These pear chocolate granola bars are not too sweet, not too nutty, and just gooey and chewy enough. Made with plenty of tahini, they are a healthy(ish) protein snack for when you're short on time - and they're easily veganized.
Course Snack
Author Ksenia Prints
Ingredients
3cupsgranola
½cupraw whole-grain tahiniregular raw tahini will do just fine
¼cuphoneyif you are vegan, or you have brown rice syrup, use that instead
Line a 9x9 inch square pan with parchment paper, cutting the sides to allow it to fold neatly into the square (or just use two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way - this will make it easier to slide the bars out). Oil pan well.
In a small saucepan, stir together tahini, coconut oil and honey (or brown rice syrup). Cook over medium heat just until the mixture softens and bubbles a bit, enough to stir it into a cohesive syrup.
Chop pears into small pieces (no need to peel).
In a large bowl, mix together the granola and pears. Pour the syrup over the oat mixture and stir well to combine, taking care not to bruise the pears too much. Try to form patties - you want to make sure the mixture sticks together.
In microwave or using the double broiler method, melt ½ an ounce of chocolate with 1 teaspoon coconut oil. Mix well to combine.
Pour the granola mixture into the pan, using lightly wet hands and a spatula to pat it down into place evenly. Drizzle chocolate mixture over it, creating a loose zig-zag shape.
Place the pan in the freezer for 10-20 minutes, just until firm (if you forget about it and leave it overnight, nothing will happen).
With the help of the parchment paper, lift the hardened granola square out of the pan. Slice the square into bars.
To keep, wrap the bars individually in plastic wrap or foil and store in an airtight container in the fridge. They will keep beautifully in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or about a month in the freezer.