quinoa snack bars

First things first! Now if you have roasted almonds and leftover quinoa, then you can bypass the next two steps. If you don't have any leftover quinoa then you will have to cook some up. Bring 1 cup well rinsed quinoa and 2 cups water to a boil in a medium sauce pan. Once the quinoa has come to a boil, give it a stir, cover it, and reduce the heat to simmer. Cook the quinoa until all the water is absorbed, about 10-15 minutes. Note: Please check your package of quinoa for cooking instructions, as they all vary.The quinoa is done when its tender and you can see the little quinoa curlicues. Let the quinoa cool a bit. Note: You will have leftover quinoa, but you can use it for so many dishes throughout the week.Next, if you don't have roasted almonds on hand, you can toast up some raw almonds. I typically only have raw almonds in the house, so I always just toast some up when needed for a recipe. Just take ½ cup raw whole almonds and add them to a dry skillet set over medium heat, and swirl them around in the pan for a few minutes until they become golden brown in color.Roughly chop the almonds into small pieces.Grease a 8x8 pan and preheat your oven to 375 degrees.Measure out the â…“ cup applesauce, ½ teaspoon vanilla, â…“ cup peanut butter and ¼ cup honey.Combine the applesauce, vanilla, egg, peanut butter and the honey in a medium-sized bowl, and whisk together well.Add to the peanut butter mixture, the ½ cup quinoa flour, 1 cup cooked quinoa, 1 cup oats, chopped nuts, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 1 tablespoon chia seeds and the ½ cup goji berries, and using a spatula combine until mixed together.Spoon the mixture into the greased 8×8 pan using a spatula to smooth out the top.Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20-22 minutes, or until golden brown.Let the bars cool a bit, and dig in. You can either cut up the bars and individually wrap them for on-the-go convenience, or cover the bars and cut up as needed.