These high-energy muesli bars are perfect when you’re always on the go. They taste great and are quick and easy to make. Always have a batch in your fridge and a couple in your bag and you’ll be much less likely to reach for that 3pm chocolate bar (guilty face right here!).

Ingredients:

1 pack medjool dates (I use the ‘Natural Delights’ 8 oz pack)
1.5 cups oats
1 cup unsalted almonds
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup 100% peanut butter

Instructions:

Toast the oats and almonds separately in the oven at 150°C until golden. Meanwhile, heat the honey and peanut butter in a small pot on the stove over low/medium heat until runny. Blitz the dates in the food processor until they form a ball; put them in a large bowl with the toasted oats, roasted almonds, and honey and peanut butter mixture. Mix with your hands until evenly combined, press firmly into a baking dish – I like to line it with cling wrap so that it pops out easier – and put in the fridge for an hour or two. Remove from the baking dish and cut into bars (or bite-sized pieces). These bars keep for a few days in the fridge. I think you could probably freeze them too, but trust me when I say that you won’t need to, as they’ll be gone in no time!

Successful variations…

1 Tbs toasted sesame seeds pressed in on top
2 Tbs dark chocolate buttons mixed in
1 Tbs chia seeds mixed in
Decreasing the amount of honey and increasing the peanut butter (about 1/8 cup honey and 3/8 cup peanut butter) so that it is less sweet
You can also use normal dates instead of medjool dates – just soak them in boiling water for a few minutes, drain the liquid, and you’re good to go!

Not so successful variations…

Maple syrup instead of honey. These fell apart!
1/2 cup peanut butter instead of 1/4 cup peanut butter + 1/4 cup honey. These also fell apart.

Variations that I’m going to try in future…

Goji berries
Sunflower or pumpkin seeds
Dried cranberries (the tart kind, not the super sweet kind)