Just because Halloween is behind us is no reason to give up on the pumpkin season just yet. I had some leftover pumpkin puree from my doughnuts last week and was eager to see what else I could throw this into for some extra antioxidants.
Last weekend we spent Saturday at a Haunted Pumpkin Festival for some farm fun with friends and cousins. I threw these oat bars together last minute before our short road trip to the countryside and they were exactly what we needed to keep us satisfied until we stopped for a hot bowl of chili.
The farm was fun but we nearly froze and eus the mud! I knew it would be mucky but I didn’t imagine I’d be throwing out my boots when I got home. There were lots of activities to keep the little ones busy but my favorite part was a three day old baby goat! If you’ve never played with a baby goat, you need to go and find yourself one. Aaron if you’re reading this, (he’ll never read this) to hell with a dog, we’re getting a goat!
I don’t like my food and drinks too sweet. I know I post a lot of desserts on this blog, it’s true. But everyone around me loves sweets so I bake to please. But this time it was for me. If you need sweet, add more honey than what is directed in the recipe. For me it was just enough but feel free to up the honey if that’s your vice.
This soft oat bar recipe makes it easy to swap out one ingredient for another to meet your dietary needs without compromising the taste and texture. I threw in what I just happened to have on hand and they turned out great. So go nuts with your goats milk and kangaroo meat if you need to! Enjoy!
Healthy Pumpkin Oat Bars
Ingredients
2 cups quick cook steel cut oats or rolled oats
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 tbsp honey (more if you like things on the sweeter side)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 dried cranberries
1/2 tsp flax seeds
1/2 tsp chia seeds
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine oats, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and baking soda.
In a separate bowl whisk together eggs, milk, pumpkin, honey and vanilla extract.
Add to the oat mixture and mix well.
Fold in almonds, cranberries, flax and chia seeds.
Pour mixture into two greased loaf pans.
Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until top has browned slightly and the middle has set.
Slice into bars and enjoy!
By Three Happy Folk
Adapted from My Name Is Yeh
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