BREAKFAST CEREAL BARS
Hi Friends! Welcome back to the blog! School is back in session which means fall leaves, school buses, school supplies and chilly cozy evenings with soup and socks… there is so much to look forward to!
Fall schedules can fill up quickly with activities and events and mornings can be hectic! Today I have a great make-ahead breakfast recipe to share with you, Breakfast Cereal Bars. These breakfast bars are a fun way to enjoy a morning classic, cereal, in a nutritionally balanced meal thanks to the addition of dried fruit, oats, nuts, seeds and seed butter for an added boost of protein, healthy fats and fiber. One of my favorite brands for wholesome cereal is Nature’s Path. I’m using their new and improved EnviroKidz Amazon Flakes in this recipe, made from only 3 ingredients and has less sugar than competitors with only 8 grams per serving. This cereal is also USDA Certified Organic, vegan, gluten-free, Non-GMO Project verified and contains no artificial flavors, colors or preservatives. I love that this cereal has a slightly sweet taste and great crunch, however it’s not overly sweet – which is how I remember frosted flakes being as a kid.
This recipe is great for breakfast, yet you may find that you like to pack these bars in lunchboxes or enjoy as an after-school snack. For those with schools that have banned tree nuts (peanut or almonds for example) you can substitute the ⅓ cup pecans for another ⅓ cup of pumpkin seeds or use any other seed you prefer such as sunflower seeds or hemp seeds. I also use sunflower seed butter in these bars – which being a seed – is commonly approved by schools!
Breakfast Cereal Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups pitted dates
- 2/3 cup rolled oats optional use ⅔ cup of Nature’s Path cereal
- 1/3 cup pecans
- 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon filtered water
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons sunbutter
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 cup Nature’s Path EnviroKidz Amazon Flakes cereal
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients except the sun butter, honey and cereal to a food processor and pulse until a sticky batter forms.
- Line a small rectangular dish with parchment paper; use a dish around 5" x 8."
- Add batter into dish, press firmly down to create a level bottom layer.
- Add sun butter and honey into a small dish and stir together, add on top of the bottom layer.
- Top with cereal, pressing the flakes lightly down onto the sun-butter so they stick.
- Cover and store in fridge for 30 minutes, using the parchment paper pop out of the dish and cut into bars or squares.
Notes
Any of the cereals from Nature’s Path work for this recipe FYI - so if you have a favorite feel free to add it to this recipe!
These bars are very thick and filling! You can also cut into squares to make 8 servings.
Disclosure: Thank you to Nature’s Path sponsoring this post!