Coconut, nut & rice crispy squares full of fiber

I was cleaning out my baking stash yesterday when I realised I had opened packets of raisins, grated coconut, sugar, honey and nuts left. Since its a waste to throw out good food I searched the supermarket for some additional stuff to bake something with those left overs. I bought glutenfree rice crispies with chocolate and a tin of condensed milk and conjured up this glutenfree squares full of fibers for my kids.

This recipe makes about 16-20 rice crispy treats.

Ingredients:

• 120 grams (4.25 oz) of grated coconut
• 150 grams (5.5 oz) of crushed assorted nuts, I had pecan and walnut left over.
• 100 grams (3.5 oz) of light caster sugar
• 25 grams (1 oz) of honey with lemon
• 150 grams (5.5 oz) of rice crispies, I used Consenza's Multigrain Choco Muesli
• 40 grams (1.5 oz) of millet flakes
• 65 grams (2.33 oz) of raisins
• 1 tin of condensed milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Centigrade, 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Put all ingredients in a big bowl and mix well till all condensed milk has been soaked up.
3. Line a baking tray with parchment paper/ baking paper. 
4. Transfer contents of the bowl into the baking tray, press firmly to create a cakelike form.
5. Put in the oven for 15 minutes, when golden on top turn over the cake using another tray on top of the cake and turn it upside down. Remove baking paper and bake bottom up for another 15 minutes till that is golden too.
6. Transfer to a wire rack, let it cool before you cut it into pieces. You can keep them in a plastic container for a couple of days.

Mix & Match glutenfree granola bars

Usually my kid takes fruit to school as a morning snack, but many of his friends bring in a granola bar because that is approved by the school too. The morning snack has to be fairly healthy. As he wants to fit in too, he asked me if I could make granola bars. "Yes, of course!" was my answer. Ready made glutenfree granola bars are expensive and it is something you can easily make yourself. And they taste even better too! They are also a great way of using up stuff you have left over, as nuts, dried fruits, raisins, glutenfree breakfast cereal, glutenfree oats etc. That is why this recipe is called Mix & Match granola bars, you can make your own favorite. Just toss in what you like, but stick to the amounts given.

It takes up half an hour of your time and you have a wonderful treat to give to your kid in their lunchbox or to treat yourself with at the office when you are in need of some extra energy and fibers. 

Home made & delicious!

This recipe is made with refined sugar and condensed milk, so it's not extremely healthy, but you can always replace the sugar with honey or maple syrup. 

Ingredients: 

• Grated zest of one lemon
• 75 grams (2.75 oz) of dates without kernels, chopped
• 75 grams (2.75 oz) of walnuts, chopped
• 75 grams (2.75 oz)of almond shavings
• 125 (4.5 oz) grams of light caster sugar
• 150 (5.5 oz) grams of oat flakes (you can also use millet flakes)
• 40 grams (1.5 oz) of glutenfree breakfast cereal or cornflakes (I use oat crunchies)
• 4 dl (14 fl oz) of condensed milk
• 25 grams (1 oz) of pecannuts

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade (350 degrees fahrenheit)
2. Toss all ingredients in a bowl and mix well
3. Line a baking tray with baking paper and put the mixture on the baking tray  and spread it out evenly, press it to make it a firm cake.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes untill the top is golden. I then turned it upside down onto another baking tray and baked it in 20 minutes till the bottom was golden too. The original recipe didn't say that, but in my case the condensed milk had sunk to the bottom, making the bars soggy instead of caramalizing them. If needed turn one more time if you find the condensed milk has sunk to the bottom again to let that last bit caramalise too. 
5. Take out of the oven, let it cool before you slice the slab of granola cake into bars. 
6. You can keep them in an airtight container for a couple of days. 

Have fun creating your own favorite glutenfree granola bar!