Sweet & Salty Chewy Bars

September 7, 2012 by Sam 6 Comments

I made a variation of these oatmeal bars as a road trip snack a few months ago…and LOVED them! Little man approved as well, but the husband found them a little sweet for his taste {crazy}. The original recipe is from Ms. Rachael Ray, and I’ve adapted it quite a bit for what I usually have on hand. Not only are these super easy, delicious, and affordable; but, they’re extremely versatile.

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
1/2 C. Light Brown Sugar
1/4 C. Honey
2 C. Quick Oats
1 C. Rice Krispies
1/2 C. Semisweet Mini Chocolate Chips
4-8 Pretzel Rods

Start out by stirring the butter, brown sugar and honey over medium-high heat until boiling. Once your mixture hits boiling, turn the heat down to medium-low until the sugar is fully melted.

Meanwhile, crush your pretzels. Don’t crush them too fine, though, or you won’t get the great flavor out of them.

In a mixing bowl combine the pretzels, chocolate chips, oats and rice krispies.

Add the dry ingredients to your melted butter mixture and stir until everything is saturated.

Put your oats into a pan and flatten to your preferred thickness.

I generally use a 9×13 casserole dish and fill it half way with the oat mixture which makes the bars pretty thick. I’ve also chilled them in a cookie sheet for a thinner bar.

Chill in the fridge for 15-30 minutes and cut into squares or bars.

If you plan on keeping these as a special snack just for you, I would recommend hiding the evidence immediately, because you will be found out and have to share!

I love how the chocolate chips melt to take over the whole bar, and the pretzels provide a nice salty crunch while the honey makes these bars ooey-gooey. They’re SO delicious!

The best thing about this recipe is that it can be adapted to any flavor profile {I’m even working on a lightened-up version}. You can add in raisins, coconut, dried fruit, cinnamon, apples, potato chips, almonds, peanut butter…the possibilities are endless!