Homemade Fruit and Nut Bars

Today was a great day!  We spent the day at the Fit Club Games cheering on fellow crossfitters from area gyms, including Crossfit Future, Crossfit New Albany, Friendship Crossfit, and Rogue, among others.  Congratulations to everyone who competed!  You all did a great job, and it was a blast watching you and cheering you on!

I made some yummy paleo snacks to share today, including the paleo banana blueberry muffins (today I made them with raspberries instead) and sweet potato salad that are already posted on the blog.  I also made homemade fruit and nut bars (very similar to lara bars) and green deviled eggs (made with avocado instead of mayo).  Everything must have tasted good because we didn't come home with many leftovers!

Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of the bars before they were gone.  I'll try to take a picture next time I make them.  I loved these bars, and everyone that tried them seemed to love them too!  A couple people said they liked them even more than lara bars!  And they are SO EASY to make!

I will post the recipe for the green deviled eggs soon!

*Update: I finally have a picture of these bars!

Homemade Fruit and Nut Bars

1 c slivered almonds (I used Trader Joe’s “unsalted dry roasted slivered almonds”)

1 c whole raw almonds (unsalted)

½ c whole raw cashews (unsalted)

1/3 c ground flaxseed meal (I used Bob’s Red Mill Organic Ground Flaxseed meal)

¾ tsp ground cinnamon

2/3 c dried cranberries

7 large medjool dates (I used Mariani brand from Sam’s club- they sell huge bags of these dates)

½ tsp vanilla

½ T honey

4-5 T water

Mix all ingredients in food processor except water until well ground (you will definitely still see small pieces of ground nuts, you just want it to be mostly ground up).  Next, add water and pulse until mixture is well combined and only a little crumbly.  Press firmly into 8x8 pan and refrigerate 1 hour, then cut into bars.  Store in refrigerator. (I cut mine into 12 bars, but you could make this as many or as few servings as you want.)

*I store my dates in the refrigerator, so they are pretty hard.  To make them blend more easily in the food processor, I heat up a cup of water in the microwave on “beverage setting” and once it’s done, put the dates in the hot water for about 10 seconds, then drain the water.  They’re nice and soft instantly!