Instead of just rolled oats I use a four grain mix that includes rolled oats, rye, barley and wheat. The grains have been precooked and then flattened to make them quick to prepare, just like oats often are. This specific four grain mix can be bought in any little grocery in Finland, and we usually cook it into porridge which takes 3 to 10 minutes – we use organic cereals that are ready in 5 minutes. Of course there’s a whole world of cereals, nuts, dried fruit, and seeds you could toss in these bars!

I’ve made three variations so far and they’re all pretty great – the one with peanut butter and sunflower seeds is a basic cupboard-staple option with a sweet caramel undertone, cocoa with cherries is always a lovely combo and satisfies my sweet-tooth quite perfectly, and the mandarin-pistachio-cranberry-goji is the most colorful and sparkles with fruity flavor. I would make each one of these again, but to be honest I guess it is much more likely I’ll experiment with new combinations and ingredients for each batch I make!

Basic Peanut Sunflower Snack Bars:

• 1 and 1/2 dl four grain cereal (or rolled oats)
• 1/2 dl gram (besan, chick pea) flour
• 1/2 dl sunflower seeds
• 1 dl whole cane sugar
• 1/2 dl apple juice
• 3 tablespoons smooth natural peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Cocoa Cherry Quinoa Snack Bars (pictured below):

• 1 dl four grain cereal (or rolled oats)
• 1/2 dl gram (besan, chick pea) flour
• 1 dl puffed quinoa
• 1/2 dl dried cherries, chopped
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 1 dl whole cane sugar
• 1/2 dl unsweetened apple sauce
• 2 tablespoons cashew butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Zesty Berry Pistachio Snack Bars (pictured above):

• 1 dl four grain cereal (or rolled oats)
• 3/4 dl gram (besan, chick pea) flour
• 1 dl puffed quinoa
• 1/2 dl dried cranberries, chopped
• 1/2 dl dried goji berries, chopped
• 1 dl whole cane sugar
• 1/2 dl unsweetened mango sauce
• 1 dl (unsalted, shelled) pistachios, chopped
• grated zest of 1 organic mandarin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

I toasted the cereal and gram flour (and sunflower seeds for the peanut version, or walnuts for the pistachio one) on a dry frying pan until fragrant and just lightly browned, for about 10 minutes.

While I was toasting the cereal, I placed the sugar and the apple juice (or the apple sauce for the cocoa version, or mango sauce for the pistachio one) in a small cooking pan and cooked over medium heat for about 6 minutes until thick and bubbly. Then I added the nut butter (if used), salt, vanilla, and cinnamon or cocoa powder (if used) in the pan and mixed thoroughly.

Now I poured everything in a mixing bowl and stirred with a fork until there were no dry lumps visible. I placed the dough between two pieces of baking parchment and pressed it with my fingers (I needed to use oven mittens, it was so hot) to a square about 3/4 cm thick. Then I let it set in room temperature, which took about an hour or so, before cutting into bars – this batch makes about 9 to 12 depending on how large you like them. If the bars seem too sticky, I let them dry on the counter for about an hour on each side and they’re easier to handle.

I store these in zip-lock bags, separated by layers of parchment paper to avoid sticking, and in room temperature – these keep pretty well, and this batch isn’t huge either. In warmer climates it might be a good option to store these in the fridge, tightly sealed to avoid moisture creeping in.

Everybody loved the combo of tart cranberries and melty dark chocolate, and the vanilla ice cream magically transformed the cookies into a real dessert. This makes 8 large cookies – pictured here are the two survivors on the day after.

The Dry Mix:

• 3 dl spelt flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

The Wet Mix:

• 1 dl dark syrup
• 1/2 dl muscovado sugar
• 1/2 dl canola oil
• 1 tablespoon soy yoghurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add-Ins:

• 1/2 dl dried cranberries
• 1/2 dl chopped chocolate (72 %)

First I stirred together the wet and dry mixes in separate bowls, added the wet to the dry, and stirred with a fork until almost combined. I poured in the cranberries and chocolate and kneaded them in, and then refrigerated the dough overnight in a zip-lock bag.

After our dinner the next day, I pre-heated the oven to 175 degrees Celsius, and divided the dough into 8 equal portions. I rolled them into balls and flattened slightly on a cookie sheet, and then baked for 11 minutes.

The cookies came out of the oven still soft, but after about 10 minutes they had nice crispy edges and chewy centers – quite perfect served with a scoop of ice cream and a dessert fork.

By currants – or korintti in Finnish – I mean the tiny raisins that are often used in baking, and are not quite as sweet as raisins.

Dry mixture:

• 4 dl whole spelt flour
• 1 dl wheat flour
• 3/4 dl raw cane sugar
• 1 tablespoon potato starch
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Wet mixture:

• 1/2 dl canola oil
• 2 and 1/2 dl unsweetened soy milk
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• grated zest of one lemon
• grated zest of one orange
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or sugar)
• 1/2 dl currants
• 3/4 dl dried cranberries

Topping:

• 1 red Gloster apple, peeled and finely diced
• 1/2 dl raw cane sugar
• 2 tablespoons spelt flour
• 1/2 teaspoon dried ginger powder

First, I preheated the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

I mixed the ingredients of the dry mix, the wet mix, and the topping in three separate bowls. Then I greased and floured my muffin tin, and proceeded to mix the wet and dry mixes together to form the batter.

I spooned the batter in the 12 cups of my muffin tin, filling each one of them slightly less than 2/3 full. Then I spooned the topping over the muffins, about one teaspoon per muffin, and baked them in 200 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes, until they had browned a little over the tops.

The white chocolate I used was Bonvita Rice Milk White Bar, and the reason I baked it into cookies was that it’s completely too sweet to eat as is. I love white chocolate, but will stick with the Organica White Bar variety from now on – if I’m able to hunt it down somewhere in Helsinki.

Two of the cookie flavors had white chocolate in them, and compared to the dark chocolate cookies, those were a lot sweeter. All in all, I liked all three, and would definitely make each one of them again!

The Wet Mix:

• 1 dl canola oil
• 1 and 1/2 dl raw cane sugar
• 1 dl soy milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or vanilla sugar)

The Dry Mix:

• 3 dl whole spelt flour
• 1 dl wheat flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 dl rolled oats

Additions:

• 55 g vegan white chocolate, chopped
• 55 g vegan semi-dark chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 dl dried cranberries
• 1 tablespoon dark cocoa powder

I mixed the wet and dry mixes in separate bowls first, and then combined the two with a wooden fork. Now, I divided the dough in three equal parts, and then mixed in the chocolates and the cranberries: in the first part, I put half of the white chocolate and one third of the dark chocolate; in the second part, I added the cocoa powder and the rest of the dark chocolate; and in the third, I mixed the cranberries and the second half of the white chocolate. The dough was quite sticky and stiff at this point, so it took a little effort to get everything well mixed.

I covered three baking sheets with baking parchment. I scooped the dough on baking sheets, one tablespoon at a time, and then flattened the cookies with a fork dipped in cold water. I ended up with 12 of each variety. Then I baked the cookies at 200 degrees Celsius for 7-8 minutes.