OPEN SESAME: High Protein Quinoa Date Granola Bar

                                           

Why am I calling it the Open Sesame Bar?  It's clearly a version of G. Paltrow's Bummer Bar (which PS...that name makes me NOT want to eat it) But it tastes SO like those goofy little sRemember those sesame bars from back in the day?

These Quinoa bars take me right back to being 8 years old, sitting in the back of some crappy car listening to

Fleetwood Mac sing GO YOUR OWN WAY....not a bad thing :)

Anyway, I didn't expect these to taste at all like those...and it's more of an essence, than an all over flavor. Weird, there isn't a bit of sesame in them. 

I also made this recipe my own. I wanted to try adding Hemp and I prefer dates over raisins. In retrospect I think apricots would work better for a slight tang to balance the spices.

OPEN SESAME: High Protein Quinoa Date Granola Bar

1 ½ cups quinoa flakes (you could use GF oats)

1/8 cup ground flaxseeds

1/8 Hulled hemp seeds

A pinch of fine sea salt

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup good-quality maple syrup

2 tablespoons light agave syrup

½ cup chopped dates

½ cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line a brownie pan (I used a 9 x 11-inch dish that’s 2 inches high, which actually seemed a bit big) with parchment paper 

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and pour the mixture into the brownie pan. Pack the mixture down with a rubber spatula, slightly damp. 

Bake for ½ hour, or until the bars have firmed up and are golden brown. Let cool before removing from the pan. If you used a brownie pan, use the parchment to lift the bar out of the pan, and cut. Serve right away or store in an airtight container.

FAMILY TALLY: 2 yeahs, 1 no thank you, 1 not so much. HOWEVER! My entire office loved them and asked for more.

These are AMAZING. who knew?

Inspired by Bummer Bars

It’s All Good by Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Turshen