welcome to my breakfast table this is what you'll find
I have been looking for some kind of snack food to keep around the house for the kids to munch on that is a) easy, convenient and appealing to both teen taste buds and sensible (*cough*) adults, b) packs a good amount of wholesome calories that is more nutritious than, say, instant ramen, and c) is easy on the wallet.
We've settled for a while on buying protein/energy bars (powerbars, clif, balance, etc), but when the boys all come looking for an after school snack every day, that ends up being a noticeable fiscal dent, even when buying in bulk. So I kept looking.
My answer: Homemade bars that are simple and easy to make, near-infinitely variable, tasty, and significantly less expensive than the pre-packaged stuff. I started with the recipe on this page and adapted it slightly to what has worked best for me. The making of is very similar to standard Rice Crispy Treats, and once you know what you are doing, takes all of about 10 minutes of prep work. I've been raving about the awesomeness of these to various of my friends lately, and so far everybody who has tried them has asked for the recipe. So here it is.
THE BASICS
2 cups oats
2 cups cereal
1-2 cups filler
1/2 cup spread
1 cup sweetener
These are very general guidelines! Remember I said highly variable. Depending on what you use it's possible (and easy) to make this gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, soy-free, etc. So here are some specifics of what all this stuff can be:
the dry
oats - Standard generic rolled oats, dry and uncooked. They will absorb liquid from the sweetener and become soft and chewy overnight. Quick oats will also work, but I wouldn't recommend instant or steel cut.
cereal - Any of those breakfast cereals usually served with milk. So far I've been using generic crisped rice but puffed rice, grape nuts, bran flakes, etc should all work fine. Possibly toss big chunks into a blender briefly.
filler - Anything you want to include! Try nut pieces, seeds, baking chips, dried fruit, ginger, coconut, candy, or more. Use different combinations, as much or as little as you want. I prefer smaller bits of things to larger chunks, but do what you want.
the wet
spread - Any type of that paste that you'd spread on something, or a combination thereof. Try peanut butter, almond butter, soy butter, seed butter, earth balance, biscoff, etc.
sweetener - Some combination of viscous sweeteners that are liquid when heated. You can use honey, molasses, maple syrup, corn syrup, brown rice syrup, chocolate syrup, marshmallows and butter, or even a simple syrup with granulated or cane sugar and some liquid.
In theory these should last for a several weeks in the fridge if stored in a sealed container, but I have never had a batch make it longer than a week so far (due to hungry eaters). We're on our third batch so far, and they've all been different and tasty. They work great as grab-and-go snacks. They soften up a little once they warm up, but still hold together pretty nicely without getting fingers all sticky.
If you decide to make these, let me know what proportions and ingredients you use, and how it turned out!
We've settled for a while on buying protein/energy bars (powerbars, clif, balance, etc), but when the boys all come looking for an after school snack every day, that ends up being a noticeable fiscal dent, even when buying in bulk. So I kept looking.
My answer: Homemade bars that are simple and easy to make, near-infinitely variable, tasty, and significantly less expensive than the pre-packaged stuff. I started with the recipe on this page and adapted it slightly to what has worked best for me. The making of is very similar to standard Rice Crispy Treats, and once you know what you are doing, takes all of about 10 minutes of prep work. I've been raving about the awesomeness of these to various of my friends lately, and so far everybody who has tried them has asked for the recipe. So here it is.
THE BASICS
2 cups oats
2 cups cereal
1-2 cups filler
1/2 cup spread
1 cup sweetener
These are very general guidelines! Remember I said highly variable. Depending on what you use it's possible (and easy) to make this gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, soy-free, etc. So here are some specifics of what all this stuff can be:
the dry
oats - Standard generic rolled oats, dry and uncooked. They will absorb liquid from the sweetener and become soft and chewy overnight. Quick oats will also work, but I wouldn't recommend instant or steel cut.
cereal - Any of those breakfast cereals usually served with milk. So far I've been using generic crisped rice but puffed rice, grape nuts, bran flakes, etc should all work fine. Possibly toss big chunks into a blender briefly.
filler - Anything you want to include! Try nut pieces, seeds, baking chips, dried fruit, ginger, coconut, candy, or more. Use different combinations, as much or as little as you want. I prefer smaller bits of things to larger chunks, but do what you want.
the wet
spread - Any type of that paste that you'd spread on something, or a combination thereof. Try peanut butter, almond butter, soy butter, seed butter, earth balance, biscoff, etc.
sweetener - Some combination of viscous sweeteners that are liquid when heated. You can use honey, molasses, maple syrup, corn syrup, brown rice syrup, chocolate syrup, marshmallows and butter, or even a simple syrup with granulated or cane sugar and some liquid.
- Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix.
- Combine all wet/sugar ingredients so you have about 1.5 cups of binder, and heat it until it's runny (microwave works fine). Mix well. You can vary the proportions however feels right for texture and for total sweet/saltiness - For example, if you have a very runny sweetener you might use more of the spread, or if you have a very sweet spread (I love Biscoff) you might try a less intense sweetener mix. Be careful of touching hot sugar.
- Mix the wet and dry stuff together, stirring well to coat thoroughly. (optional 3.5: add protein powder, cocoa powder, salt, spices, other flavorings)
- Dump the whole sticky mixture into a solid, flat-bottomed dish.
- Using a piece of waxed paper or something nonstick, press down firmly all around until it is as compact as possible. The bars I make are about 1" thick in an 8"x8" pan.
- Refrigerate overnight.
- Cut into squares and enjoy.
In theory these should last for a several weeks in the fridge if stored in a sealed container, but I have never had a batch make it longer than a week so far (due to hungry eaters). We're on our third batch so far, and they've all been different and tasty. They work great as grab-and-go snacks. They soften up a little once they warm up, but still hold together pretty nicely without getting fingers all sticky.
If you decide to make these, let me know what proportions and ingredients you use, and how it turned out!