'Nola Bars

Yesterday I wanted to make a treat that was going to a) warm up the house, b)taste yummy, and c)be healthy-ish. I asked for ideas on my facebook page. I LOVE my friends, they always have great ideas and suggestions. Someone suggested Caramel Cookies....it's a weight watchers recipe and sounds awesome...but the kids didn't want them this time. I will make them and post about it, though another time. I'm hoping to have time to make them today or tomorrow. Someone else suggested granola. Well, every time I make granola, I'm the only one that eats it unless it's granola bars, then I barely get one before my vultures kids have them gone. I found a recipe on allrecipes that sounded good and I bought some wheat germ a while back to make granola bars and lost the recipe that called for it. The one I made yesterday was really good! I cut back on the sugar, skipped the raisins, and trimmed the salt just a tad and they were so good! Oh, I added chocolate chips, too. I made a double batch and put them in an 11x17 pan which they filled nicely. Reviews for this one said that a single batch doesn't quite fill a 9x13 pan. Enjoy!

'Nola Bars

2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup brown sugar (1/2 cup is plenty)
1/2 cup wheat germ
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup ap flour
3/4 cup raisins (opt)
3/4 tsp salt (again, about 1/2 tsp is plenty)
1/2 cup honey
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tsp vanilla
chocolate chips, nuts, coconut, sunflower seeds(opt)

Preheat oven to 350. Line a pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together oats, sugar, flour, wheat germ, cinnamon, raisins and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the honey, egg, oil, and vanilla. Mix well with your hands (I used my big KitchenAid mixer.) Stir in any extras that you like. I used a whole bag of chocolate chips for a double batch. Pat the mixture into the prepared pan.

Bake for 18-30 minutes, depending on your oven. The edges should just start to brown. This will give you a nice chewy granola bar. Bake a bit longer for crunchy ones. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars and allow to cool completely.

A single batch makes 24 servings. Each serving is: 161 calories, 5.5 g fat, 1.4 g fiber, 2.4 g protien