Sunday, April 20, 2014

Cranberry Cashew Oat Bars

Happy Easter, everyone! I hope you all have a fabulous day spending time with those you love. 

I had the chance to dye some eggs with a few kids at work on Thursday and we had a ton of fun. I seemed to have forgotten that simple activities like dyeing eggs can make a child so happy.


I know you're probably loaded up with fun Easter candy and delicious food, but when you're ready to escape the sugar high you're bound to experience, give this tasty and wholesome snack a try!

I mentioned before that I'm trying to buy less of the store-bought processed snacks and snack bars to fuel my everyday life and workouts. It's sometimes tough finding a tasty, nutritious, and portable snack to take with me to work. These Cranberry Cashew Oat Bars are perfect for nutrition on-the-go. These bars are completely customizable: swap out your favorite dried fruit for the cranberries and your favorite nut for the cashews. Also, if your family likes a sweeter snack, add your favorite sweetener and make this bar as an afternoon treat! The possibilities are endless. 


Cranberry Cashew Oat Bars

Makes 8 generous bars, or 12 smaller bars

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup chopped cashews
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup skim milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350* and spray a 9" x 9" baking pan with nonstick spray. In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg. Add the milk and vanilla and mix well. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. Pour the mixture into the baking pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown along the edges.

*The only sweetener in these bars is the berries. Feel free to add 1/4-1/3 cup of your family's favorite sweetener.

Recipe inspired by Katheats.com



And if you're looking for more healthy snacks, check out these:

Peanut Butter Banana Oat Bars

Whole Wheat Banana Oat Muffins

Whole Wheat Applesauce Muffins




4 comments:

  1. Oh wow, these look great! I need to try making them. Thanks for sharing at Simple Supper Tuesday.

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  2. I love that you don't put sugar in these. I've tried A LOT of bars and it always turns out too sweet and I usually end up modifying the recipes quite a bit. I'll give this a try. Do you store them in the fridge because of the milk in them? Thanks for sharing on LInk'n blogs link up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They don't need to be refrigerated, but they will keep longer that way. However, the cashews might get soggy! Thanks for stopping by and let me know how you like them if you give them a try.

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