Present Glo Bars

Making your own granola or energy bars is not that hard!! Imagine it, you have been skiing all morning and you are STARVING and MUST have some nourishment. You open your pack and unwrap a homemade bar of goodness with out all of the questionable ingredients. The Present Glo Bars are my favorite. The recipe calls for rice crisp cereal, I use cocoa rice crisp because I think everything is better with a little chocolate.  You could easily substitute other dried fruits and nuts in this bar.

This recipe comes from Angela Liddon’s book “Oh She Glows.”  This is a great cookbook to have in your collection and you should check out her beautiful blog.   

Present Glo Bars

  • ½ cup pecans, finely chopped
  • ½ cup rolled oats
  • 1 ¼ cup rice crisp cereal
  • ¼ cup pepita seeds
  • ¼ cup dried cranberries
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • ½ cup brown rice syrup
  • ¼ cup roasted almond or peanut butter
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Toast the pecans until golden and lightly fragrant.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, rice crisp cereal, pepita seeds, cranberries, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the cooled toasted pecans.

In a small saucepan, stir together the brown rice syrup and almond butter until well combined. Cook over medium heat until the mixture softens and bubbles slightly, then remove the pan from the heart and stir in the vanilla.

Pour the almond butter mixture over the oat mixture, using a spatula to scrape every last bit out of the pan. Store well until all of the oats and cereal are coated in the wet mixture. (The resulting mixture will be very thick and difficult to stir.) Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, spreading it out into an even layer. Lightly wet your hands and press down on the mixture to even it out. Use a pastry roller to compact the mixture firmly and evenly. Press down on the edges.

Place the pan in the freezer, uncovered, and chill for 10 minutes or until firm.

Lift the oat square out of the pan, using the parchment as handles and place it on a cutting board. With a serated knife, slice the square into 6 rows and then slice them in half to make 12 bars.

Wrap the bars individually I plastic wrap and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.