Oatmeal breakfast bars

I usually like to have some breakfast bars laying around on my desk or in my bag. They make the perfect snack when you’re on the go. I try to stick to ones that are in the range of 90-180 calories each package, that don’t taste like candy bars. Nature Valley granola bars are great. I love Rice Krispies treats, but I prefer to make those at home, since I find the packaged ones a bit too sweet and not crispy enough. Special K strawberry cereal bars are good. Kashi makes good granola bars that have a few grams of fiber and a few grams of protein. I recently tried All-bran fiber bars and I liked those too. They were only about 120-130 calories each package and about 10 grams of fiber.

The other day, I tried to make my own breakfast bars. They came out really well and it was very easy to make.
Here’s a simple recipe for some oatmeal breakfast bars.

Ingredients:

• 2 2/3 cup oats
• 2/3 cup nuts (I used crushed pecans)
• 1/2 tsbp cinnamon
• 2 medium bananas, mashed
• 1/3 cup apple sauce
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 egg

Directions:

1. Mix the oats, nuts, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
2. In a small food processor, combine the bananas, apple sauce, honey and egg.
3. Pour the wet mixture into the large bowl with the oats. Mix well.
4. Lightly spray a baking pan with PAM. Pour mixture into the baking pan.
5. Bake at 350 degree F for about 20 minutes, or until the bars are slightly golden.
6. Let it cool in oven for 10 minutes before removing.

Here’s the first batch.

I added some blueberries in the second batch.

This recipe is as a good base for breakfast bars. Next, I can experiment with incorporating different flavors and fillings, and forming the bars into different shapes and sizes.