Fruit and Nut Energy Bars!

Two days in a row?! I must be swamped with schoolwork to be blogging so much. Anyhow, remember when I said I'd start posting recipes? Maybe not. Maybe I never said it? Well here is a recipe for any of you interested in making your own fruit and nut bars. I am trying to move away from my pre-packaged foods so I've been working hard at finding recipes for things I like that don't take too long and that I can eat on for more than one day. Oh and anything that saves me money is good for me! 

I originally found this recipe here so I don't want you thinking I'm some kind of culinary genius but I did edit it just a bit to make do with what I had. Here's what you'll need:

• 1 cup whole raw almonds
• 1/2 cup dates
• 1/2 cup dried raisin/golden raisin/cranberry medley (got mine from Trader Joe's)
• 1/4 cup orange juice (I use pulp free for cooking/baking)
• 1/8 teaspoon of salt (I have no idea what this is for)
• 1/4 cup pepitas (raw pumpkin seeds)
• 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
• Shallow Aluminum baking pan (the ones you get in the baking aisle of the grocery store)
• Aluminum Foil
• Wax paper

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees and line a baking pan with aluminum foil. I forgot to take a picture of this step so just use one of those throw away aluminum pans you get in the baking aisle at Kroger, make sure it's a shallow one. Line it with foil and make sure the foil is taller than the sides of the pan. You'll use the foil to help you take the bars out.

Combine the almonds, dates and other dried fruits (you can use whatever you'd like but make sure you keep the dates because they play a big role in holding everything together) into a food processor or in my case, a Ninja! And pulse until coarsely chopped.

Add orange juice and salt and pulse until it all starts to stick together. Then add the sunflower and pumpkin seeds just to the point that they're mixed in. Scoop the mixture into the prepared pan.

Yep, totally looks like birdseed

Use your wax paper and hands to press the mixture into the pan so it's flat and even. Bake for 15 minutes then cool completely before cutting.

I used my handy dandy pizza cutter to cut them then I wrapped them individually in wax paper and foil and set them in the fridge. They were exactly the grab and go snack I needed and I've made them twice. If my version of the recipe didn't make any sense feel free to click the link above and see how a real pro types it out. Enjoy :)