honey Archives - a sweet baker

Banana Caramel Granola Bars

February 28, 2013 by Elizabeth Gorecki 46 Comments

Do you ever need an on-the-go snack that fills you up and it’s healthy? Well, I’ve got these Banana Caramel Granola Bars that just might do the trick! Minus the caramel sauce if you really want them healthy, but I’m not that disciplined so caramel sauce it was!

In just over a week our family will be on vacation so I’ve been busy packing, organizing, and thinking of snacks to take for the airport. With 3 kids, there is always one them that’s hungry, thirsty or bored. That’s why I’m making up some on-the-go snacks to have on hand so that when they ask for a $5 muffin and a $2 bottle of water, I’ll be ready! Well, the water will have to come from the fountain since we can’t take it past security, but the food I can bring.

Ever since I saw Jessica’s (from A Kitchen Addiction) Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate Chip No Bake Granola Bites I thought they would be the perfect thing to make for the airport. So, those are next on my list this week! The reason why I went for these this time was because my kids can still take these to school with them in the meantime. No peanut butter = school friendly! Plus I had too many bananas in my freezer that needed to be used up.

Banana Caramel Granola Bars

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 14-16 bars

These granola bars are healthy and filling. Perfect for an on-the-go snack!

Ingredients

2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup honey
2 egg whites
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
2 cups rolled oats
4 Tbsp. Organic Sprouted Chia & Flax Seed Powder (or just chia or flax seeds)
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 caramel sauce

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl add the bananas, applesauce, honey, egg whites, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Mix well until all ingredients are combined.

In a separate bowl, mix together the rolled oats and the chia/flax seed mix. Pour into wet mixture and combine.

Pour mixture on paper-lined cookie sheet. Using a spoon, flatten the mixture in to a rectangle and 1/2 inch thick. I also used the inside of my hand to smooth out the edges as I worked the spoon along.

Sprinkle the 2 Tbsp. of brown sugar evenly on top. Bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Once granola bars are cooled, spread caramel sauce evenly over top and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from The Svelte Gourmet

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Some other healthy granola bars you might enjoy:

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookie Granola Bars by Averie Cooks

Almond Joy Raw Bars (Gluten-Free Heart Healthy) by Beard & Bonnet

Fruit & Nut Granola Bars (Gluten Free) by Hezzi D’s Books and Cooks

Filed Under: Squares & Bars Tagged With: apple sauce, banana, caramel, chia seeds, flax seeds, honey, oatmeal

Chewy Popcorn Bars #bloggersforsandyhook

December 21, 2012 by Elizabeth Gorecki 13 Comments

Chewy Popcorn Bars

sandy hook 200

Today my post is dedicated to all the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

As I’m sure many of you reading this felt the same way I did last Friday – helpless. As I was watching the events unfold on the news in front of me I was wishing there was something I could do to help the families in Newtown, Connecticut. Being part of a wonderful blogging community, we felt that we would take today to honor all the victims and families affected by this terrible tragedy.

Today, I pray for those families and all the innocent children who lives were taken too soon. My heart goes out to the parents who are now struggling with such a big loss in their lives, especially at Christmas time. They will be in my thoughts over the holidays. I will also be making a donation to the who are offering counselling support to the affected families.

Chewy popcorn Bars2

Never forget these angels as they were taken to soon:

Daniel Barden, Olivia Engel, Josephine Gay, Ana M. Marquez-Greene, Dylan Hockley, Madeleine F. Hsu, Catherine V. Hubbard, Chase Kowalski, Jesse Lewis, James Mattioli, Grace McDonnell, Emilie Parker, Jack Pinto, Noah Pozner, Caroline Previdi, Jessica Rekos, Avielle Richman, Benjamin Wheeler, Allison N. Wyatt, Mary Sherlach, Victoria Soto, Anne Marie Murphy, Lauren Rousseau, Dawn Hochsprung, and Rachel Davino

God Bless you and your families over the holidays!

Chewy Popcorn Bars4

Recipe from Orville Redenbacher’s website.

Chewy Popcorn Bars #bloggersforsandyhook

Ingredients

8 cups popped popcorn
2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 cup dried sweetened cranberries
1 cup dry roasted peanuts
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup honey

Instructions

Preheat oven to 300°F. Pop corn according to directions on package (yield about 8 cups). Remove all unpopped kernels.

Spray 13 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Pour popped corn into pan; top with oats, cranberries, and peanuts.

Combine brown sugar and honey in medium saucepan. Cook on medium-high heat for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until mixture comes to full boil and sugar is dissolved. Pour syrup over popcorn mixture. Carefully toss using two large spoons until mixture is evenly coated with syrup.

Bake 20 minutes stirring once midway through baking. Remove from oven; lightly press popcorn evenly in pan. Cool on rack about 2 hours or until set. Cut into 24 bars. Store leftovers in tightly sealed container.

Enjoy!

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Filed Under: Squares & Bars Tagged With: bars, bloggersforsandyhook, cranberries, honey, oatmeal, peanuts, popcorn

Date & Pecan Scones with Cinnamon-Honey Butter

July 17, 2012 by Elizabeth Gorecki 7 Comments

I’ve always wondered what the difference was between a scone and a biscuit. So, I decided to do a little searching and, lucky for you, I found out!

Scones originated from Scotland and biscuits are often associated with the Southern States
Scones are often sweeter and richer than biscuits
Scones are usually cut into triangles and biscuits are round
Scones are usually served with brunch or as a base for a dessert, while biscuits are usually eaten as a side dish with breakfast or dinner

So, there you have it! But, if you add nuts or sugar to your biscuits and cut them into triangles do they then become scones? I don’t think it really matters, except for the fact that they both taste delicious straight out of the oven!

This scone recipe is a sweet, moist version that can be cut into triangles or whatever shape your heart desires. Usually I don’t like any sort of nuts in my baking but this recipe called for pecans to be all chopped up so I had to try it. Plus, I love pecans. They’re the only nut that I can eat with my dessert. I love them in butter tarts and I also love them on a hot fudge sundae. Yummy!