A few friends recently noted that the serving size for the power bars in my November Runner’s World recipe is huge. I pointed out that when I adapted the recipe, so was I. Pregnant and voracious at the time, I downed three giant slabs in a day from my first batch. But now that squeezing in a run relies on the mercurial mood of a six-month-old, I strive for moderation.

With the latter in mind, I sliced these Sesame Chocolate Granola Bars into teeny squares. The recipe comes via Bec Wassner, who found it in the fantastic Whitewater Cooks cookbook. At 5’2” Bec is the kind of girl who herself looks teeny, until you see her muscles bulging and pulsing as she blasts across the finish line of a triathlon—and wins. The bars are similar, petite but power-packed.

The Whitewater version includes two cups of sugar; one packed cup satisfies my fairly large sweet tooth. And since my bars seemed a bit crunchy when baked in the shallow sheet pan, I subbed a deeper, smaller pan, and added a second, biscotti-like bake that crisps the edges but leaves the centers soft and chewy.

One sweet and earthy little bar powered me through my late afternoon triathlon: feed, bathe, and put the munchkin to bed. Attempts at moderation vanished by 8 pm when I nibbled on a second square, so consider yourself warned.  If your willpower feels frail, wait to make these until you have a houseguest or ten.

Sesame Chocolate Granola Bars

Makes 30 small, rich bars.

Adapted from Whitewater Cooks. If you’re short on time, bake the bars on a 12” x 18” cookie sheet until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool somewhat, cut into bars while still warm, then let cool completely to firm up.

 Ingredients:

 1 cup sunflower seeds, toasted*

1 cup coconut flakes, toasted*

1 cup sesame seeds, toasted*

1 cup butter

1 ½ cups peanut butter (most of a 16 ounce jar)

1 ½ tablespoons vanilla

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 cup corn syrup

2 cups chocolate chips

6 cups oats

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, cream together the butter, peanut butter, vanilla, and brown sugar until smooth and light, the color of coffee ice cream.

Blend in the corn syrup, and transfer to a giant bowl.

Add the rest of the ingredients and combine well, breaking up clumps of the peanut butter mixture until it’s evenly distributed, and the batter looks like granola.

Dump the batter into a 9” X 13” cake pan. Wet your hands and—this is important—pack the batter firmly into the pan, making sure to press all the way to the sides. If the slab is loosely packed, the bars will fall apart.

Bake until the top turns golden brown and has a slight crust, about 35 minutes. Leave the oven on.

Leave the bars in the pan and cool somewhat on a rack.

Cut while still warm: Trace an offset spatula or sharp knife along the edges, and carefully turn the pan over onto a pastry mat or board to release the slab. Using a serrated knife, cut five horizontal rows, then cut each row into six parts. The squares will be crumbly; cleaning the knife after each row will help keep the edges tidier. Re-form any limping bars with your hands or a pastry scraper. Transfer bars to a cookie sheet, standing them on their sides, and bake until golden all over, about 10 minutes. They’ll be too soft to move, so let them cool and firm up on the pan.

Store in an airtight container under padlock and key for five days or freeze.

 *I bought toasted sunflower seeds at Trader Joe’s. To toast the sunflower seeds, coconut flakes, and sesame seeds, heat a large skillet over medium heat for 30 seconds, add the sunflower seeds and cook for 2 minutes, then add the coconut and sesame seeds and continue to cook, stirring, until you smell the coconut and the seeds start to pop, another 2-3 minutes.