walnut date granola bars

Over the weekend when all it did was rain and drizzle and blow gusts of wind in every direction, I decided to cozy up and do some baking. And it's a good thing I did it when I did, since we lost power less than twelve hours later and we were forced to only open the fridge in extreme situations. Boo.

But man, did these come out tasty. I've always wanted to make my own granola bars, ever since my college roommate's Greek stepmother would send her back to the apartment with container after container of nutty, good-for-you bars that were pretty much perfect for any time of day.

And I realized granola bars will never get boring to make--you can keep varying the recipe a million times over, tweaking it here and there to make a whole new type of bar. If you don't like flax seeds and wheat germ, leave them out. If you'd rather use dried apricots and almonds than dates and raisins and walnuts, go for it. Mix it up. The important part, however, is to make sure you keep your proportions of dry to sticky. Too much wheat germ and they'll be dry and crumbly, too much honey and they'll be gooey and sticky.

We all know what I'll be doing every single rainy day from here on out, now.

Walnut Date Granola Bars
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1 2/3 c. quick rolled oats
1/3 c. dark brown sugar
1/4 c. oats, processed till finely ground in food processor or blender
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/4 c. flax seeds
2 T. wheat germ
2/3 c. dates, chopped
1/3 c. raisins
1 1/3 c. walnuts, chopped
1 t. vanilla extract
6 T. melted butter
1/4 c. honey
2 T. light corn syrup
1 T. water


Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8″ x 8″ pan with parchment paper, allowing it to go up the opposing sides. Lightly coat the parchment paper and the exposed pan with a non-stick spray.

Stir together all the dry ingredients, including the fruit and nuts. In a separate bowl, whisk together the vanilla, melted butter, honey and water. Mix the wet ingredients with the dry until the mixture is evenly crumbly. Spread into the prepared pan, pressing them in firmly to ensure they are molded to the shape of the pan.

Bake the bars for 30 to 40 minutes, until they’re brown around the edges.

Cool the bars completely on a cooling rack.

Once cool, cut the bars into squares with a serrated knife. My bars were a little crumbly at first, so I chilled the pan further in the fridge for 30 minutes. Wrap the bars individually in plastic or stack them in an airtight container.

Voila! Healthy, grab-and-go snacks!

Try it, I dare you. And then you must come back and share!