Vegan seed and nut granola bars

Are you finding it difficult to afford store-bought granola bars? Or struggling to find bars that don’t contain honey? These vegan granola bars could be the solution!

Branded granola bars, such as Nature Valley, typically cost way above £2 for just five bars, and it is difficult to find branded or cheaper alternative that aren’t sweetened with honey. As a result, i have resorted to making my own granola bars. These simple bars use banana as a natural sweetener, so cut out all the refined sugar added to store-bought bars, and you can switch them up by adding whatever nuts and seeds you want (or none)!

I used pumpkin and sunflower seeds (both of which are high in vitamin E), peanuts and raisins. I sweetened the bars with mashed banana and 2tbps of golden brown syrup, which is an unrefined alternative to golden syrup (you could cut this out completely or use maple syrup, although this is more expensive).

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of oats
• 2/3 medium bananas
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tbsp golden brown syrup
• 1 cup of raisins
• 1 handful of peanuts
• 1 handful each of pumpkin and sunflower seeds
• 2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Method:

• Mash the bananas in a mixing bowl
• Add the peanut butter and syrup to the mashed bananas
• In a separate large bowl, mix the oats, cinnamon (if using), raisins, seeds and nuts
• Pour the banana mixture over the oat mixture and stir until the two are thoroughly combined
• Transfer the mixture to a greased baking tray and smooth down with the back of a metal spoon
• Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown at the edges
• Leave to cool, then cut into individual bars (I made 18 small bars)
• Transfer the bars to a wire cooling rack so they can continue to cool

These bars are ideal for a quick breakfast or an energy-fueling snack throughout the day! Without the added sugar of store-bought granola bars, and the butter and sugar in flapjacks, these granola bars will probably leave you feeling better too.