Oatmeal Raisin Granola Bars

Ok, now I am really back in action. So much has happened in the last month -- we've moved to a new apartment, gone on an amazing vacation, and are currently in the process of furnishing our new space! Right now, I don't have a kitchen table, a single kitchen chair, and I'm sitting on my kitchen counter to type this up. However, I do have a very exciting new addition to my little kitchen.

Chad and I were sitting around our first full day in the new apartment, and decided to go out for lunch. As we left, we noticed a "Sorry we missed you" delivery slip from UPS. Thinking it wasn't anything important, I just figured we'd pick it up that night from the shipping center, which is fairly nearby. Chad, however, was really annoyed that they hadn't rung our bell or even attempted to deliver the package.

I couldn't really figure out why he was so annoyed until he called and it turned out our package weighed 32 pounds. 32 Pounds? What could it possibly be? Not, apparently, one of the bathing suits I'd ordered from J. Crew. Too small to be furniture, too big to be anything else I could think of.

I didn't figure it out until a few minutes before we picked up the package, but if I hadn't been so frazzled from moving, I probably would have realized earlier. A month or two ago, Chad mentioned that my very kind soon-to-be mother in law wanted to get me something off our wedding registry.

And, honestly, there was ever only one thing on our wedding registry I cared about, and you can probably guess what it was. Chad joked that when we went to Williams Sonoma to pick things out, it was pretty much an entire trip just to register for a Kitchenaid Mixer.

And guess what the mystery package was?!?

So even without a table or chairs, my kitchen is feeling quite spectacular lately. And this post is, unfortunately, totally unrelated to these granola bars, which did not remotely require my amazing new Kitchenaid, but were pretty spectacular themselves, as well.

Oatmeal Raisin Granola Bars

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup plus 2 tbsp oats

1 tbsp flour

2 tbsp honey

4 tbsp corn syrup

1 egg white

1/2 cup raisins

3 tbsp sunflower seeds

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp canola oil

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl until evenly distributed. The granola should stick together but no liquid should pool at the bottom (if there is excess liquid, add another tablespoon of oats and stir again).

Pour the granola out into a small baking pan lined with parchment paper and mold it into the shape you want (I used my fluted tart shell because it was nearly the perfect size, and the fluting wouldn't show through the parchment paper). Bake for about 35 minutes, or until granola is lightly browned on top and no longer feels wet. Allow to cool, and cut into bars.

I stored these in plastic wrap and it ruined their texture. Eat them within a day or two, or store them in an airtight container, not too close together, unrefrigerated, for up to a week.

Makes 8 small granola bars.