Monday, February 20, 2012

All or Nothing Granola Bars (Vegan Recipe)

Vegan All or Nothing Homemade Granola Bars - a delicious mix of cereals, flax and goodies like dried cranberries and chocolate chips. #vegan #snacks

Today is Family Day in Ontario, a holiday dedicated to celebrating the importance of families and family life. Let’s face it, with the winter here being what it is (about five months long), we will use any excuse for a holiday that breaks up the monotony.

That being said, it is indeed a great opportunity to spend quality time doing something productive with your family. Our schedule for the day was chosen for us, as my son’s soccer team participated in a couple of exhibition games at a local sports facility.
Crammed into a viewing area with about 20 other parents and kids, my mind tends to wander towards a nice hot cup of tea and…you guessed it...a snack. That’s where these “All or Nothing Granola Bars” come into play. Not suitable to send to school because of the peanut content (unless you substitute for the nut butter), they are nevertheless perfect for a healthy, filling, portable, plant-based snack to take anywhere that nut allergies are not an issue. They also make a great after-school snack, or an at-work vegan snack for adults.


When I made these vegan granola bars a few days ago, my daughter tasted one, immediately pronounced them “awesome,” and has been grabbing one (or two) every morning since. I call them "All or Nothing Granola Bars" because I like to go heavy on the add-ins: some raisins, a few dried cranberries and some chocolate chips. Oh, and ground flaxseed for good measure. They are filling, nourishing and healthy, but sweet enough for a nice treat.

If you are a vegan recipe lover like me, consider following me via Bloglovin' for future recipe ideas.

All or Nothing Granola Bars (vegan recipe)



by Joann MacDonald
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Keywords: no bake vegan vegetarian chocolate chips raisins craisins squares bars








Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup brown rice syrup
  • 3 Tbsp packed brown sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed
  • 2 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal
  • 2 cups old-fashioned oats
  • 1/2 cup raisins and/or craisins
  • 1/4 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

Line a 7" by 11" baking pan with foil.

In a large pot, mix peanut butter, brown rice syrup and brown sugar over medium heat until smooth.

Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and then ground flaxseed.

Add cereal, oats, raisins and craisins. Stir until combined.

When slightly cool, mix in chocolate chips. Don't worry if they melt a bit.

Press mixture into prepared pan, pushing it flat with your hands.

Cool at room temperature or refrigerate.

Lift out of pan using foil. Cut into bars and store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge.

12 comments:

  1. Family Day- That's actually a new concept to me, but it sounds so much better (and more meaningful) than our President's Day over here in the states.

    These bars look absolutely perfect! The best sort have a blend of oats and crispy rice in my opinion, so you totally nailed it here. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Family Day is relatively new here. Funny they put it on the same day as President's Day. Probably easier for the stock markets or something. I guess a holiday is a holiday, even if the concept isn't meaningful to us. We can do with it whatever makes us happy...like baking. :)

      Delete
  2. These are something I would definitely love to try and make soon ;)
    Thanks for sharing ;)

    As for the long weekend??? Hannah, you're really funny with saying 'more meaningful' ;P lol
    As for me being on the north side of the border myself, I could not be happier with this new long weekend ;)
    ps. I think it was intended to be on the same day and planned on purpose with the States' holiday ~ my thoughts are that it is for business to business relationships. Mind as well get the same days off, call it something cute that's non-religious so that everyone will be happy with - and a Family Day long weekend was born ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm sure you're right. Whatever the reason, we'll take it!

      Delete
  3. BC is getting a Family Day, but the government decided not to have it on President's Day weekend so the stores will be open when the American tourists come across the border to spend their money here!

    Therefore ours will be on the previous weekend. The first one is on Feb. 11, 2013.

    Hey, I'm not complaining. It's a long weekend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Jacqui, For sure, you can't complain about a long weekend. ;) Bring 'em on!

      Delete
  4. love the neat cut on these bars. im not really a fan myself but these look delicious! great concept to your blog also.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great recipe. Anything I could substitute for the brown rice syrup?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Do you have maple syrup or agave nectar? They should work. Or corn syrup maybe, but it's not as healthy. ;)

      Delete
  6. Hello! These look amazing! I can't wait to get home and make them. I was wondering how many bars you are able to cut from one cooled batch?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Veronica, It makes quite a big pan. It depends on how big you like to cut them. I'm a bit greedy so I cut them big like store granola bars, but you could do squares too. If there are extras left (ha!) you can wrap them individually in plastic and put them in the freezer, or put them in a cookie tin lined with wax paper in the freezer. Enjoy!

      Delete