Bria's Nutty Oatmeal Bars

Full of nuts and sweet, I freeze this(because it's sometimes crumbly) and then cut it into bars. The freezing just makes it less of a pain to cut in pieces. It's effective as a bar-type dessert, with some powdered sugar glaze(I use some almond ex and apple juice in the glaze, I normally guess the amounts so I can't post it). I usually do 1/2 cup walnuts with a sprinkling of chopped pecans. Allow to cool completely(or freeze) before cutting, as it may come out of the oven looking mushy, it does firm up! This was my first and thus far best recipe for granola bars, and continues to get rave reviews. I've used chunky peanut butter before but it turns out absurdly crumbly, so I only use smooth.

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 18
• Yields: 18 bars

Ingredients

• 3  cups oatmeal
• 1  cup brown sugar
• 2⁄3 cup peanut butter (SMOOTH ONLY)
• 1⁄2 cup honey
• 1⁄2 cup butter (melted)
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  almond extract
• 1⁄2 cup  nuts
•  cinnamon (optional)
• 1⁄4 cup  dried fruit (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat 350 degrees.
2. Mix together, oatmeal, peanut butter, brown sugar, honey, butter, extracts, nuts, and fruit if you're adding.
3. Spread into a greased 13X9X2 pan.
4. Sprinkle cinnamon on top,(optional).
5. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes until brown around edges.
6. Allow to cool completely before cutting.
7. Enjoy!