Fruit and Nut Energy Bars

These bars— made with dried fruits, nuts and seeds, and with no flour, egg or added sugars— are slightly chewy, with nutty crunch and the lovely flavors of the whole, simple ingredients. Oil or oil spray, for the pan 2 tablespoons chia seeds

1⁄ cup water

3

1 cup almondmeal

1 cup rawwhole almonds

1 cup whole pitted dried dates 1⁄ cup shelled rawsunflower

2

seeds

1⁄ cup hulled hemp seeds

2

(hemp hearts)

1⁄ cup dried apricots

2

1⁄ cup raisins

2

3⁄ teaspoon ground

4

cinnamon

1⁄ teaspoon kosher salt, or

8

more as needed

Instructions: Position a rack in themiddle of the oven and heat to 350 degrees. Brush or spray a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with oil.

In a small bowl, cover the chia seeds with the water, stir and set aside to soak.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the almond meal, almonds, dates, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, apricots, raisins, cinnamon and salt, and process until everything is finely chopped. Add the chia mixture and pulse until the everything is thoroughly combined and resembles a coarse paste.

Transfer the mixture to the baking pan and spread out evenly to cover the bottom. (The easiest way to do this is to place a piece of wax paper on top, and using your hands over the paper, press the mixture out evenly; discard or reuse the paper.)

Bake for 15 to 18minutes, until fragrant, browned on the edges and lightly browned and set in the center. Let cool completely, then cut into 18 bars.

Makes 18 servings

Make ahead: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the refrigerator of up to 2 weeks, or wrap individually and freeze for up to 3 months. From nutritionist and cookbook author Ellie Krieger, Washington Post

TomMcCorkle / For theWashington Post These bars have no flour, egg or added sugars.