Almond, Date & Orange Granola Bars

Today’s post is all about adaptability, or, making ‘do’ with a recipe when you just don’t have the exact ingredients on hand. Surely, this has happened to you, right? I’ve been making this recipe for “Healthy 5-Ingredient Granola Bars” for many months — it’s from my friends at Minimalist Baker and it’s a great, no-bake recipe for a whole-food energy bar that’s perfect for a hubby like mine who needs a pick-me-up after the gym. I was ready to make a batch today, only to realize that I was either missing or short on the ingredients. I don’t know about you, but it’s not too often that I even tackle a recipe when I’m so limited on its ingredients, but I put on my thinking cap and was pleased with how it came together. As I’ve mentioned in prior posts, having a well-stocked pantry allows you flexibility with recipes, especially when you can’t run to the supermarket! I admit, sometimes making substitutions doesn’t work (like the time I used palm sugar instead of granulated sugar in a special-occasion cake, but that’s a long, sad story that I won’t bore you with. . .). But, with a little creative thinking, most of the time experiments turn out just fine and, sometimes, even better than the original. On top of making changes with every ingredient in this batch, I decided to really throw a wrench in by adding two things (cinnamon and dried orange peel – one of my favorite combos), so it turns out I actually made “Healthy 7-Ingredient Granola Bars”!  I got to use some of the calamondins I recently picked from my friends Cathy and Jim’s abundant tree (they’re adorable little oranges, a cross between a kumquat and a mandarin, that are super-sour inside, but their peels are sweet — see pic below). I recently dried some peels to use in other recipes, so I just tossed a pinch into this granola batch.  But since I don’t expect everyone to have access to dried orange peel, if you like a hint of orange, just add a dash of orange extract, or omit it altogether. These bars are delicious with or without the extra ingredients. Thank you Dana, at Minimalist Baker, for creating such a yummy recipe which, as evidenced, can be adapted in another’s kitchen quite easily! P.S. stay tuned for more recipes using calamondins 🙂