Tasty, vegan and organic granola bar recipe.
This is the first in a series of blog posts I wanted to write sharing my favourite recipes using ingredients you can get from the shop. I have priced everything up so you know what it will cost to buy the ingredients and for each portion*. Today I'm sharing a go-to recipe for me, a lovely vegan granola bar that is sweet and soft.
*Please note that it is very difficult to dispense exact amounts using gravity fed dispensers, but I'm getting better at guess-timating!
I love flapjacks and granola bars. They make the perfect easy, portable and low waste snack. They are also very easy to make in bulk as they take very little time to cook, plus the ingredients are really inexpensive and easy to size up or down, They store well in the freezer, so you can bring them out and defrost them as and when they're needed.
What you will need:
Makes 8-12 large bars or slices
Ingredients from Earthian Zero Waste Shop:
Organic Jumbo Oats - £0.36
150g Organic Rolled Oats - £0.27
80g Organic Pumpkin Seeds - £0.48
80g Organic Sunflower Seeds - £0.20
100g Organic Raisins - £0.45
20g (or 1 tablespoon) Organic Cinnamon Powder - £0.47
10g (or 1/2 tablespoon) Organic Nutmeg Powder - £0.64
Total from Earthian = £2.87
Ingredients from elsewhere/your kitchen cupboards:
2 large tablespoons of Golden Syrup (or preferred sweet alternative) -Lyles Golden Syrup is vegan and the tin is recyclable, a 454g tin is usually around £1.35
200g Coconut Oil (or preferred substitute) - Usually found in a glass jar that is reusable and recyclable, 300ml usually costs around £3.00.
Approximate total for all ingredients= £7.22
Per portion when cut into 12 = £0.60
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
Grease or line a deep tray or 2 loaf tins - you can find recyclable, un-waxed parchment paper at the shop.
Put the coconut oil and the golden syrup together in a pan and gently heat until they are both melted and combined.
Take off the heat and add all other ingredients to the pan (oats, seeds, raisins, nutmeg and cinnamon).
Stir really well until the melted coconut oil and golden syrup has fully coated all the dried ingredients.
Pour onto the try or evenly split between the two loaf tins. Then spread it flat and push it down, take your time here to ensure it is well packed down as this will help your bars stay together. Use the back of a spoon to help avoid sticky fingers!
Put the tray or tins in the oven and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. If you're using a tray it may start to brown on top quite quickly so keep an eye on it.
Allow it to fully cool before placing it in the fridge for at least an hour. The cold will help it to harden making it easier to remove from the tin/tray and cut into your desired slice or bar size.
They are often very crumbly at first but they will firm up.
I hope that you enjoy these lovely bars! I'm very new to writing up and sharing recipes but as I love cooking so much I wanted to share some of the things I make with what's in the shop. If you try out the recipe, please do share your feedback with me as I'd love to hear it.
Take care and happy cooking!
Katie