Last weekend, I found myself at the Farmer’s Market ogling fresh blueberries.
Before I left, Eric said, “Don’t bring back more than you can eat,” with a wink. This was surely a challenge.
I left with 2 pounds of blueberries and the complete confidence that I would eat all of them. He obviously doesn’t realize that I’m capable of eating my own weight in pretty much any fruit or vegetable. Eric isn’t a big blueberry fan, so I knew that I was on my own for this match.
This week, I made Blueberry Banana Pie Vegan Overnight Oats (so amazing!)
Raw Buckwheat Breakfast Porridge with blueberries and cinnamon.
and now, Blueberry Almond Chia Squares!
And I think I’m starting to turn blue.
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Blueberry Almond Chia Squares
The ultimate gooey blueberry square packed with chia seeds, oats, and almonds! They make a great breakfast square as they are light, healthy, and oil-free thanks to the applesauce.
Note: Some of you commented saying that the bars crumbled. I didn’t have this problem, but changing up the ingredients or liquid sweetener may effect the results. Please allow to cool completely before cutting as that will help too. :)
Inspired by Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Granola Bars.
Yield: 12 squares
- 2 cups regular rolled oats
- 1 & 1/4 cup oat flour (process rolled oats until flour forms)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tbsp chia seeds (ground flax probably works)
- 1/2 cup Sucanat (or brown sugar)
- 1 tbsp nut butter (I used almond butter)
- 1/4 cup applesauce
- 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 1/3 cup chopped almonds
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a square pan (I used 8” x 8”) with two pieces of parchment paper (this is recommended as the blueberries explode!!)
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (rolled oats, oat flour, cinnamon, chia, salt, and Sucanat). In another small bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (nut butter, applesauce, brown rice syrup, extracts). Add wet to dry and stir well until throughly combined.
3. Fold in the blueberries and almonds and pour into pan. Spread batter with wet hands and press firmly so it packs together. This will help them stick together.
4. Bake for about 30 minutes at 350F. Allow to cool completely before cutting. Makes 12 squares or however many you want!
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As you can see, the blueberries got all gooey and delicious while baking! They are a soft square with a nice chewy texture laced with gooey blueberry ‘jam’. We really enjoyed these and I quickly froze them for my nephews next week.
And I’m seriously craving one after typing up this post! Are blueberry squares good frozen? haha…jk!
aaaaaaand…because it’s Friday and we all like to fool off a bit, I thought I would share a few websites that I’m loving lately!
1) Pinterest
“Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes. Best of all, you can browse pinboards created by other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.”
If you haven’t signed up for an account yet, you definitely should! You can check out my boards here: http://pinterest.com/ohsheglows/ (especially the animal one!!) I created a board for food, travel, photography, fashion, animal, and home décor inspiration. Ahhhh it’s just addictive for the creative mind.
[Mom you would love this!!!]
2) Kickstarter
When Eric showed me this website last week, I was absolutely blown away! Kickstarter is the largest funding platform for creative projects in the world. People from all over the world submit their unique project and business ideas and then ‘fundraise’ to pledgers. Some Kickstarters have raised over $100,000 in funding for their business ideas! The cool thing about it is that the pitchers still retain 100% ownership of their business.
3) Non-GMO Shopping Guide
Your guide to buying non-genetically modified products! Amazing, informative website to help you avoid the companies that use GMO’s and support the ones who don’t.
What websites are you loving lately?
Those bars look amazing I went blueberry picking a few weeks ago and came home with 10lbs hoping to make a few things, unfortunately my bf is a blueberry lover and they were completely gone within a week :( favorite new site, findingvegan.com
I’m not a big blueberry eater (which is weird because I love so many other fruits), but these look delicious. Maybe I’ll try these anyway… give blueberries a second chance!
