Fruit N Nut Bars Recipes

FRUIT AND NUT BARS

Steps:

• Bring 1 cup water to boil in a medium suacepan along with the butter and dried fruit . Reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Mix in the apple butter or apple sauce. Allow the fruit combination to cool 10-20 minutes. (Tip: Dried fruit can be quite sticky when chopping. Lightly spray your knife with cooking spray first and the task will go more quickly.).
• Mix together the flour, baking soda, spices and nuts in a bowl. Beat together the egg and egg whites. Add beaten eggs, vanilla, and fruit slurry to the bowl with the flour mix and stir until combined.
• Bake in 9 inch pan square pan at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.
• Allow to fully cool before trying to cut and serve.

DRIED-FRUIT-AND-NUT HEALTH BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place dates in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to a simmer. Drain reserving cooking water. Puree dates in a food processor with honey and 1/4 cup reserved cooking water until smooth.
• Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray and line with parchment paper leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides. Mix oats or quinoa flakes, nuts, papaya, cherries, blueberries, bran, flaxseed, wheat germ, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Mix in date puree. The mixture should be moist enough to hold together. If necessary, add up to 1/2 cup more cooking water. Press mixture into pan.
• Bake until center is firm and edges are golden, about 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 16 bars.

FRUIT 'N' NUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream butter, shortening and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in remaining ingredients. Shape into three 10-in. rolls; wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours., Preheat oven to 375°. Unwrap dough and cut into 1/4-in. slices. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool.

PEGGY'S FRUIT N' NUT BARS

Steps:

• Add vanilla to pineapple juice in a large mixing bowl and stir well.
• Chop larger dried fruit into bite sized pieces and add to juice. Stir well. Let sit for a minimum of one hour, stirring occassionly.
• Whisk together eggs (or egg replacer) and then stir in honey. Whisk well then stir into fruit mixture.
• Add flaxseed and nuts to fruit mixture. Stir well.
• Mix together, flour, oats, baking powder and spices. Stir well then add to fruit mixture in about three batches. Stirring well between additions.
• Lightly grease 12 x 15 glass baking dish. Add mixture to dish and press down well.
• Bake at 350 oven for about 40 to 45 minutes. Do not overbake.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool before removing from pan.
• Cut into thin bars and store in airtight container.
• These can be frozen but in our house they don't last that long. Enjoy!

BEST FRUIT AND NUT BARS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 325.
• 2. Grind whole flaxseed in a coffee or spice grinder. Combine with peanut butter, honey, salt, and water in large bowl and stir to combine.
• 3. Add dried fruits, nuts and seeds in whatever combination you like. Batter will be very stiff.
• 4. Spray 12 cup muffin tin with nonstick spray and divide batter evenly into cups. Use damp fingers to press batter into cups and flatten tops.
• 5. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until tops are dry and edges are a deep, toasty brown (bars will not rise). Cool completely and store in air-tight container for up to two weeks.

EASY FRUIT & NUT BARS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Line 13x9-inch pan with foil, leaving ends of foil hanging over sides of pan; spray with cooking spray.
• Beat cake mix, COOL WHIP and egg in large bowl with mixer until blended. (Batter will be thick.) Stir in nuts and cranberries.
• Spread onto bottom of prepared pan.
• Bake 25 to 30 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean; cool completely.
• Melt chocolate as directed on package; drizzle over dessert. Use foil overhang to remove dessert from pan; slice into bars.

FRUIT AND NUT SQUARES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with shortening or cooking spray. In large bowl, mix 2 cups flour, the brown sugar and butter with fork until crumbly. Press firmly in bottom of pan.
• In same bowl, mix filling ingredients. Spoon onto crust; spread evenly.
• Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely, about 45 minutes. For squares, cut into 8 rows by 6 rows.

STARBUCKS CHEWY FRUIT AND NUT BARS

Steps:

• Ingredient note: look in your health food aisle for a healthy alternative to Rice Krispies. The brand I found is made by Enviro-Kidz and uses BROWN rice.
• Prepare 9x13 pan with non-stick spray (or line with parchment paper).
• In a large mixing bowl, toss all dry ingredients. Feel free to substitute your preferred nut or dried fruit.
• In a saucepan, combine brown sugar and corn syrup. Bring to a boil and allow to boil one minute. (Note: boiling the sugars is what helps the bars become firm and not sticky, so this step is important).
• After boiling, turn off heat; add vanilla and peanut butter. QUICKLY pour this hot mixture over the dry ingredients and toss to combine.
• Pour warm mixture into prepared pan. Wet your fingers and press the mixture down into the pan to compress the bars so they will slice evenly.
• When cool, use a sharp knife to cut into 18 bars (1 long lengthwise cut and 9 cuts across). Enjoy with a hot cup of Starbucks coffee for an authentic experience!
• Note: Starbucks does not list corn syrup in their ingredients, but the sweetener in their list is not readily available. I tried using Maple Syrup, but the bars were very crumbly and would not stay together in bars. Therefore, I found that Corn Syrup is the best ingredient that is readily available.

FRUIT & NUT CEREAL BARS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the cornflakes, apricots, peanuts, dates, coconut and sesame seeds. In a large saucepan over low heat, melt butter and marshmallows; stir until smooth. Pour over cereal mixture; toss to coat. Press into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. dish. Cool. Cut into bars. Store in an airtight container.