Pumpkin Pie "Lara" Bars

I was talking to a couple of friends today and we started talking about food. Recently I switched to eating a more paleo-esque lifestyle and so had one of the friends I was talking to and she mentioned homemade Lara Bars and I had to try it out.

Now some people may not know what Lara Bars are but they are a type of energy bar that has minimal ingredients in it. They are quite delicious but too expensive eat everyday. I started hunting down recipes online to see what I could find and I found one of my favorite websites (I also have two of her cookbooks) and I tweaked her recipe to what I had on hand.

 They turned out delish. They were super simple and actually quite fun to make. Even the kids got to help mix up the date/nut mixture. I am excited to try out different recipes but this one is definitely delicious.

 

Pumpkin Pie Lara Bars

*adapted from Everyday Paleo

 

3/4  cup Raw Almonds

1/2 cup Roasted Cashews

1/4  cup Pumpkin Seeds

1/4 tsp Sea Salt

1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

10 Medjool dates

20 Dried Prunes

Coconut Oil

In a food processor, pulse only the nuts, the sea salt, and the pumpkin pie spice until finely chopped but still chunky. Some will be ground up almost like almond meal but they will not all be consistent, and that’s totally ok. Pour those nuts into a large mixing bowl.

Add the dried dates and prunes to the food processor and process until it makes a paste. I started out with pulses and then left it on for a minute. The prunes were harder to get in to a paste but be patient.

Add the date/prune mixture to the nuts and use your hands to kneed the nuts and the dates together until well mixed. this got my hands super sticky but the kids loved helping with this part. 

Grease a  coconut oil and make a big ball out of your bar mixture and push it down onto your greased baking sheet. Press down until you get it the thickness you like. I did about 1/2". Or you could cover it with some plastic wrap and using a rolling pin, roll out the mixture to your desired thickness.

Refrigerate for about 20 minutes to harden it back up. Cut the rolled out mixture in to the size bars you want. I did some larger squares for the adults and smaller ones for the kids. Throw them in to a container and keep them in the fridge. Take out whenever you need a quick snack.

Carmelitas

Ever find a dessert that you can't stop making? That is what keeps happening with these carmelitas. Last week at the gym of all places, a friend asked if I had ever had carmelitas. I told her no and she said that she made some this weekend and they were amazing. I was very intrigued to say the least.

I went home and looked it up online and there were tons of recipes and they all looked delicious. I decided to try this one. It makes an 8x8 pan and I luckily I had everything I needed in my pantry (even though the caramels were from 2 Halloweens ago). 

I had one bite.

I turned around and made another batch. 

Then two days later made another batch and I am probably making them for the Superbowl on Sunday. They are that amazing.

 

Carmelitas 

adapted slightly from Lulu the Baker

*The recipe says to cool completely before cutting which is great when you want bars but we wanted some and couldn't wait and scooped it in to a bowl and ate it with vanilla ice cream. It was amazing.

32 caramel squares, unwrapped
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats (old fashioned or quick)
1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup dark chocolate chips

Combine caramels and cream in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until completely smooth; set aside. In a separate bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, and baking soda. Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of an 8x8" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over crust. Pour caramel mixture over chocolate chips. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel. Return to oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.

**To make a 9x13" version, simply double the amounts.

Nordy Bars

There are a few things I miss about living in rural Idaho that I had in the suburbs of Portland. BurgerVille. Good Thai food. Being close to the beach and mountains. Shopping. There are a tons of different unique and interesting stores where I am from. There are also larger department stores that I miss. One of my favorites was Nordstrom but mostly because they have a cafe in their store. So I can eat and shop.  Plus it actually has good, healthy food not just greasy food court food and of course they have desserts. That is were this delightful gem came from. They are called Nordy Bars and they are on of my favorite cookie bars. 

They are good, delicious, and rich.I think it's the combination of butterscotch and marshmallows that does it for me but that may not be your favorite part. You may like the chocolate and nuts but whatever you like I know you'll love these bars. So  make some and dig in and don't be ashamed if you eat half the pan like I did.

 

Nordy Bars

½ c. butter
2 c. butterscotch chips
½ c. packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ c. flour
2 t. baking powder
½ t. salt
2 t. vanilla
2 c. semi-sweet chips
2 c. mini marshmallow
1 c. walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven 350.. Grease pan. Melt the butter over med heat. Add butterscotch chips and brown Sugar and Stir til melted being careful not to burn. Remove from the heat and add eggs and stir quick until combined. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt Mix well. Add vanilla and let cool to about room temperature so the chocolate chips and marshmallows don't melt.. When cooled add chocolate chips, marshmallows and nuts. Spread in pan and bake 25-28 minutes. Let cool to room temperature and serve or share.


*I have no idea where this recipe came from but my Mom has been making these for years.

Fruit and Honey Bars

I got this recipe from my Mom and Dad (they always have a million recipes for me to try). They found it on the weight watchers website. I am not typically a "healthy" bar type person. I love my butter and sugar so I was pleasantly surprised with how great these are and everyone that has tried them has loved them to. Normally I bake these in a pan but I wanted to see how they worked baked in a cupcake pan and I have to say I love them. It's nice to pop them out of the pan rather than wait for them to cool to cut them. I did decrease my bake time to about 10-12 minutes.

Fruit and Honey Bars
1/3 c. honey
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 c. instant non fat dry milk powder
1/2 c. shelled unsalted pumpkin seeds
1/2 c. unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 c.ground flaxseeds
1/2 c. dried apricots chopped
1/2 c. dried cherries
1/4 c. whole wheat flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 9 in. square baking pan with nonstick foil. Beat honey, eggs and salt in small bowl until blended. Put oats, dry milk, pumpkin seeds, coconut,flax seeds,apricots, cherries and flour in food processor and pulse until evenly moistened. Transfer dough to baking pan; press into even layer with damp fingers. Bake until center is set and edges are brown, about 20 min. Let cool slightly on rack, 10 min.. Holding foil, transfer bar from pan to cutting board. Cut into bars.

Options:
*1/2 c. mini chocolate chips: add after done baking but don't cut until cooled or you'll smear the chocolate/

*Less sweet option 1/4 c. cherries and 1/4 c. cranberries