A few weeks ago I was at whole foods looking for some brown rice syrup when I noticed a product called coconut nectar. I am a big fan of coconut anything so instead of buying the brown rice syrup I decided to try it. The first thing I made with the coconut nectar are raspberry oat bars which I found on fatfreevegan’s website, (awesome site, second recipe within days I’ve made and posted about from there and both have been really good). The original recipe used blueberries. These bars are super delicious. Not too sweet but sweet enough and soft and chewy, perfect for breakfast or an afternoon snack. Yum!
I really liked the coconut nectar, it’s sticky and stretchy, more so than agave, and a bit hard to work with, but worth it, in my opinion. I’ve been using it on pancakes and waffles and everyone in my house loves it.
Ingredients:
1 pint raspberries
1/4 cup coconut nectar (found at whole foods)
1/4 cup apple juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with enough water or juice to form a smooth paste
3 cups oatmeal (regular, not instant)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces unsweetened applesauce
6 tablespoons (3/8 cup) coconut nectar (found at whole foods)
6 tablespoons (3/8 cup) water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375F. Oil an 8×8-inch baking dish.
2. In a small saucepan, combine the raspberries, coconut nectar, and juice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When it boils, stir in the vanilla and the cornstarch mixture. Continue to stir as the mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Put 1 1/2 cups of the oatmeal into a blender and grind it to a fine powder. Pour it into a medium-sized mixing bowl and add the remaining oatmeal, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Stir in the apple sauce, coconut nectar, water, and vanilla, and mix well.
4. Spread half of the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing well to cover the bottom of the pan. Spoon the raspberry filling over the batter, and cover the rasberries with the remaining batter.
5. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.
