Granola Nut Bars

Makes 12 bars

• 2 ripe bananas
• 1 cup tahini, almond butter or peanut butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or agave nectar
• Pinch salt
• 1 cup roughly chopped or slivered raw almonds
• 1 cup raw shelled sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)
• 1 cup rolled oats or quick oats
• 8 ounces dried cherries, raisins, currants, etc.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place pepitas in an ungreased 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Bake 5 minutes; remove from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F. In a large bowl mash bananas. Add tahini, maple syrup and salt and mix well. Add nuts, seeds and fruit, and mix well. Grease the 9 x 13-inch baking dish, pour in mixture, press into corners and flatten top. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until edges are slightly brown. Let cool to room temperature. Cut crosswise into quarters, then lengthwise into thirds. Wrap each bar in waxed paper or plastic wrap. Keeps refrigerated up to 1 week.