Evaluating a recipe I have

[Roselyn]

I have a recipe for homemade granola bars. Is this really a healthier alternative and what could I replace for some of the ingedients. I got this from a Fitness issue years ago. Any comments welcome

Recipe:

1 cup flour (I use wheat)

2 cups oatmeal

1/2 cup wheat germ

3/4 brown sugar (I substitute Splenda brown sugar)

1/2 cup oil (I use natural applesauce)

1/2 cup syrup (I use sugar free, did not know if there was something better)

1 egg

2 teasp. vanilla

3/4 teasp. cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon salt (I usually omit)

Spray a 9x13 and bake at 350 about 20 minutes. I usually bake a little less because I like them more soft.

Roselyn

 

[Fit_mommy]

Is the syrup in the recipe maple syrup? If so I think REAL maple syrup is the best. The stuff they normally sell in your average grocery store is garbage from what I've been told.

Other then that it seems okay, especially with your substitutions.

I'm sure others will chime in as well.

 

[kathryn]

Here are some ideas:

>1 cup flour (I use wheat)
"Wheat" or "whole wheat"? ("wheat" without the "whole" is just white flour). Better yet: barley flour: it's a whole grain flour, naturally sweet, lower in gluten than wheat, and can be used in recipes in place of whole wheat pastry flour (which is used for sweet things like desserts, vs. regular WW flour, which is used for breads and rolls).

>
>2 cups oatmeal (for best nutrition, use non-instant)

>
>1/2 cup wheat germ (okay: you could try rice germ or oat germ as well, to reduce gluten or just for variety)


>
>3/4 brown sugar (I substitute Splenda brown sugar) (I'm not fond of Splenda, no matter how "natural" they try to pass it off as. Sugar + clorine = natural? How about date sugar (just dried, powdered dates). It does add a bit of flavor.
>
>1/2 cup oil (I use natural applesauce) (good substitution! Baby food prunes is also supposed to be a sub for oil in some recipes)

>
>1/2 cup syrup (I use sugar free, did not know if there was
>something better) ("sugar-free" often means "chemical-full"! I'd use either natural maple syrup (use a bit less if you want. Get grade B, which is less refined, darker, and higher in nutrients---though it's not 'nutrient rich'. Agave nectar (dark--more like light maple syrup--or light--more like honey) would also be good. It's low glycemic.

>1 egg
>
>2 teasp. vanilla (make sure it's natural vanilla extract, not "vanilla-flavoring". )
>
>3/4 teasp. cinnamon
>
>3/4 teaspoon salt (I usually omit)
>

You might want to change up the recipe sometimes, and add chopped nuts (almonds and/or walnuts).