Dried Fruit & Nut Health Bars - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 cup pitted dates
vegetable oil cooking spray
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats, finely ground or 1 cup quinoa
1 cup pecans, toasted, 1/2 cup finely ground, 1/2 cup coarsely chopped
1/2 unsalted macadamia nuts, toasted, 1/4 cup finely ground, and 1/4 cup coarsely chopped
1/3 cup dried papaya, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/3 cup dried cherries, chopped
1/3 cup dried blueberries
2 tablespoons oat bran
3 tablespoons ground flax seeds
2 tablespoons wheat germ
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons brown rice syrup or 3 tablespoons honey

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400\u00b0F Place dates in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to a simmer. Drain. Puree in a food processor until smooth.
Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Mix oats or quinoa flakes, nuts, papaya, cherries, blueberries, bran, flaxseed, wheat germ, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Mix in puree dates, and brown-rice syrup or honey. Press mixture in pan.
Bake until center is firm and edges are golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 8 bars.