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Fruit-and-Nut Breakfast Bars

Sunset
Fruit-and-Nut Breakfast Bars
Iain Bagwell; Dan Becker
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Good, Solid Recipe

Easy to make and very tasty, these bars are pure fruit, nuts, and seeds—no pasty fillers. Prep and Cook Time: 30 minutes.

Yield: Makes 8 bars

Ingredients

  • 1/4  cup  orange juice
  • 1/2  cup  whole Medjool dates (about 5), halved and pitted
  • 1  cup  whole raw almonds with skins
  • 1/2  cup  dried apricots
  • 1/4  cup  dried plums (prunes)
  • 1/4  teaspoon  salt
  • 1/4  cup  raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
  • 1/4  cup  raw sunflower seeds

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 300°. Pour orange juice over dates and let soak 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, place almonds, dried apricots, and dried plums in a food processor and pulse a few times until coarsely chopped. Add salt and dates with orange juice and pulse until mixture starts to stick together. Add pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds, pulsing a few times just to incorporate.

3. Using wet hands, scoop mixture onto a work surface and form into a log about 1 3/4 in. wide and 1/2 in. thick. Use your palms to flatten into a bar, and cut bar into 8 equal pieces.

4. Arrange pieces about 1 in. apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Using a heatproof spatula, turn bars over and bake another 8 minutes, or until nuts are toasted (but before fruit begins to burn). Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Note: Nutritional analysis is per bar.

Nutritional Information

Calories:
210 (56% from fat)
Protein:
6g
Fat:
13g (sat 1.4)
Carbohydrate:
22g
Fiber:
3.5g
Sodium:
76mg
Cholesterol:
0.0mg
Sunset, JANUARY 2008

Member Ratings and Reviews

5 stars

These bars are delicious, easy to make and packed with nutrition and energy. I make them with any nuts or dried fruits I have on hand, and especially like the orange juice component with the dates. I like to cut them into bite-size pieces to serve for dessert: guests think they're candy!05/30/09

5 stars

I made a few changes based on the previous review. I baked at 325 degrees. I also allowed the bars to completely cool in the pan before removing. I had flattened the bars to 1/4 inch of thickness. (I found myself completely confused by the "shaping into a log" narrative.) These bars were more chewy than crunchy, but they are definitely a nice alternative to the commercial bars out there which are loaded with sugar, soy protein isolate, etc. - all of which I'd rather avoid!02/15/09