Homemade Chocolate Energy Granola Bars

I've been on a granola bar making spree! This is my third batch and I thought to include it on my new blog, so here it goes!

What you'll need:

-1/8 cup coconut oil
-1/4 cup honey
-1/4 cup xylitol
-1 tbsp. agave nectar
-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
-2 bars (2 oz.) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (depending on how sweet you want it)
-2 cups oatmeal (I used old-fashioned)
-1 tbsp. flax-seed
-1/4 cup toasted unsweetened coconut

Yields ~14 bars (depending on how you cut them)

 Combine the 2 cups of oatmeal, 1 tablespoon of flax-seed and 1/4 cup of toasted coconut in a large bowl and set aside. 

 Here's a picture of all the items I used in the wet mixture.

 In a medium sized sauce pan, put the 1/8 cup of coconut oil, 1/4 cup of honey, 1 tablespoon of agave nectar and 1/4 cup of xylitol in the pan on medium low (between low and medium).

 Stir until the mixture looks like this. As soon as it starts to bubble, remove from heat. Then add the 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

 Wait about a minute until the mixture cools down a little bit. Add the chocolate and stir until the mixture is smooth and consistent.

 It should look about like this.

Then pour the chocolate sauce into the oatmeal mixture and stir/kneed until the oatmeal is evenly coated.

 Pour the granola into a brownie dish (I used 8x8) lined with wax paper or parchment paper. Then press the granola down as firmly as you can. Then fold the wax paper onto the granola and press in with your hands as firmly as you can. 

Put the granola bars in the fridge for about 3 hours or until evenly cold. Overnight is preferred.

I try to keep them cold so that they don't fall apart, but they are super delicious and chocolatey! I hope you enjoy them! :)