Blueberry Oat Granola Bites: Back-to-School with Mighty Nest

A recipe for blueberry inspired chewy granola bites full of pumpkin and sunflower seeds, coconut, chia, hemp, and plenty of oats. They make a wonderful lunch box treat for back-to-school. Plus a special MightyFix Lunchskins offer from MightyNest.


School for us doesn’t start until September. We’re on a “post Labor Day First Day of School” schedule. August for us is meant to be enjoyed on our backs in the warm grass, staring at the sky. It’s a cabin month – glass blue water cut by the tip of a canoe and silence for miles. It’s waterfalls and state fair trips with greasy finger food and anything on a stick. It’s BLTs eaten outside as sun-warmed tomato juice drips down your arm. It’s ice cream cones and raspberries and watermelon and okra fresh from the plant. August is about packing in all the things you were meant to be doing earlier this summer but didn’t quite do yet.

That’s exactly what we’re doing. We’ve left the city behind and indulging in a bit of escapism along the shores of Gitchi-Gami and then into the woods into Canada as we do every year. (You can follow along on our Boundary Waters and Lake Superior adventures on Instagram, where I’ll update whenever we have service – read: at trail stations and lodges along the Gunflint Trail.)

These granola bites are inspired by the abundance of wild blueberries ripening in the Boundary Waters and the Quetico this month. They’re a chewy, textured bit of goodness sweetened with maple syrup and specks of bright blueberries and nutty from the mix of seeds and coconut. They travel well, making them a great snack that transitions from summer to school in the blink of an eye.

Blueberry Oat Granola Bites: Back-to-School with Mighty Nest

Yield: 32 bites

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Total Time: 22 minutes

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Ingredients

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup dried wild blueberries
• 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup hemp hearts
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 2 tablespoons chia seed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom, optional
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease 32 mini muffin cups.

In a food processor, measure out 1 1/2 cups rolled oats. Pulse until finely ground. Add in the remaining 1 1/2 cups rolled oats and 1/4 cup of the blueberries and pulse three times to start combining.

Add in the remaining blueberries, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, shredded coconut, hemp hearts, flaxseed, chia, salt, and cardamom. Pulse once to combine.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix together the coconut oil, maple syrup, molasses, and vanilla. Pour into the food processor and pulse until the oats are evenly coated.

Firmly press spoonfuls of the mixture into the mini muffin cups, filling just to the top of the cup and not beyond.

Bake for 12-14 minutes. Allow to cool at least 20 minutes before removing from tins. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

There’s no denying that back-to-school season is starting. Rows of pencils and rainbow colored crayons line the aisles at the stores, and crisp-covered notebooks beg to be bought in the back corner of Target. Despite my children willing for the first day to stay away, soon we’ll be filling a cart with supplies and looking forward with anticipation to the first day of a new school year. A new year with a fresh start.

Along with school supplies, we stock up on school lunch containers to get us through the school year. Each year we add a few more to our growing collection of food storage containers that we use again and again in place of paper and plastic bags.

Like last year and the year before that, I aim to pack no-waste lunches for the kids. The average family goes through 500 plastic bags each year for school lunch, and just one child’s lunch can create 67 pounds of waste in a single year. Instead of adding to the trash heap, we try to purchase things that will stay with us year after year.

We have been using Lunchskins bags for years now, and I love that they’re durable, easy to wash in the dishwasher or the laundry machine, and they last through years of abuse from multiple children carrying them back and forth to school and sports. They are made from European pastry bags and are lightweight and moisture-proof.

MightyNest has stocked their store full of some of my favorite no-waste school lunch products, as well. It can definitely serve as your one-stop online shop for stocking up for the upcoming school year. Some of my personal favorites include the Kids Konserve stainless steel lunch containers, Klean Kanteen bottles, the bamboo sporks, and Lunchskins reusable bags. They have everything you need for a waste-free, sustainable school lunch.

I’ve partnered with MightyNest to offer a special deal on this month’s MightyFix. Sign up this week and you’ll receive this month’s Fix of 1 Reusable Sandwich Bag + 1 Reusable Snack Bag from Lunchskins 50% off. Plus, you’ll receive free shipping on the MightyFix and anything else from Mighty Nest. That’s two Lunchskins bags for only $5, which makes this a great time to give them a try. Be sure to take advantage of this great offer before it’s gone!

MightyFix is a great way to be introduced to new products at an unbeatable price. Each month you’ll receive a product that will encourage you to live mindfully. From Bee’s Wraps to help reduce plastic wrap usage or Tidy Dish Cloths to replace paper towels, the folks at MightyNest will send you a full size product to help you make a small, meaningful change in your lifestyle.