Vegan Quinoa-Flax-Hemp Granola Bars w/ Walnuts & Apricots

Sometimes I hate to say a certain food or dish is "the best".  I mean, that is a very serious...a very personal...statement.  Sure, there have been moments after eating a particular dish that I've proclaimed it amazing, and possibly even thrown that two word phrase out there.  But again, my "the best" may not be your "the best".

All that useless blathering aside, I bet you can guess what I'm going to say about these granola bars.  It's true.  I'm gonna go ahead and slap that label smack-dab across this recipe in blinking neon lights:

THESE ARE THE BEST GRANOLA BARS THAT I HAVE EVER EATEN!

Bold statement, right?  But true.  Plus, they contain some really awesome, good-for-you ingredients like quinoa flakes, hemp hearts, flax seed, walnuts, and apricots.  Sweetened with maple syrup and a new favorite of mine, brown rice syrup.  Have you tried brown rice syrup?  It actually tastes like sweetened brown rice, and being a fan of that flavor, I was pleasantly surprised at my first taste.  The taste of brown rice doesn't carry over to the bars, though - that's just if you're tasting it in its original form.

These bars are crunchy at first, but after a couple of days stored in an airtight container, they turn into more of a chewy bar.  I couldn't decide which form I liked best.  These are a new snack/breakfast/dessert (that's right, I'd take them at any of those times) staple in my house.

Quinoa-Flax-Hemp Granola Bars w/ Walnuts & Apricots

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Keywords: bake breakfast dessert snack vegan apricots flax Quinoa hemp seeds bars

Ingredients (15 bars)

• 1 1/2 cups quinoa flakes
• 1/4 cups ground flaxseed
• 2 tablespoons hemp hearts
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon maple syrup
• 2 1/2 tablespoons brown rice syrup
• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a 9x13-inch baking dish (2-inch deep) with parchment paper that overhangs a bit on each edge (for easy removal of the bars later).

Stir all of the ingredients together in a large bowl until everything is combined well and there are no dry spots left. Dump it all into the lined pan and press it down evenly using a rubber spatula.

Slide into preheated oven and bake for ~30 minutes, or until the bars have started to turn golden brown on the top and are fairly firm. Remove from oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Lift the sheet of parchment from the pan (using those overhanging edges you left) and set on a cutting board. Cut into rectangles (approximately 5 by 3 to get 15 bars - but you can do it however you like). Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

~adapted from It's All Good (Bummer Bars)

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