Granola Bars

Hello hello hello! I am very excited today, I'm travelling through Europe for a month in a few hours of this post. My course is almost over, so I'll be heading back home after that, to do my dissertation. So I've been super busy packing up my room, feeling all crummy about leaving this place, and excited about travelling. My life has been all about bags and boxes since so long.

Even in the midst of this, though I was dreading removing some time to bake these, once I began baking, I felt absolutely relieved. Being in the kitchen (surprise surprise, even to cook!) really relaxes me.

This month's assignment was a real toughie, Thrifty Veggie Mama has mostly super healthy recipes, with tofu and stuff as ingredients in baked stuff too. It was a great challenge, and I finally found these granola bars that were super easy and amazing. I've never made granola bars before, but these were amazing. Perfectly chewy, not too sweet, and the chocolate on top is heaven.

Granola Bars

Adapted from Thrifty Veggie Mama

3 cups oats {I used regular old fashioned not quick}
1/2 cup crispy rice cereal {Optional. You could just add more oats}
1/2 cup liquid sweetener {I used half butterscotch syrup and half maple syrup}
2 T peanut butter
1 banana, mashed
1/2 c oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/4-1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions -

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Line a 8x8 pan with parchment.
2. Mix together all ingredients except the chocolate chips. (Tip - measure out the oil first, and then the liquid sweeteners, it will flow out much better out of the measuring cup).
3. Bake for 20-25 minutes, and then sprinkle on the chocolate chips. Leave for a few minutes, then spread to form a layer. Allow to set for an hour in the fridge. Cut into bars and serve.