dates – Oven Love https://www.ovenloveblog.com from scratch, with love...and a little sass Tue, 21 Apr 2015 20:19:12 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.29 Hazelnut Fig Bars https://www.ovenloveblog.com/hazelnut-fig-bars/ Mon, 10 Jun 2013 12:03:51 +0000 http://www.ovenloveblog.com/?p=2691  

hazelnutfigbars

I’m in limbo.

We are moving soon (just two months away..). It’s soon enough that I’m starting to get sad/nostalgic/motivated to start fresh/etc; but not soon enough that I can actually do anything about it. It’s too soon to start packing, too soon for goodbyes. I want to soak up the last bit of time here, but I’m having trouble with that. Nick is gone at training and I feel like I’m just doing busy work- filling up the time, not really enjoying the time. I’ve made a summer bucket list, but getting through it seems like more work than fun (even though I know I’ll regret it if we don’t do those things before we go).

I think I might be in a cooking rut, too. I was immersed in the GAPS Intro diet for two months and now that I’m on the other side of it, I need to get inspired all over again. I’ve quit meal planning and I’m just cooking on the fly for me and the kids. I need to break out of this whole thing and start fresh!

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I did manage to mix up these faux Larabar-type bars a few days ago. It was hard not to eat them all in one sitting- snacks like this are tough for me to resist! It’s not good for me to be the only adult in the house with no accountability. One of these days you will find me laid out on the floor after a nut butter overdose, I’m telling you!

If you’re not into figs, you can substitute another dried fruit or more dates. But you should try them- they’re pretty good. And this is coming from a girl who was a fig hater for the first 20 years of life. Break free, people! Eat figs. Eat food you think you don’t like. It might surprise you. And you can always spit it out gracefully into your napkin, so there’s that.

Where is this post going? I need some direction. What’s going on with you guys? What inspires you? Share with me!

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Hazelnut Fig Bars
 

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Author:
Recipe type: snack
Serves: 12

Ingredients
  • 1 cup hazelnuts (I pre-soak and dehydrate mine)
  • 1 cup dried figs, stems removed
  • 1 cup pitted dates
  • ½ cup coconut flakes or shredded coconut
  • 1-2 tablespoons coconut manna/coconut cream concentrate/coconut oil

Instructions
  1. Add hazelnuts, figs, dates and coconut to the bowl of a food processor. Process until all ingredients are finely chopped.
  2. Scrape down the bowl an add 1 tablespoon of coconut manna. Process until the mixture starts to stick together between your fingers. Add extra coconut manna if necessary.
  3. Press the mixture into an 8×8 pan (lined with parchment or plastic wrap). Let cool in the refrigerator until hardened, then cut into 12 bars. Keep stored in the refrigerator.

]]> Sunflower Sesame Granola Bars https://www.ovenloveblog.com/sunflower-sesame-granola-bars/ https://www.ovenloveblog.com/sunflower-sesame-granola-bars/#comments Fri, 17 Aug 2012 18:35:00 +0000 http://www.ovenloveblog.com/sunflower-sesame-granola-bars/
That old Quaker and his granola bars got nothin’ on these.
For. Reals!
Sunflower and sesame might sound like a crazy combination of flavors, but I swear.. these bars are addicting! I came across a very forgiving formula for chewy granola bars and proceeded to raid my fridge and cabinets for ingredients straight away. (I had no plan, as usual.)
I’m glad to say these are a huge improvement on my last granola bar effort. They only have natural sweeteners (honey and barley malt syrup) and they actually stay together, instead of crumbling the minute you remove them from the fridge.
I wasn’t sure the miniature food critic in the house would like the flavor combo, but he gobbled them up every day of the week. I cut them up into tiny squares for him so he could grab and go and he was all over that- kid doesn’t slow down for anything (but the iPad.. umm, quit it with all the new kid-luring technology, Apple!).
These would be a solid post-workout snack, too- when cut up, they actually remind me of those little marathon squares they sell in the bulk food section at Whole Foods.
These bars have a kind of roasty/toasty taste to them and aren’t sickly sweet. If you’re into that, just use chocolate instead of dried fruit- that’ll give you a proper sugar rush. I prefer the little pops of sweetness from the dates and figs. (Who knew about dried figs and didn’t tell me?? They are so good! My childhood self would be stunned at the thought- remind me to tell you my Fig Newton story another time.)
Blogging has turned me into a crazy, dried fig-loving, granola bar mastermind.
Who knows what will come out of the oven next.
Homemade Fig Newtons, I’m coming for you!
Sunflower Sesame Granola Bars
 

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based on a basic granola bar formula from Good Life Eats (by way of Brown Eyed Baker)
Author:

Ingredients
  • ⅓ cup honey
  • ¼ cup barley malt syrup (gives it a ‘toastier’ flavor, but more honey is a fine substitute)
  • ¾ cup sunflower seed butter
  • ¼ cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ⅔ cup almonds, chopped
  • 3 tablespoons sunflower seeds
  • 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
  • 2½ cups old-fashioned or thick-cut rolled oats
  • ⅓ cup dried pitted dates, diced
  • ⅓ cup dried figs, diced with stems removed
  • ⅓ cup raisins

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Prepare an 8×8 pan with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together honey, barley malt syrup, sunflower seed butter, tahini paste, cinnamon and sea salt until combined. Fold in chopped nuts and oats, followed by the dried fruit until all is well combined.
  3. Spread the mixture into the pan with a spatula or your fingers. Make sure it press it firmly into the pan so the bars don’t crumble after they are baked.
  4. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. Remove from the oven and let cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes. When the pan is cool to the touch, move to the freezer or refrigerator for 1 hour, or until firm. Cut into bars with a very sharp knife (I cut 16 bars). Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

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