granola bar? It’s no-bake. No fussing with oven baking heat. Just require a little patience to set in the freezer for at least one hour.
Now this granola bar recipe can be “raw” by vegan standard, or substitute with non-vegan ingredients (i.e., protein powder and syrup type). So it is very flexible. Without losing the nutrients from heat in baking, this granola bar is as nutritious as its ingredients can be in their own right.
Protein, fiber and complex carbs without the sugary bomb—I can feel good eating it as I ever could and want to with any snack bar.
Each bite contains full burst of flavor s: tangy goji berries, creamy cashew nut butter, deep caramel-like sweetness of medjool dates, nutty coconut shreds and coconut oil, and textures of the chia seeds, flax seeds and oats.
This takes about ten min top to make, then about an hour to set in freezer. Then, enjoy it with an instant gratification.
Raw {no bake} granola bar recipe – with Cashew Cream, Coconut and Goji Berries
Makes one 8 X 5 loaf pan
INGREDIENTS:
– 2 cups rolled oats
– 2 big scoops of protein powder of choice (each scope is about 30g)
– 3 tbsp ground flax seed
– 1 tbsp chia seed
– 2 tbsp unsweetened coconut shreds
– ½ cup each of different nuts (I use raw cashew, almonds and sunflower seeds—total 1 & 1/2 cups)
– ½ cup medjool dates (about 10 dates), pitted and chopped
– ½ tsp sea salt
– ½ cup goji berries (rinse off a few times and soak them in 1/3 c of warm water for 10 min and retain the liquid)
– 1/3 cup cashew butter (or any nut butter)
– 1 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil (unrefined)
– 2 tbsp raw sugar
– 1 tbsp agave nectar (or any sweet syrup of choice)
DIRECTIONS:
1) In a large bowl, mix well the first eight dry ingredients from above together.
2) Heat a sauce pan to medium heat.
3) Put in the extra virgin coconut oil (watch it to make sure it does not burn or bubble from excess heat). Wait for about 10-15 seconds until it completely dissolves.
4) Add the cashew butter in the pan. Stir well for about 20 seconds.
5) Add in raw sugar, goji berries (with the soaking liquid) and agave/syrup. Mix well. Turn off the heat immediately.
6) Pour the syrup mixture into the dry ingredient mixtures. Mix well.
7) Pour the granola into the loaf pan. Pat down very tightly with a spatula or your fingers. Cover with plastic wrap.
8) Put in the freezer for at least 1 hour to set.
9) After it’s set in freezer, take it out and leave at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Cut up the granola bars to serving sizes of your choice, each in individual wrapping.
10) Store in in the freezer until you’re ready to eat it immediately or within a few hours.
I have had days when I’m extremely thankful that I have those granola bars on hand or in my purse for emergency snacking. Now I don’t bother to buy granola bars in stores. I’d rather make and eat my own at anytime.
And if you’re like me, I want my food to be delicious, satisfying and nutritious. Possibly all the time? Yes. But is it easy to do? Yes absolutely. Sounds perfect? You will find out as soon as you give this recipe a whirl.
Happy healthy snacking!
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Josie Huang is a passionate yoga practitioner and wandering bikramite; a curious home chef and experimental baker who thinks of her kitchen like a fun science lab; a fledgling who is carving her career path combining her passions in health, yoga, food and nutrition. When she is not practicing yoga, cooking or studying, you can find her reading a good book, talking about health, yoga, food and nutrition to anyone who would listen to her or just want to try her cooking. You can find her via her website.
Ed: Kate Bartolotta
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