Almond Mocha Granola Bars

We recently went to Manning Park for a whole weekend of snowshoeing, and I decided to have another go at granola bars to try and create something like my favorite kashi bar flavor that has coconut, almonds, coffee and chocolate. I went back to my successful crunchy granola bar recipe from the NYTimes and started modifying it. It was pretty successful except I left out the brown sugar when I made it and I think I needed a bit more liquid binder to hold them together. If I made it again, I think I would try reducing the flaxseed meal a bit to compensate for the additional dried ingredients. Part of my aim in using half cacao nibs this time in place of the chocolate chips was to cut down the sweetness, which was pretty successful but there still is a little ways to go.

Coconut Mocha Almond Granola Bars 

• 3 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 2 c. rolled oats
• 1/2 c. flaxseed meal
• 1 Tbs instant coffee
• 2-3 Tbs unsweetened dried coconut
• 1-2 Tbs sliced almonds
• 1/4 c. cacao nibs
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1/3 c. honey 
• 2 Tbs brown sugar 
• 1 tsp vanilla 
• 1/4 c. chopped bittersweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate chips

1. Butter a 9x9 baking dish. Heat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Melt the butter in a skillet, add the oats and stir until the oats are lightly toasted, ~ 6-7min.
3. Combine the flaxseed, coffee, coconut, almonds, cacao nibs, salt, and oats in a bowl.
4. Bring the honey, vanilla, and brown sugar to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes.
5. Pour over the dry mixture and stir well.
6. Let cool for 5 minutes, then stir in chocolate.
7. Press into pan and bake for 20 min. Let cool and slice into squares.
Photo to come