We have never been much in the way of dry cereals for breakfast. In fact I can't remember when we had dry cereal for breakfast. When I use dry cereal it tends to be as an ingredient in baking, cereal or no-bake bars and snack mixes. Cereal bars are easy to make, no muss, no fuss and no bake treats ideal for tucking into lunches, after school snacks, and entertaining. I'm always on the lookout for another cereal bar recipe.
A few days ago I was browsing the recipes when I came across a recipe for Banana Nut Cheerios Energy Bars I knew I just had to try. I usually have plain Cheerios in the pantry but not the flavoured ones so I bought a box of the Banana Nut Cheerios specifically to try these bars. I made two substitutions to the recipe. Rather than use a nonstick cooking spray which I don't use to begin with I greased the baking dish with a little butter. I used a dried fruit medley trail mix in place of the dried cranberries. This is a mix I got from Bulk Barn that consists of raisins, currents, cranberries, papaya and dates.
The recipe gave a yield of eighteen 1" x 2" mouthwatering bars. This is a definite keeper recipe! Not only are they easy and quick to make the bars are delicious. At the same time there is room for a bit of tweaking. I think the bars would be quite tasty with flaked coconut added and you can certainly substitute the dry fruit added as I did. The almonds and sunflower seeds add a nice crunch while providing extra protein. Aside of lunches and snacks these bars would be excellent for carrying along when hiking the trails!
I think I might give this a try, too.
ReplyDeleteHubby will be glad to know it works with butter and not spray. :)