Homemade fruit and nut bars

Have any of you ever had Larabars? I love them! I was eating one a few months ago, and relishing in it's deliciousness, while feeling a bit guilty for spending $1.49 for the little bit of heaven. I thought to myself, I'm sure with a bit of research, I can find online how to make them at home.

You see, Ez and I are both gluten free, and there are days I have to admit, that it is a challenge for me. I am addicted, or was I should say, to bread. Anything bread was my mainstay. I have to say that there are times when all I want is pizza, (which remains my favorite food, but also a distant memory) or cookies, or cinnamon rolls, or candy bars. So, when I discovered Larabars, after being gluten free for about 3 weeks, I was transported to another dimension! My head was spinning, my eyes rolled back in my head, I might have moaned a little bit, and I'm sure that I could have been mistaken for either being in a state of ecstasy, or in the middle of an exorcism.

So, I guess my point is that, after 3 weeks of no candy bars, or gluten filled goodness, the Larabars really hit the spot, though it might not yield the same results to you gluten eaters out there.



I found a recipe and tweaked it a bit.

1 1/2 - 2 Cups pitted dates
1/2 Cup Almonds
1/2 Cup Cashews
1/4 Cup Raisins (or craisins or other dried fruit of choice)
1/4 Cup Raw Honey (optional)
1/8 Cup Turbinado Sugar (optional)
Cinnamon and/or nutmeg to taste

**Just a note, you can substitute the almonds and cashews for any nut that you want. Those are just what I had. I bet peanuts would be amazing... kind of like a PB & J flavor!...MMMMM....

Take the dates, and put them in a blender or a food processor and grind 'em up! They are really sticky, so you might have to take a rubber spatula every now and then to unstick them from the sides of the blender or FP. Process them until the dates are more of a paste, or at least much much smaller chunks.

Remove the dates from the machine, and grind up the nuts and dried fruit (if the dried fruit is bigger than a raisin).

Put all ingredients in a bowl, and knead with hands. Drizzle the honey over all of the mixture, and make sure that everything is all mixed together.

Then, shape it in to small pieces and wrap in wax paper for bite size, travel snacks!



Bite, chew, enjoy!!! :)

With love,
Suz