No-Bake Energy Bars

My daughter made these on Sunday and they are wonderful! I won't say they are low-fat, but they do have a good amount of healthy things in them. They came from her Cool Sweets & treats to eat (Easy Recipes for Kids to Cook by Lisa Wagner. Because this is from a kids cook book, the instructions are for kids. Also, because Halle made them, she is even more proud of taking them to school as her daily afternoon snack!!

Ingredients

Butter or oil for greasing the pan
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
2 cups crisp rice cereal
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 cup sunflower seeds
3/4 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup maple syrup

You will also need

9X13 pan
waxed apper
measuring cups
rubber spatula
saucepan
wooden spoon
prep bowls
large mixing bowl
spoon
large knife

Directions

1) Lightly grease the bottom and sides of the baking pan with a small amount of butter or oil. Use a wad of waxed paper to spread the butter or oil.

2) Put the chocolate chips, oats, crisp rice cereal, coconut, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds in a large mixing bowl and mix them together.

3) Put the peanut butter, brown sugar, and maple syrup in a saucepan. Use a rubber spatula to help get the peanut butter in and out of the measuring cup.

4) Place the saucepan over medium heat and stir with a wooden spoon. Continue to stir until everything is blended and the brown sugar has dissolved.

5) Pour the hot mixture over the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl and stir. Keep stirring until everything is completely blended.

6) Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Use your clean hands to firmly pat the mixture into the pan.

7) Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, then use a large knife to cut the bars. These will be solid and difficult to cut, so ask for help.

Variations

Use raisins instead of coconut
Substitute chopped peanuts or almonds for the sunflower seeds
Try butterscotch chips instead of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Even Cooler!!

To make this snack extra nutritious, add 1/2 cup of wheat germ to the mixture

**We keep the bars in a large plastic cookie jar in the fridge.