Chia Energy Bars

These delicious bars are gluten-free.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa, cooled
• 1/4 cup whole flax meal
• 3 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1/2 cup dried fruit, nuts, etc.
• 1 large egg white
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup peanut (or almond) butter
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease an 8" x 8" pan, or line it with parchment.
2. Toss together the oats, quinoa, flaxseed meal, chia seeds, dried fruit, and egg white in a medium-mixing bowl until thoroughly combined.
3. Warm the honey, nut butter, salt, and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until well blended. Don't let it boil, just let it get warm and fluid enough to blend easily with the dry ingredients, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Pour the honey mixture over the dry ingredients and mix until everything is coated.
5. Press the mixture into the prepared pan.
6. Bake the bars for 23 to 25 minutes, or until the oats on the edges start to turn golden brown.
7. Remove them from the oven and let them cool completely before serving.
8. To serve, cut into squares.

Hands-on time: 17 mins. to 24 mins.
Baking time: 23 mins. to 25 mins.
Total time: 40 mins. to 49 mins.
Yield: 9 bars

These bars can easily be made vegan. Mix 1 tablespoon of the flaxseed meal (listed in the dry ingredients) with 3 tablespoons of water in a separate dish and allow to rest for 10 minutes, until the mixture becomes gel-like. Substitute this mixture for the egg in your recipe.

If you're using salted peanut butter, reduce the salt in the recipe to 1/8 teaspoon.

nutrition information: Serving Size: 78g, 1 bar Servings Per Batch: 9 servings Amount Per Serving: Calories: 285 Calories from Fat: 111 Total Fat: 12g Saturated Fat: 2g Trans Fat: 0g

Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 118mg Total Carbohydrate: 38g Dietary Fiber: 6g Sugars: 21g Protein: 9g

* The nutrition information provided for this recipe is determined by the ESHA Genesis R&D software program. Substituting any ingredients may change the posted nutrition information.

Recipe and photo credit (used with permission): King Arthur Flour