Clif Bar on the cheap.

It was 3:00 pm and I had a dilemma. I wanted to go the the gym but I was also hungry. Some food needed to go into my body, and something small since it was too early to eat dinner. There is a odd little convenience store across from the Twin Oaks library that sells snacks. After looking around I selected a peanut butter Clif bar and placed it on the counter. Out came my debit card. Before I could open the package and jam the snack in my mouth, the clerk informed me that there was a $5 minimum on all debit card purchases. I almost never carry cash and the thought of spending an additional $3.50 was not appealing. I left without my precious snack.

Down the road there was a Shell gas station. Surely a corporate behemoth the size of Shell would not quibble over a minimum purchase. I placed an identical peanut butter Clif bar on the counter. The clerk was on his phone and could not have cared less. Mission Accomplished, or so I thought. Clif bars cost $2.50 at Shell. It was enough to give me heart burn. Since I was approaching an extreme state of "hanrginess", I paid the absorbent markup and left crestfallen. There had to be a better way. One that would eliminate the bitter taste of price gouging from my mouth.

The wheels in my brain started turning. How hard would it be to make something like a Clif bar at home? After a little research I found out that it really easy. Get on google and type in "DIY Clif Bar". There are thousands of recipes for every type of diet. Want to make a batch of no bake, vegan, gluten free, free range, no preservative, paleo, freegan bars? Someone out there is making a batch right now and cannot wait to tell you all about it.

My criteria were as follows. They needed to be cheap and easy to make. Should be reasonably healthy. Easy to transport so I can keep them in my car. After looking over a few ideas I drove to the local grocery store and bought my ingredients. I used the basic principle that the things I already like to eat would make a good bar. Pretty basic stuff. All the ingredients together cost $8.50.

         
I took all this stuff and mixed it in a bowl. Then I greased up a cookie sheet and poured the mixture onto it. Various recipes recommended that I form a brick by pressing down on the top and sides with a cutting board. I cooked this brick at 325° for 30 minutes. When it was done I put it in the refrigerator to harden a bit. Then I cut the brick into squares. This made 16 Clif sized bars  in two batches which came in at $0.54 per bar. I am going to continue to tweak the recipe but I was very pleased with the results. So is my wallet.