Wednesday Recipe: Healthy oat bars

I have been trying to eat a little more healthy now that the summer is coming in.  I have also been going for long walks and try to bring a bottle of water with me and a snack.  I love porridgey things and find I like cereal and oat type bars.  Nak'd bars are good...but pricey.  And other cereal bars can still have a lot of sugar.  I want no wheat and little sugar.  I found a similar recipe on a forum boards.ie and thought I would try it out and see how it went.

So Oaty Fruit Bars

100g porridge oats
50g dried fruit, this can be mised dried fruit, sultanas, cranberries, apricots, dates, figs, whatever
50g seeds and/or nuts, again you choose, I used milled flaxseed with nuts and dried raspberries
1 tablespoon honey
water
flavourings, this can be spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg...I used crystalized ginger

So, its simple mix them all up togther adding just enough water to bind the mixture togther.  Press into a greased flat oven tray. This mix is just right for a round 8" sponge tin.  And bake for 20mins at 180 degrees centigrade.  I baked until it was beginning to look crisp on the top.  Take out onto a cooling rack and cut into bars or slices before it cools.   Keep in a tin and great for nibbles.

If you have a swiss roll type tin then I would double this mixture.

So flavour ideas

I used mixed fruit and peel, flaxseed and crystalized ginger because that is what I had.
Will try apricot and almond.
What about date and ginger.
Cranberry and mixed spice.
Dried apple and cinnamon.
Dried banana and nutmeg.

If you want them to be particulary healthy than just read the labels of the fruit to see if it has any added sugar.

Here is how mine turned out, let me know if you give them a try.

The bars are "modelling" my new table mats

Mixed fruit and ginger oaty bars made by me and sampled a lot