Pecan Butter Crunch Bars

Servings: If you use a 9-by-9-inch pan, this recipe makes 16 bars.

Wet ingredients

• ½ cup raw agave nectar (or liquid sweetener of choice)
• 2/3 cup pecan butter (or nut butter of choice)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Dry ingredients

• 1 cup oat flour
• 1 cup oats, whole
• 1¾ cups soaked and dehydrated buckwheat groats, or kasha (Kasha is toasted buckwheat.)
• 1/3 cup hemp seed
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• cacao powder dusted on top
• (Optional: pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds for topping)

Instructions

1. Put the wet ingredients in a blender and blend until well-combined and creamy. Alternately put the wet ingredients in a bowl and whisk rapidly to combine until creamy.
2. In a medium to large mixing bowl, put the dry ingredients (excluding the cacao powder) in and mix together.
3. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix together with a spatula or your hands to combine together thoroughly. Using gloves can help mix with hands.
4. Line a glass pan or cookie sheet (9 by 9 inches, 7 by 11 inches, etc., all work great) with parchment paper, having paper come out of two of the ends so the bars can be lifted out of the pan. Using your hands, press the mixture into place. Use a rubber spatula to smooth out and ensure entire pan has an even surface.
5. Put the cacao powder in a small fine mesh strainer to evenly distribute a thin layer over the surface of the bars.
6. Place pan in refrigerator for a minimum of one hour. This allows the bars an opportunity to firm up and hold their shape while cutting. Recommended shapes when cutting are rectangles, squares or energy nuggets.

Total cost of ingredients: $18.40, or $1.15 per serving.

Storage suggestion: Store in an airtight container. Bars will keep for one month in the refrigerator and three months in the freezer.

Nutrition facts (per serving): calories 252, fat 8 g, carbs 37 g, dietary fiber 6 g, protein 8.5 g