A basic granola bar recipe for autumn to come

Basic granola bars

This is the basic granola bar recipe I use. I mix the flavors and the nuts, seeds and fruits I use but this is the ratio that works for me. To make it vegan, use coconut oil and bananas and almond butter. See notes below.

Makes 12 bars

2 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1/2 cup quinoa flakes, puffed rice or puffed millet or quick oats (the purpose is to have something that has a finer texture than the rolled oats)
2 1/2 cups seeds, nuts or any dried fruit (in this recipe I used pecans, pumpkin seeds and freeze-dried raspberries)
1/4 cup butter or coconut oil
1/4 cup apple juice
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon or ginger (or any other spices you would like to taste)
3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten (if you would like to make it vegan, you could use 1 very ripe mashed banana with 2 tablespoons of almond butter instead)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8”x8” square pan with parchment paper and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the first three ingredients.

In a small saucepan, combine the butter, apple juice, maple syrup, vanilla, spices and salt. Heat over medium heat until butter melted. Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients and fold until combined. Add the eggs and fold.

Press mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes until golden brown. Let the granola cool in the pan completely before cutting or it will crumble.