Toasted Sesame Cereal Bars with Golden Raisins

**By Chadwick Boyd**
PHOTO BY BROOKE SLEZAK

The Toasted Sesame & Tahini Take These Homemade Bars Over the Top!

These cereal bars are an easy one pot, one pan recipe. They take about 10 minutes to prep and put together, then firm up in the fridge for 15 minutes before cutting and eating.

The thing that makes the taste of these bars quite special is the toasting of the sesame seeds at the start. If you don’t have sesame oil on hand, use vegetable oil. Just make sure to get the sesame seeds nice and golden before mixing with the other ingredients. When swirled with the tahini, it takes the taste over the top!

The other “moment” in the recipe is to watch the honey turn a little darker…the flavor intensifies this way. Once you get the hang of making these cereal bars, swap out whatever ingredients you want: Rice Krispies, slightly crushed Corn Flakes…even gently crushed Raisin Bran will work.

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Chadwick’s Checklist

What you need to know before you cook.

This recipes uses a 10-by-15-inch baking sheet, but a 9-by-13-inch baking dish will work
Make sure the sesame seeds are nicely toasted; they should be very fragrant just before taking them off the heat
The bars firm up in the fridge. I like to take them out and come to room temperature before cutting and serving

Serves: 15 Prep Time: 5-7 minutes Cooking Time: 10 minutes, plus 15 minutes in the fridge

Ingredients

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil (veg oil works also)
½ cup sesame seeds
½ cup orange blossom or mild honey
½ cup tahini
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
3 cups brown rice cereal
1 cup golden raisins
About 1 tablespoon of flake salt, if desired

Directions

Spray a 10-by-15-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
Heat the sesame oil on medium in a sauce pan for 1-2 minutes until it loosens; swirl in the pan to coat the bottom. Add the sesame seeds and stir to coat the seeds. Toast the seeds until they are golden brown, 3-5 minutes. Transfer the sesame seeds to a large mixing bowl. Wipe any remaining seeds from the pot into the bowl. Return the sauce pot to the heat turn up to medium-high.
Add the honey to the pot. Cook for about 4 minutes until the honey foams and begins to turn amber in color - don't touch! Whisk in the tahini, vanilla and salt. Remove from the heat.
Add the cereal and raisins to the sesame seeds and mix well. Pour the honey-tahini mixture on top. Mix again thoroughly so everything is coated.
Immediately, transfer the mixture to the baking sheet. Press it evenly into the pan. Sprinkle with flake salt. Refrigerate 15 minutes to firm up.
Cut into 1½-inch wide bars. Store in an air tight container for up to 1 week. Freeze for up to 3 months – separate each layer with wax paper.