The bars sound lovely! And in my opinion, there are not enough blue foods in this world! (Real ones I mean, blue Kool Aid doesn’t count). I’m totally going to add you to my Pinterest followed boards! I’ve been loving it as well, even though it takes up a ridiculous amount of my time! Have a lovely Friday Ange!
I just went strawberry picking and I have a raspberry bush that is going OFF in my backyard right now. I need all the berry recipes I can get!
I’ll probably go blueberry picking in a month too, because I am a glutton for berries and I have a freezer to stock for the winter. :)
I love the sound of these, and I don’t even like fruit in desserts/baked goods! I just made your carrot chia spelt muffins and can’t wait to try one for my morning snack today. :)
Thanks for the explanation of Pinterest. I’ve been hearing so much about it but haven’t caved and actually checked it out yet. I’m hesitant to get involved in yet another social media/internet time suck!
Those bars look FANTASTIC! Definitely need to try them soon, I have a blueberry obsession!
Ooh pinterest sounds like a fun way to spend a few hours! :)
Well, I made this with blueberrries for a camping trip treat. They were a hit! I have some in the oven again but, this time made with Blackberries, Raspberries and Blueberries for a triple delight. Love sweetening with sucanet and brown rice syrup. both new to me. Love the flavor. Thanks.
Yay Pinterest!! So addictive…
I just followed you! Love your boards :)
I love when blueberries get all gooey. That’s my favorite part about baking something with them. And I love that this recipe can easily be GF by using GF oats! Yay!
As for websites, I love Foodgawker. The amazing photographs always inspire me, and I love that the pictures are all linked to the blogs they came from. So in addition to getting meal ideas, I find new blogs to follow!
I am OBSESSED with pinterest. My favorite board is my animal one too! The cuteness is out of this world! Here is my animal one: http://pinterest.com/fawnoverthis/animals/
heh love the cat with the glasses!
I hear so much about pinterest!
I am loving blueberries, I have a 1/2 cup of them every morning :)
I recently signed up for Pinterest but I haven’t done anything with it. Seems like a neat idea though.
I love blueberry bars — these look delicious!
I so wish I could go home and make these right now!
These look great! We’re obsessed with blueberries right now, too.
These squares look so good! I wish it wasn’t too hot to use my oven :P.
Thanks for sharing the sites! Love the non-GMO guide!
Yum! I love bars like this, but I can’t ever justify the amount of sugar in conventional ones. This recipe is great!
I love blueberries! They’re really expensive here in Ireland though so they’re a treat for me :)
Gorgeous bars! I was just craving blueberries yesterday and ended up making blueberry muffins, obviously I baked too soon!
Those look so delicious. :) Love your photography Angela!
Mmmm… I have a pint of blueberries sitting in my fridge that I think are just begging to be turned into squares now!
All I can think about is Violent Beauregard in Willie Wonka & The Chocolate Factory!
Brooke Annessa
www.TheAnnessaFamily.blogspot.com
Love chia seeds! Never thought to put them in a bar :) Thanks
I love being able to bake with delicious blueberries…oh and you know this girl loves a good bar recipe!
Thanks for the good website info…excited to check ’em out! Happy Friday!!
Wow.. these blueberry recipes look absolutely delicious – especially the blueberry banana oatmeal. I may have to give that one a whirl this weekend!! As for a website I’m loving lately… I have to say – just researching blogs from peoples’ comments on my favorite pages have really interested me. I love finding new blogs to follow. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, you come across a new and enticing recipe you just can’t wait to try. Love it! Enjoy your weekend!
The gooey blueberries look amazing. I am signed up on Pinterest, but avoiding actually using it as I know I will get totally sucked in!
I’m so glad you posted this – I have so many chia seeds and can only eat so much oatmeal!
Love that kickstarting website – I’d never heard of it before!
Another deliscious looking recipe to add to my list!
I’ve heard such good things about Pinterest. I really need to get off my butt and check it out!
