Fruity Snack Bars

  Before my last trip to the grocery store, Tim asked if I would pick up some granola bars.  He wanted something with a little sweetness that wouldn't be unhealthy.  After being "that girl" and reading the label on every available granola or cereal bar, I decided I would just have to make my own for him.  Most of the bars had high-fructose corn syrup, an ingredient we avoid as much as possible, and those that did not had a lot of added sugar.  I created these bars, that are more like cookie bars than granola bars, with intentions of the final product being high in fiber and low in sugar.  Without any eggs, butter, or added sugars, these bars are tasty treats that could be a snack or a dessert.

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup raisins
1 cup pitted prunes
2 small, ripe bananas
1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

Preparation


Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Oil an 8-9 inch square baking pan.  In a medium bowl, blend flour, oats, salt, oil, and vanilla with fingers until evenly mixed.

Mince the raisins and prunes together in a food processor and place in bowl with batter.  Mash the bananas with a fork or potato masher and add to the bowl.  Use your hands to blend together well until evenly incorporated.  Fold in the chocolate chips.

Press the mixture into the prepared pan.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Allow to cool, and cut into 16 squares.

Yield:  16 bars

Nutritional Information
Serving Size:  1 bar


Food energy: 157kcal
Saturated fatty acids: 0.54g
Monounsaturated fatty acids: 2.34g
Polyunsaturated fatty acids: 1.08g
Total fat: 3.97g
Calories from fat: 35
Cholesterol: --
Carbohydrate, by difference: 29.99g
Total dietary fiber: 3.28g
Protein: 2.57g
Total sugars: 13.57g
Calcium: 15mg
Iron: 0.90mg
Sodium: 74mg

Recipe Notes


If you want to be really saintly, substitute unsweetened apple sauce for the oil and cut out the chocolate chips.  Please note, however, that most of the sugars are from the bananas, prunes, and raisins, and that only 1 gram sugar per serving is from the chocolate chips.