Care Package: Cereal and Milk

These are the granola bars that were packed into a brown paper package and mailed from San Francisco to Salt Lake City to fortify my brother in his final week of studying for the MCAT.

Nigella Lawson calls them the bar equivalent of a bowlful of cereal and milk. She isn't far off, especially if you like your cereal sweet. These were a bit too sugar laden for me to eat for breakfast. I found them to be more like a jacked up oatmeal cookie than a healthy way to start the day. But by mid-morning or afternoon I think they would be the perfect pick-me-up, especially alongside a steaming cup of black coffee. And after midnight I imagine they would be decadently perfect.

Rumor has it that the combination of oats, raisins, seeds, and nuts does amazing things for a slightly sleep deprived, stress laden brain. Eat up, little brother, eat up.

Cereal & Milk Bars
1 14-fl-oz can condensed milk
2 1/2 cups rolled oats (not instant)
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup dried cranberries or raisins
1 cup mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame) -- I added flax
1 cup natural unsalted peanuts
1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and oil a 9- x 13-inch baking pan or just use a disposable aluminum foil one.
2. Warm the condensed milk in a large pan.
3. Meanwhile, mix all the other ingredients together and add the warmed condensed milk, using a rubber spatula to fold and distribute.
4. Spread the mixture into the oiled or foil pan and press down with a spatula or, better still, your hands to make the surface even. (This pressing part is important! I failed to press enough and ended up with bars that wanted to crumble.)
5. Bake for 1 hour, remove, and after about 15 minutes, cut into four across and four down, to make 16 chunky bars. Let cool completely.
Makes 16