Those squares look absolutely amazing. Better than anything I could ever buy in a store. Time to franchise our Glo Bakery ;)
Thanks so much for the links to Pinterest (LOVE it & can’t wait to use it) Kickstarter (thanks Eric!) is such an interesting concept too. I’ve just bookmarked the three websites and I’ll be spending time on each of these sites.
These bars look fantastic! I can eat blueberries til I turn blue. Plus it’s my favorite color anyways :)
I bet they are good frozen too! The soft blueberries baked in look delicious! Glad you conquered the blueberry challenge!
I want to dive into that batch! The blueberry juice looks Soooo good!
These beauties look chewey and scrumptious. Blueberries are my favourite fruit so am always looking for ideas on what to do with them :-)
If you like Kickstarter, you should definitely check out Kiva.org Empowering those around the world with loans. So far I’ve only helped a classroom get enough money to purchase some books, but there are ALL sorts of ways to help those who need it.
And everyone should also visit think.tv (ignore that Dr. Phil is at the top, unless you actually like him, lol) or especially read the book Think by Lisa Bloom. I didn’t think I’d like it, but as women we need to feed our brains more!
you pin???? I have got to start following you!
mouthwatering! you can never have too many blueberries :)
Sometimes it’s like you can read my mind. After making your lightened-up granola last night I was wondering what I was going to do with the leftover applesauce – these look fantastic! I love anything with blueberries.
I love Pinterest! Thanks for the non-GMO website. I’ve been wanting to read more about this.
I am so addicted to tastespotting lately. I spend way too much time on it, but I find myself getting lost in the beautiful pictures and creative recipes!!
Those look delicious! Blue is definitely a good color to be when these are involved :D
These look wonderful & yummy! Can’t wait to try them, possibly with raspberries too. :)
What a great treat! I love blueberries! I can’t wait to try this recipe!
I’m not sure how the bars would be frozen but freezing just the blueberries is always a good summer treat. I use frozen berries in place of cereal sometimes when I really need to cool down. Just a huge bowl of berries, milk, and other toppings is delish!
Once again another amazing recipe! Can’t wait to give it a try. Happy Friday :)
I’m loving all the blueberries on blogs lately! The way they bake is perfect – love the burst when they warm.
My latest obsession is FoodSpotting!
Wow…ALL those blueberry recipes look amazing! My husband and I love fresh blueberries – pretty sure he’d dig all those recipes too. ;)
It’s funny you’d mention Kickstarter, because we actually just started a project on there! It’s a great website and a great idea and we are proud to be involved in something that takes us to that site. Please check it out if you get the chance!
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mikeylang/inspire-cancer-survivors-to-tell-their-stories
Have a *blue* weekend! ;)
I am dying to make your overnight oatmeal…just made my 3rd batch of groats…haven’t gotten tired of them yet !
Here is a similar recipe to your blueberry bars I made recently… “Blueberry breakfast cobbler”
http://healthymammas.com/2011/07/10/blueberry-breakfast-cobbler-avocado-caprese-salad-and-homemade-playdough/
I am going to add chia seeds to them next time…great idea !!!
Hello Angela: Those bars love delicious!! I am off to the Oregon Berry Festival and now have a reason to buy LOTS of berries. Have a great weekend.
Oh yea baby those bars look amazing!! I have a recipe for a microwave banana blueberry oat cake that I repost quite often. Very similar to what you did, except all in the microwave in single serving portions. Sometimes I add chia seeds, sometimes not. Vegan and GF though. I love the looks of your bars b/c there are blueberrries EVERYWHERE! Nothing worse than bb themed baked goods that are stingy on the bb’s!
What websites are you loving lately? = well I already am following you on pinterest even tho I havent done anything w/ my own boards! lol
I am loving instagram (the iphone app) and then post all my pics to twitter and FB. Not really a website but it’s life changing. Truly I love it!
And also photography blogs and sites. I read enough food blogs. It’s all about the photography stuff now :)