Homemade Cereal Bars

 

 These are our homemade Nutrigrain replacements. It has taken some trial and error, but I think we finally got it down. It doesn't even resemble the recipe I first started out testing. I make two batches at once (for freezing) so that is what you get below.


Homemade Cereal Bars

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups butter softened (5 sticks) (Use real butter, not margarine- the water content varies between them and can affect the bar consistency)
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
3 cups old fashioned oats
1/4-1/2 cup flax seed 
2 1/2 tsp almond extract

About 48 oz jelly/preserves (1.5 one quart canning jars-most jellies in the store contain high fructose corn syrup, so read the jar carefully)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar together in stand mixer. Add in the dry ingredients and mix well. Add almond extract. Press 1/4 of the crumbs into each of two greased pans (I use two large Pampered Chef bar pans)- you should use about half (or a little more than) of the dough mixture. Spread half of the jelly onto each pan of dough- you should have a thin layer covering the entire batch- do not leave big clumps of jelly or the bars will end up soggy and droopy. Sprinkle the pans with the remaining crumbs.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Let cool for several hours and then cut into bars. These keep well in the freezer- wrap in wax paper or baggies and put the batch in a large gallon freezer bag. Pull out a bar a couple of hours before you plan on eating.

Makes: 24 bars/pan for 48 bars

(I have found that my standard stand mixer bowl is too small for all of the ingredients above at once. I make half of the dough mixture at a time in order to not fling flour all over the kitchen.)