These hearty breakfast bars remind me of a granola bar or an omega-3 packed power bar. They’re filling and tasty.
After I made a batch of these and was waiting for them to cool before cutting and stylizing them for a “photo shoot,” my younger son proudly taunted me that he had picked out all of the raisins from the top of the bars.
Needless to say, I was quite miffed. Especially since I have a couple of half gallon jars full of raisins at the boys disposal which they freely dip into when they have a “sugar” fix.
Well, I found a corner of the bars that still had the raisins mostly in tact for the photo above.
Breakfast Bars
Ingredients
- 1¼ cup blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup grapeseed oil
- ¼ cup agave nectar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- ½ cup pumpkin seeds
- ½ cup sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup blanched slivered almonds
- ¼ cup raisins
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine almond flour, salt and baking soda
- In a large bowl, combine grapeseed oil, agave and vanilla
- Stir dry ingredients into wet
- Mix in coconut, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almond slivers and raisins
- Grease an 8 x 8 inch baking dish with grapeseed oil
- Press the dough into the baking dish, wetting your hands with water to help pat the dough down evenly
- Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes
- Cool bars in pan for 2 hours, then serve
None of the nuts and seeds in this low-maintenance bar are toasted. I wanted to make something quick and easy, that could be whipped up in just a couple of minutes before popping into the oven.
In other news, NPR just ran an interesting story on celiac disease that I think is worth checking out.
DrD says
I have made these bars twice in one week. Omitted the agave the first time and used honey. They held together well.
Second time I omitted the honey and used stevia in the raw. Also good, but did not hold together. I guess the agave/honey is the “glue” to hold these. Next time going to try some ground flax seed to prevent falling apart, since I want these sugar free. Anyone have any other ideas? Maybe an egg?
Kathy King says
I made these this morning and they are great. Though I keep agave on hand, I experimented with using coconut nectar in the recipe because I recently bought some. They turned out great; just what I needed for my breakfast! Elana, you are a genius. I appreciate all the hours you have spent helping so many people!
Stacy says
I am about to make my second batch of these — they are so yummy!! Even my 6 year old likes them, which is saying a lot! I did not have the grapeseed oil, so I used some walnut oil that I had. So happy to have found something at least one of my kids will eat!
Steph says
A handy tip i just found: If you’re like me and dont like getting your hands dirty, place a piece of baking paper over the mixture to press it down into the baking dish. Clean fingers!
These are about to go into the oven now. Yum!
Bonnie says
Holy cow….I just made these and couldn’t wait for them to cool so I scooped out a little corner to taste…..they are devine!!
I had to sub a couple of things….coconut oil for the grapeseed oil and pecans instead of almonds. This was only because this is what I had on hand.
Oh, oh, oh….and I didnt have raisins cause I don’t like them but I did have some dried cranberries so I threw them in instead.
Wow, this is such a nice sweet treat!!
Try them, you won’t be disappointed.
Stacy @Stacy Makes Cents says
These are super delicious! I can’t wait to make them again! I was afraid they would be too crumbly, but after cooling down they were just fine! Yay!!! :-) Thank you!
Bonnie says
I was worried about that too since I tried to cut into them while they were still hot. Hopefully they will firm up once they are cool.
(not that i care, I would eat them with a spoon if I had to LOL)
Carmen says
Elana
Thank you for these delicous recipes!
Each one I’ve tried has turned out fabulous.
Carmen
(recently diagnosed wheat allergic)
Kathy King says
I agree. I have not had one failed recipe from this website. It’s encouraging to have this great resource!
Gina L says
Wow, these are great! I can not do all of the oil, so I put in a 1/4 cup of applesauce instead of the oil and added the egg!!! Delicious :) Love your website plus everyone who comments.
Tory says
Just made these! I added 1 egg based on all the comments about how crumbly they turn out. I also used walnut oil instead of grapseed oil because that is what I had on hand. In addition, I roasted and salted the seeds before adding to the batter. I think they turned out great! We’ll see what my hubby thinks when he gets home! I would definitely make these again. Salty-sweet goodness!
Tory says
I also used 8 by 8 glass pan. Next time I think I will baked them slightly less- they were a bit dark around the edges.
Molly says
These taste fabulous! Unfortunately, mine really crumbled. Don’t know if I didn’t pack them hard enough before baking or didn’t bake them long enough. Also thought about adding tapioca to them to help them stick better. Anyone have any tested method???
Thanks so much!
Marie says
I’ve made this recipe a few times. The first time, it also came out a bit crumbly (but very tasty), and very hard to cut out squares from the baking dish without leaving half of the square in there. After that first time, I’ve made these adjustments:
– maple syrup instead of agave nectar (the first time using maple syrup was because I ran out of agave nectar, and I found that I actually like it better this way)
– melted coconut oil instead of grapeseed oil
– fewer nuts/seeds/coconut flakes than the recipe calls for. If the recipe calls for 1/2 cup of something, I use somewhere between 1/2 and 1/3 cup.
– grease the baking dish with butter or Earth Balance soy free “butter”.
I bake it for 20 minutes, and it comes out great. No crumbling, and easier to cut and remove from the baking dish (1 square at a time, of course).
Marie says
I also use a glass 8×8 baking dish. I don’t know if this makes a difference, though.
Molly says
Thank you so very much for your response. I will make them as you recommended next time!