White House Fruit and Oat [and Nut] Bars
Wednesday, May 12, 2010 
While reading the New York Times this morning, I stumbled across this recipe and accompanying article about the White House pastry chef Bill Yosses. Per the article, this is one of several recipes that have been developed to transition from the "bottomless cookie plate" of past administrations (though that doesn't sound too bad to me...). I've been wanting to try a homemade granola bar recipe ever since reading this posting on the Smitten Kitchen blog, and since I was put on early maternity leave last week yet am not confined to bed rest, I've recently found myself with a little extra time on my hands to do just that.
Granola bars -- especially the not-so-good-for-you, chocolate-coated ones -- were one of the few things I could stomach eating during my first trimester, when the mere thought of many foods triggered my gag reflex (potatoes au gratin, hot sauce, almost anything spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.). I've yet to send my husband on a late-night ice cream run, but for a few months I was very particular about our granola bar stock...
These bars are much healthier than what you might find in a store and can be infinitely tweaked to suit your tastes and / or what's currently in your pantry. Next time I'm going to try a variation using a bag of German muesli that I have on hand but don't care for with just milk or yogurt. They also smell great while cooking / cooling.
White House Fruit and Oat Bars
Adapted from The New York Times, 11 May 2010
The original recipe calls for seeds (sesame, sunflower,...), but I didn't have any on hand so I used slivered almonds instead. For the dried fruit, I used a mixture of golden and black raisins, cranberries, cherries and strawberries.
Yield: 1-2 dozen bars, depending on the size you cut
6 tablespoons grapeseed oil, plus extra for brushing pan
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup maple syrup
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups mixed dried fruit
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch-square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, letting a few inches hang over side of pan. Brush with oil.
2. Spread oats and seeds on another baking pan and toast in oven just until golden and fragrant, 6 to 8 minutes, shaking pan once.
3. In a mixing bowl, toss together toasted oats and almonds, dried fruit and cinnamon. Set aside.
4. In a saucepan, combine oil, honey, brown sugar, maple syrup and salt. Stir over medium heat until smooth and hot. Pour hot sugar mixture over oat / almond / dried fruit mixture and stir until well combined.
5. While mixture is warm, transfer to prepared pan, pressing into pan evenly with an offset spatula.
6. Bake until brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer pan to a rack and let cool completely. Using the overhanging foil or paper, lift out of pan and place on a work surface. Cut into bars, about 1 1/2 inches by 3 inches.
Reader Comments (1)
It seems to be yummy and tasty. Great Job.