baking · cooking · Dessert

Chewy Barley Granola Bars

When you think granola bars, oats are what pop into your mind. Ever had Barley Rolled Flakes though? They are very similar and have a great taste, more nutty and earthy than oats do. You can mix and match them when old-fashioned oats are called for. I can find them in bulk at co-op’s but I prefer to buy them from Bob’s Red Mill as I use so much now, especially in granola.

I did an adaptation of a recipe I saw on Savory Simple’s website. I have toyed with maple sugar, I can source it at Trader Joe’s for about half of anywhere else. When you use it, you need 2/3 of the called for sugar (1 cup sugar=2/3 cup maple sugar). It isn’t cheap, so it has to be for treats. Although that isn’t a bad thing. White sugar is cheap, it is too easy to use a lot of it.

Chewy Barley Granola Bars

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups Barley Rolled Flakes, divided
  • ½ cup Organic Maple Sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt
  • ½ cup dried wild blueberries
  • ½ cup dried apricots, finely diced
  • ½ cup sliced almonds, crumbled
  • ½ cup Brown Sesame Seeds
  • ¼ cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 6 Tbsp pure maple syrup
  • 1/3 cup natural unsweetened almond butter
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil, such as sunflower
  • 1 Tbsp water
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly oil or spray a 9×13″ glass baking dish. Cut a long piece of parchment paper to fit down the middle, lay in and oil as well.

Process 1/3 cup of the barley flakes into a fine powder, using a blender, mini food chopper or food processor. Add it and the dry ingredients into a large bowl.

Whisk the wet til smooth, add to the dry and stir to coat fully.

Scrape into the prepared dish, pat down smooth and gently flatten with your fingers.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until turning golden on the edges.

Let cool in the pan, then lift out using the parchment paper to pull out.

Cut into desired shapes, wrap tightly and store in the refrigerator or freezer.

~Sarah

One thought on “Chewy Barley Granola Bars

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.