Playdate Granola Bars

The kids have some friends over to play once a week, and last week I was in the mood to make these granola bars for a snack for all the kids. I love this recipe because it is so flexible. You can use any combination of dry ingredients to make them different every time if you want to. Making these granola bars is a great way to clear out all those little bits of stuff left in the pantry that you don't have enough of to make anything else with. I had a little bit of coconut left in a bag, and some sunflower seeds, so I threw them in with some oats and rice crispies. I didn't have vanilla, but they tasted just as good as they did when I made them with vanilla before. Here's the recipe:

Granola Bars

 Oats or cereal combined with your choice of other dry ingredients such as wheat germ, sunflower seeds, crushed peanuts, dried fruit, etc. to equal 4 1/2 cups.

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup honey

4 T. butter or peanut butter

2 tsp. vanilla (optional)

1/4 to 1/2 tsp. salt*

*If your butter or peanut butter is salted, 1/2 tsp. salt may be too much.

 Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. Cook the sugar, honey, butter or peanut butter and salt together until it comes to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Mix with dry ingredients and press into a wax paper coated 9 by 13 inch baking dish. Let cool completely... putting them in the fridge so that they're very cold when you cut them works well. Turn them out onto a cutting board. Remove the wax paper and cut them into bars.

My kids love these, and it's no wonder because they are very sweet... great for a snack or even dessert!