Homemade Granola Bars & Share Our Strength

This past weekend, I decided to bake my own homemade granola bars since I spend money every week at the grocery store buying them.  I found a recipe from Alton Brown and just added a few of my own goodies I had on hand.  I used shredded coconut, butterscotch chips, and flax seeds – not exactly a healthy granola bar, but a yummy one!  What’s nice about baking your own granola bars is that you can use whatever goodies you prefer (chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, nuts, dried fruits, etc.)  This is a simple recipe to make and definitely more cost effective than buying granola bars each week!

In other news, I recently started volunteering for Share Our Strength.  Many of you have probably heard of this organization, but if you haven’t, they are a non-profit that works to help end childhood hunger in the U.S.  In particular, every year they host an event called Taste of the Nation DC in which DC-area restaurants and chefs gather to raise money and awareness for this great cause.  100% of the proceeds go to Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign, which includes support for local beneficiaries Capitol Area Food Bank, DC Hunger Solutions, and Mary’s Center.

Why am I telling you this?  Well, this Monday, November 15^th is No Kid Hungry Day.  Select food trucks in DC including Bada Bing, CapMac, Choupi Crepes, DC Empanadas, DC Love Bites, Eat Wonky, Red Hook Lobster and Takorean will offer their eats the entire day and then donate a percentage of the proceeds to Taste of the Nation DC.  There’s also a happy hour at The Passenger (1021 7^th Street NW) from 5-8pm where 10% of the proceeds will also be donated to Taste of the Nation DC.

Be sure to grab some local, food truck eats and a few cocktails at The Passenger today!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1 cup butterscotch chips (you can use chocolate chips, dried fruit, nuts, etc.)
• 2 tbsp flax seeds
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup honey
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9 by 13″ baking dish.
2. Toss the oatmeal and coconut together on a baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned.
3. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl.
4. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees.
5. Place the butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the butterscotch chips and mix.
6. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly golden brown.
8. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

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