Recipe: Mango Ginger Rice Crispy Bars

Loaded with the flavors of ginger and mango, these rice crispy bars are a crunchy alternative to boring trail bars.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 1/3 cup sesame seeds 
• 2/3 cup crisp brown rice cereal
• 1/4 cup chopped dried mango, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup candied ginger, finely chopped 
• 1/4 cup brown rice syrup 
• 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

Makes 8 bars

Ingredient Notes

• almonds, cashews: roasted and salted nuts are preferred; any type of nuts can be substituted in equal amounts
• brown rice cereal: use regular rice crispy cereal if you can’t find brown rice puffs 
• brown rice syrup: substitute with light corn syrup
• mango: any type of dried fruit can be used

Pro tip: using a silicone bar mold is highly recommended. The individual bars won’t crumble and are much easier to remove after baking.

Directions

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 
• Finely chop almonds and cashews using a food processor. The mixture should be part crumbs, part small pieces of nuts.
• Add the chopped nuts, mango, sesame seeds, brown rice cereal, salt, ginger, and cardamom to a large bowl and stir until thoroughly mixed. 
• Pour the syrup over the mixture and incorporate until the dry ingredients are evenly coated with the syrup. 
• In a silicone bar pan (or a glass 8’’x8” baking pan coated lightly with cooking spray), spread the mixture evenly, pressing down firmly with a spatula or your hands (place plastic wrap over the mixture first) until compacted and evenly distributed in the pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until slightly browned at the edges. 
• Remove from oven and let cool completely before removing from the baking pan.
• If using a baking dish, cut into 8 bars.
• Store bars in the freezer until ready to use.

Nutrition info: calories 180; fat 11g; cholesterol 0mg; sodium 53mg; carbohydrates 17g; protein 5g