Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (They're No-Bake Bars!)

I love to try new treats for the kids, especially ones that aren't full of sugar. However, in the summer it can get really hot around here and I hate turning on the stove. I did some experimenting and came up with a no-bake recipe for peanut butter chocolate chip granola bars.

You will need:

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup granola (I used a Honey & Nut Granola cereal)
• 3 cups oats
• 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup dried plums, diced
• 3/4 cups chocolate chips
• 1 cup honey
• Food Processor
• Wax paper
• pan, like a brownie pan

Directions:
1. Place 1 cup of oats in food processor and grind until it has a flour-like consistency.

2. Place ground oats and whole oats in a bowl. Add in dried fruit, granola and chocolate chips. Mix together.

3. Place peanut butter and honey in a saucepan and heat over medium heat. Stir until it becomes runny.

4. Pour peanut butter/honey mix into oat mix.

5. Mix until combined. DM Tip: I found my plastic mixing spoons didn't do that great of a job. I ended up
using a large metal serving soon that didn't bend. A wooden spoon would probably work well too.

6. Line pan with wax paper.

7. Spread granola bar mixture into the pan and press down evenly. DM Tip: I placed a piece of wax paper on top of the mixture and then used my hands to spread it out and press it into the pan.

8. Place in refrigerator and let set overnight.

9. Cut with a large knife.

DM Tips: There are several ways to keep the sugar content down and keep these even healthier. You could use organic ingredients, natural or no-sugar added peanut butter.

DM Alternatives:

• If your kids don't like plums or raisins, you could also try dried dates, cherries, or other types of dried fruit.
• These bars are relatively dense. You could leave out the granola, but the bars will be stickier.