Chewy Granola Bars

Saturday is usually my day to make a snack for the week. I love finding recipes that freeze well. I cut these up and place the bars in individual snack sized bags then place those bags in a freezer bag in the freezer. Before I leave the house in the morning I grab a bag or two for my purse. It's nice to have something healthy to grab when I am famished so I am not tempted to buy yucky foods- especially when I am grocery shopping. Seriously, never do that hungry.

Chewy Granola Bars
By Simply Sugar and Gluten Free
makes 12 (2 inch x 3 inch) bars
2 cups oats
2 tablespoons flax meal plus enough teff flour to make 1/2 cup total
1 cup walnuts, chopped to desired size
1/2 cup dried black mission figs, stemmed and chopped to desired size
1/2 cup sultans (a.k.a. golden raisins)
1/2 teaspoon good quality cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon good quality ginger
1/3 cup agave
2 extra large eggs
1 – 2 tablespoons water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9×13 baking pan generously with cooking spray.
Mix oats, flax meal, teff, walnuts, figs, sultans, cinnamon and ginger in a large mixing bowl.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together agave and eggs. Dump wet ingredients into dry and mix until combined. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time to help moisten granola.
Fit a food processor a steel blade (I used my Vitamix blender). Put once cup of the mixture into the food processor. Pulse 3 seconds at a time until mixture is chopped and sticks together. You don’t need to make this too fine, but it needs to be a little sticky. It will help keep your bars from falling apart.
Dump the chopped granola into the remaining granola and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until combined. Turn into prepared pan. Using wet fingers, press granola into pan. Keep pressing until the granola covers the entire bottom of the pan. Check for any little gaps and push them together.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until edges are just starting to brown. Remove from oven and let cool in the pan on a rack for 15 – 20 minutes. Remove from pan and place on rack to finish cooling completely. Once cooled, use a very sharp knife to cut into 2 inch x 3 inch bars, or desired size. Store in an airtight container. These also freeze well.