Long ago, one of my friends suggested we post a vegan recipe. I said sure, however, it has taken almost a year to follow through on that promise. But…alas…our first vegan recipe!
Of course I still love butter, cheese, fish and so on and so on. But we like to try new things too. We decided to ease ourselves into the world of vegan and this recipe looked like a good place to start. I love granola bars and I just learned that I love dates. Who knew!? I tried dates for the first time just last week and found a good, healthy snack in them.
These granola bars came together in just minutes, plus they taste good AND make you feel good. The chocolate gives them just the right amount of richness, this is important in a granola bar. We individually wrapped our granola bars and now I keep them at work for a breakfast that helps jump start my day. I’m so glad that I found this recipe because it’s so easily adaptable. I can’t wait to experiment with other nuts, fruits, etc. Planning on it this weekend. 🙂
Here’s what you’ll need
Use a food processor to combine dates, dried cranberries, almonds and pecans
Chop up the chocolate
Add vanilla…
And chocolate too. Pulse again, until combined
Press into a baking sheet and chill for 10-20 minutes
Cut into bars and treat yourself to a HEALTHY snack
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Ingredients
1½ cups medjool dates, pits removed
½ cup dried cranberries
1 cup raw almonds
1 cup raw pecans
½ cup vegan dark chocolate, chopped (we got at Trader Joe’s)
2 tablespoons vanilla
Directions
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse nuts, dates and cranberries. Process until a sticky dough has formed and all the pieces are the same size.
Add vanilla and chopped chocolate and pulse again, just until incorporated.
Line an 8×8 baking sheet with parchment paper and press the dough evenly into baking sheet. Refrigerate until firm, about 10-20 minutes. Cut into bars, however big or small you prefer. Store in the fridge, in an air-tight container.
Source: adapted from Beard and Bonnet
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