Granola bars

These are the real deal. Both kids and adults love them, they're good for breakfast, a snack, or a desert, and most of all they are preservative free and made with LOVE!

Makes one 8″ square pan of granola bars – how many bars depends on how you cut them up!

Ingredients:

Oat mixture:
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 c shredded coconut 
1 cup dried fruit
optional: up to 1 cup seeds (sesame, flax, sunflower – any that strike your fancy, or all)

Binder:
1/2 c honey 
1/2 c brown sugar 
1/2 stick butter 
1/2 t salt

First start the granola – it will take a while to get really toasty.  Heat the oven to 350F. Toast the oats on their own for about 15 minutes, then add the nuts and coconut, and the seeds if you are using them, and toast for another 15 minutes or so.  Set the timer to remind you to stir/check the mixture every 5 minutes.  It tastes best if you get it really golden brown and toasty, but the coconut and nuts can burn if you forget and leave it for even a few minutes.  Add the fruit after you finish toasting the oat mixture. When the toasting is complete, put all into a large heatproof bowl.  Metal would be the safest, as we will be adding hot sugar syrup to the mixture.

While the granola is toasting in the oven, you can start cooking the honey butter to bind the bars together. In a medium sauce pan, stir together the ingredients for the binder (honey, brown sugar, butter, salt). Bring to a boil over low-medium heat, and allow to cook at a low boil, gently, for 5 minutes or so.  If it doesn’t boil long enough, the bars will still be delicious, but may fall apart a bit.
Take the honey mix off the heat and let it cool a little, 5 minutes or so. Pour the syrup onto the granola and turn and stir until it is well covered. Pour mixture into an 8 inch square greased pan.
Put a sheet of plastic wrap over the top, then press down firmly until the stuff is flat and packed into the pan. Pay special attention to pressing around the edges – it will be crumbly there when you cut them up if it is not pressed down well. Let the mixture cool for several hours or overnight.
Lift the whole slab out of the pan onto a cutting surface and cut the bars with a big heavy knife in whatever shapes you like!