The Creative Kitchen | Very Berry Oat Bars

Happy Valentine’s Day from The Creative Kitchen! We’re spending our day drooling over these scrumptious-looking Very Berry Oat Bars created especially by our friends at GNT Foods! The pretty pop of purple comes from GNT’s Nutrifood^® all-natural fruit and vegetable concentrates, that perk up the look, taste, and nutritional content of these bars. GNT’s products are only available online, but here at The Creative Kitchen, we’re happy to recognize their continual efforts to provide visibility at every stage of their processing. GNT will be joining us at our upcoming Kids Food Festival in NYC this March 1st and 2nd. Don’t miss out!

Very Berry Oat Bars

Recipe Courtesy of Christina Olivarez, Corporate Executive Chef, GNT USA

Yield: approximately 40 pieces

Cookie Dough:

226g unsalted butter

230g granulated sugar

200g brown sugar

2 eggs

3g pure vanilla extract

134g all-purpose flour

134g whole-wheat flour

6g baking soda

4.6g kosher salt

3g ground cinnamon

300g old fashioned oats

50g raw quinoa

60g shredded unsweetened coconut

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugars. Cream on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the egg and vanilla and cream for 2 minutes on medium high. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low until just incorporated. Do not over mix. Evenly spread ¾ of the mixture in a half-size sheet pan. Distribute the berry fruit prep on the cookie, then distribute the remaining dough over the fruit in sections.

Bake at 325 degree Fahrenheit in a convection oven for 20-25 minutes, until the center is set. Cool the bars completely, leaving them in the pan. If necessary, they can be cooled in the freezer. When cooled, pour the glaze over the bars and spread with an offset spatula. Allow the frosting to set, uncovered. Cut into 2” x 2” squares and serve.

Berry Mix In:

360 frozen blackberries

64g honey

2g lemon zest

1g kosher salt

.2g black pepper

20g Nutrifood^® Berry Orchard

In a small pot, combine the berries, honey, lemon, and pepper. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally and smashing the berries with the back of a spoon. Cook for 15 minutes, or until the mixture has thickened and the berries have broken down. Set aside to cool.

Berry Glaze:

476g powdered sugar

86.4g pasteurized egg whites

1.2g lemon zest

33.6g lemon juice

4.8g Nutrifood^® Berry Orchard

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the egg whites, lemon zest, lemon juice, and Nutrifood^® Berry Orchard. Whisk for 30 seconds on medium speed. Add the powdered sugar and beat on low until the sugar is just incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes. Use to glaze the finished Oat Berry Bars.