Apricot and Chocolate Puffed Rice Bars

Yields: 6 bars

Prep Time time: 15 minutes

Cook Time time: 4 minutes

Chill time: 2 hours

Total Time time: 2 hours 19 minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 honey

• 1/4 unsweetened flaked coconut

• 1/4 slivered almonds

• 1/2 chopped dried apricots

• 1 plus 1 tsp. cocoa nibs

• 1 unsweetened puffed rice cereal

• 1/2 vanilla extract

• 1 3/4 white chocolate

Nutrition

calories 237

fat 8g

saturated fat 4g

cholesterol 2mg

fiber 2g

protein 3g

carbohydrate 41g

sodium 11mg

iron 1mg

calcium 41mg

Directions

1. Line a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with parchment. In a small pan, cook honey over medium heat until reduced by half, 2 to 4 minutes. In a large bowl, combine coconut, almonds, apricots, cocoa nibs, puffed rice and vanilla; pour over hot honey. Mix with a wooden spoon until everything is well-coated. Spoon into prepared loaf pan and place another piece of parchment on top. Use your hands to firmly push mixture into all corners until surface is even. Refrigerate for 2 hours. Remove mixture from loaf pan, place on a cutting board, strip off parchment and slice into 6 portions. Melt chocolate in microwave on low power in 15-second increments, stirring between each, until melted, about 1 minute total. Pour into a pastry bag fitted with a small plain tip (or a ziplock bag with a corner snipped off) and drizzle over rice bars. Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.