Baking per personality

I'm baking for my personality today...I'm actually baking three things. Yikes--am I that complex? Read after the jump for the first recipe...and watch the next two days for the subsequent recipes. 


1) Healthy granola bars (send-to-work snacks)
2) Peanut Butter and dark chocolate rice krispy bars (for Nephew's 3rd birthday party tomorrow) 
3) Chocolate pudding pie (for dessert tonight with my mom)


Here's how they incorporate my personality:


1) I love sweet 'n salty things. They satiate both tooths I constantly have. And I'm a snacker--I'd much rather munch on bits throughout the day than eat a larger meal and feel stuffed. Plus I'm a girl who makes you wrinkle your nose with saltiness but the next second melt and smile with sweetness. You never know.


2) I LOVE peanut butter so much that I OD'd on it years ago and am peanut-intolerant now. Therefore I will not be able to eat this delectable treat, but I'll torture myself by making it and salivating over it. My personality: learning self-control.


3) Pudding Pie--it's ooey gooey and somewhat childish. It's my "eat your dessert without the guilt" go-to. I love the consistency of pudding. Putting it in a graham cracker crust makes it official rather than my usual mainlining from the bowl... 

What recipes explain your mood or personality?

Recipe after the jump...

Homemade Healthy Granola Bars ---for the Sweet 'n Salty in me!

from Dolcetto Confections

Ingredients

2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal 

1 cup whole, unsalted almonds, cut into thirds

1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed

1/2 cup toasted wheat germ

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2/3 cup honey

1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup chopped, dried apricots

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preparation Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a quarter-sheet tray (or 9" x 13" dish) and line it with parchment paper.  Allow the parchment paper to hang over the sides, in order to easily remove the granola bars after baking.

Toss the oatmeal, almonds, and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Place the butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the raisins, apricots and cranberries. Stir well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature.