Recipe of the Week: Granny M.’s Granola Bars

The following recipe for Homemade Granola Bars is from SurvivalBlog reader “Granny M.” This recipe makes a more chewy-style granola bar.

Ingredients
  • 4 ½ cups rolled oats
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour (you can use regular white flour.)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ cup butter
  • 2/3 to 3/4 cup of honey
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • Optional Additions:
    • Chocolate chips (1 cup) and miniature marshmallows (1 cup), or
    • Chocolate chips (1/2 cup) and peanut butter chips (1/2 cup), or
    • Craisins, coconut, chopped almonds (to taste), or
    • Cinnamon and raisins — I  suggest no more than 1/2 tsp of cinnamon mixed with the other dry ingredients.)

     

DIRECTIONS
  1. Mix the oats, flour, baking soda and salt.
  2. Stir in any additions.
  3. In a large saucepan, melt butter and stir in honey, vanilla, and brown sugar. Pour this over the oat mixture and mix it well. (If the mixture seems too dry, then add a little more honey.)
  4. Press the mixture into a raised-lip cookie sheet (or just a 9×13 inch pan if you want really thick bars.)
  5. Press the mixture down firmly with a buttered spatula. It is okay if it doesn’t fill the whole cookie sheet.
  6. Bake at 325 F for 18-to-22 minutes. (Allow less time for thinner bars, and more time for thicker bars.)
  7. Press the bars down again with a spatula after taking them out of the oven.
  8. Let cool for 10 minutes in pan.
  9. Cut into bars of whatever size you prefer.
  10. Let the bars cool completely in the pan before removing. Note that the bars will crumble if you take them out too soon or if don’t press them firmly enough.
STORAGE

You can wrap them individually or place them in an airtight container. They also store well in the freezer. They actually taste pretty good frozen too!

Do you have a well-tested recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long-term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven recipes, slow cooker recipes, and any recipes that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!