Good for You Breakfast Bars

A fantastically versatile recipe, delicious and full of goodness. Make the night before to have some ready to go on a busy morning. This recipe suggests an apple-strawberry filling for the breakfast bars, but any fruit combination is possible. Some other successful fillings include: raspberry jam, marmelade and chopped cranberries, lemon curd and blueberries, strawberry banana, strawberry kiwi, strawberry and raspberry jams with blueberries, mashed banana and peanut butter, nut butter and chocolate chips, peach mango, apple sauce and raisins with cinnamon and brown sugar, raspberry fig, apple and peach, pear and raspberry. Anything you can think of really.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 12

Ingredients

• Filling

• 4  small apples, cored and thinly sliced
• 1⁄4 cup raisins
• 1⁄3 cup  strawberry jam

• Base

• 1⁄2 cup sugar
• 1⁄4 cup  oil
• 1⁄3 cup soymilk
• 3  ripe bananas
• 2  cups rolled oats
• 1  cup flour
• 1⁄4 cup flax seed
• 2  tablespoons sunflower seeds
• 2  tablespoons sesame seeds or 2  tablespoons  mixed finely chopped  nuts
• 1  teaspoon cinnamon
• 1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. For the filling:
2. Steam the apple slices until soft. Plump raisins in the apple steaming water, then drain. Remove the apple peels (if desired) and mash. Add raisins and jam to the apple mash.
3. For the base:
4. Preheat oven to 350°F.
5. In a small bowl, combine the first four ingredients and mix till smooth.
6. In a larger bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.
7. Add the moist ingredients to the dry ingredients, and mix until just blended. If too dry, add more soy milk.
8. Spread half of the mixture in a 4x9 cake pan or casserole. Spread the filling in the middle, then spread the remaining mixture over the top.
9. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the top is brown. Cool and slice into bars.