Fallen Souffle

So I weighed myself this morning and I have lost 15 pounds since January! Ahh little victories. I needed this pick me up as I have not worked out in almost a week due to this stupid back pain. Though I am feeling much better today and may try to jog a bit tonight. I’m still planning to participate in the 10k this weekend even if I have to walk it!

I am finding that by cleaning up my diet I am craving less “bad” foods. I am also finding new ways to satisfy my cravings and my sweet tooth and these granola bars are definitely one of my new tricks!

I was craving granola bars earlier this week and since I am on a mission to use up food in my pantry I figured this was a great way to use some dried fruit, almond remnants and rolled oats. These babies are so yummy! They are sorta chewy which is a nice change from other granola/energy bars I have made, and come on…they look store bought! They are a tad on the sweet side as it does call for a cup of brown sugar (yikes!) but I am going to try and play around with that to reduce the sweetness. You could certainly add whatever nuts and dried fruits you wanted, even some mini chocolate chips!

Some tips I learned:
1. Line your pan with foil or parchment, because of the sugar they were not easy to get out of the pan! I actually had a bit of a meltdown at 11:15pm because they wouldn’t come out…..ok, I was kinda cranky to begin with

2. I baked these originally in a 9×9 inch pan but I think next time I will use loaf pans, place half of the mixture into one loaf pan. That way they aren’t too thick but you have the nice “store bought” shape.

3. After cooling, refrigerate the bars to firm up, otherwise they will be a pain to get out of the pan and cut. The bars stay nice and firm after they come to room temperature so you don’t have to worry about them getting too soft.

4. I would suggest individually wrapping them after cutting to make them easy and portable.

Oatmeal Raisin Granola Bars

1 egg
1 egg white
1 cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup toasted oats
2/3 cup raisins (I used golden raisins- yum!)
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread oats on a baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 18 minutes, until lightly browned and fragrant.

2. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Line an 9×9 inch pan with foil. Lightly oil or coat with nonstick spray.

3. In a large bowl, whisk egg, egg white, brown sugar, oil, cinnamon, salt and vanilla extract. Stir in toasted oats, raisins, almonds and flour.

4. Spread in prepared pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool; cut into bars with a lightly oiled knife.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
(based on 16 individual servings)
Calories: 130
Total Fat: 2 g
Cholesterol: 14 mg
Sodium: 50 mg
Carbohydrates: 24 g
Protein: 2 g

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