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I’m a child of the 70’s and 80’s. That means I grew up eating better-living-through-more-chemicals-in-your-food food. If you’re a Gen Xer like me, you know what I mean (mac and cheese from a box with the inexplicably neon orange powered cheese, anyone?). I eat and cook fairly nutritiously and my weight and health is in the very good to excellent range, but I still have that mid-century food habit of not paying attention to the additives in my food.  Two good friends of mine, Andrea from Homemade for Elle and Veronica, have recently introduced me to the concept of Clean Eating. I’m no expert, but I am interested in the concept. No chemicals and additives in my food just makes sense. I wanted to share my first clean eating recipe with you, compliments of my friend, Veronica -these Clean Eating Granola Bars. The recipe is easy to make and really, really quite tasty.

I’m learning that the first step of Clean Eating is to read the labels on the ingredients that I purchase. In the past I read food labels to see where it was produced (Made in the USA is my first choice), how much sugar it has and to look at the price. But now I’m reading the actual ingredient list. As Veronica puts it, you want to be able to pronounce and know what every ingredient is. If there’s a science-y sounding ingredient and you don’t have any idea what it is, then that product does not qualify for clean eating.  As my friend, Andrea, puts it, clean eating means you want food as close to its original state as possible. 

I’ve always enjoyed eating  granola bars for breakfast and for snacks. I have shied away from them the past few years because of all the sugar added to them. This recipe for clean eating granola bars removes all the added sugar and the added chemicals. The recipe really is easy to make. My son and I love these granola bars as a snack and I just had one today for breakfast, so they really are a hit with my family. 

They have a great nutty  texture and they taste very wholesome with just the right hint of sweetness. 

Clean Eating Granola Bars Recipe

I don’t have a food scale so the amounts in parentheses is what I estimated and used.

Yield: 20

Clean Eating Granola Bars

Print

A delicious snack made from clean eating ingredients.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 oz Pecans (1/2 cup)
• 1 oz Cashews (1/2 cup)
• 1 oz Walnuts (1/2 cup)
• 1 oz Almonds (1/2 cup)
• 1/2 oz Sunflower Seeds (1/4 cup)
• 1 oz raw Pumpkin Seeds (1/2 cup)
• 2 1/5 oz Pitted Dates (I estimated based on the weight of my package of dates)
• 2 Egg Whites (I used one egg because I hate to waste the yolk)
• 1 Tbsp Honey
• 1 Tsp Vanilla
• 1/2 cup One Minute Oatmeal

Instructions

1. Chop all nuts and the dates in a food processor.

2. Mix the chopped nuts and dates in a bowl with the eggs, honey and vanilla.

3. Spread the mixture into a lightly greased 9 x 9 pan.

4. Bake 15 minutes at 350F. 

5. Cool completely and then cut into bars.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

20

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 68Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 65mgCarbohydrates: 7gFiber: 1gSugar: 3gProtein: 2g

Did you make this recipe?

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With these clean eating granola bars being my first clean eating recipe, I’m now hooked. If you’ve been wondering about clean eating, give this recipe a try and I know you’ll love these granola bars as much as I do. Now I’m off to try another clean eating recipe.