Soft & Chewy Baked Granola Bars
Dense, chewy, soft, doughy, seedy, hearty, protein-and-fibre-packed granola bars, sweetened naturally with dates! Try them spread with nut or seed butter for a fun treat or just enjoy them plain.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup rolled oats ground into a flour
- 1 cup water
- 3/4 cup packed pitted Medjool dates
- 1/2 cup chia seeds
- 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F and line a 9-inch square pan with two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way.
- Add rolled oats into a high-speed blender. Blend on highest speed until a fine flour forms. Add oat flour into a large bowl.
- Add water and pitted dates into blender. Allow the dates to soak for 30 minutes if they are a bit firm or your blender has a hard time blending dates smooth. Once they are soft, blend the dates and water until super smooth.
- Add all of the ingredients into the bowl with the oat flour and stir well until combined.
- Scoop the mixture into the pan and spread it out with a spatula as evenly as possible. You can use lightly wet hands to smooth it down if necessary.
- Bake at 325F for about 23-25 minutes, or until firm to the touch. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then lift it out and transfer it to a cooling rack for another 5-10 minutes. Slice and enjoy!
- I suggest freezing leftovers to preserve freshness.