Preheat oven to 350F. Spray or butter an 8x8 baking pan, set aside.
In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients including the spices, dried fruit and coconut or pecans if using. Toss together until well-combined.
In a separate bowl, stir together the vanilla, melted butter, honey/maple syrup, corn syrup and water.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until well mixed, making sure all the dry ingredients are equally moistened. Taste the mixture at this point and add additional sugar if you want them a little sweeter. (I liked mine on the medium-sweet side.)
Press mixture into the prepared pan, using a spatula to smooth the top.
Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until the edges are and top are golden brown. (The bars may look slightly under done, but they will firm up as they cool.
Use a spatula to press and flatten the bars a bit into the pan
Cool bars completely, (speed up in the fridge or freezer if desired,) use a spatula to remove them from the pan and cut into bars.
Granola bars will last in the fridge in an air-right container for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
*lots of liberty can be taken with sweetening these bars. Using 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup will yield in a sweet (but not too sweet) bar. You can add an additional 1/4 cup of both sugar and honey/syrup if you want something sweeter.
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. Nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For the most accurate data, use your preferred nutrition calculator with the actual ingredients you used to make this recipe.
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