Peach Bars

Last Sunday morning, I experimented around a tish in the kitchen with some peaches that were ripe and needing to be used.  Crisp was what I had on the brain but I wanted it to be a good for your body version, not just a good for your soul version.  

Remember how I mentioned I sat in a semi with my brother and ate part of his lunch while we waited for the tractor and grain cart?  Well...the part of his lunch I ate was a homemade granola bar my sister-in-law whipped up.  It was delicious in its chewy peanut buttery and dark chocolatey and oats combination.  

So when I was standing in the kitchen the next morning holding my coffee mug and staring at the peaches - literally staring - waiting for some idea of what to make to appear from thin air, I thought of the granola bars and made a phone call to that fabulous sister-in-law of mine.  

After a quick discussion, we determined peaches could be added and they would just be a chewier bar because of the extra liquid.   

The dough looked sketchy at best but the final result was rather delicious.  My parents stopped over for lunch and when I brought out the mug of coffee and peach bar to my dad, I waited for him to take a bite and say something about it tasting healthy.  But, he didn't.  He ate it and seemed to enjoy.  I texted Sil that we had ourselves a success story and then made her a pan and Karen a pan.  The peaches I stared at on the counter with my coffee cup in hand were gone, used up in some good for your body peach bars. 

The original recipe that Sil found for the granola bars came from Kitchen Stewardship and here's how we tweaked it to make some peach bar business.  

1/2 c. peanut butter (the kind that is like just peanuts chewed up and spit back out - ingredients of peanuts and that's it, maybe a little salt)

1 c. honey

1 tsp. vanilla

4 1/2 c. old fashioned rolled oats

1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour

1 tsp. baking soda

2 c. sliced into tiny bits fresh peaches 

Whip together the peanut butter, honey, and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, mix the whole wheat flour and baking soda together.  Add that to the creamy mixture and stir.  Then, throw the oats in a cup at a time until all mixed together.  

At this point, it will be thick.  As in thick thick.  Add in the two cups of peaches and then like magic, the dough becomes workable again.  

Pour in a buttered or greased or nonstick (whatever floats your boat in that land) 9 x 13 pan and bake at 325 degrees for approximately 25-30 minutes.  The edges will be light brown but they will still look gushy and that's okay.  

Take the pan out of the oven and let cool completely.  THEN here's the step that is the coolest for the cool bars.  Cut them up, place parchment paper on a baking sheet, and then put the cut bars on the sheet so they aren't touching each other.  Re-bake them at 325 for about another 13-16 minutes.  Let cool again and they become a little bar that really holds together.  I packaged mine individually and threw them in the freezer.  They are perfect for grabbing on the run for breakfast or for a pick me up snack.