Being a lover of all Things Thug Kitchen I decided it was time to try these Strawberry Oat Bars from the Thug Kitchen blog.

You can find the recipe right here, so you can rustle these up in your very own kitchen right now.

I started by cranking the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit/180 degrees celsius.

I realised that I didn’t have enough strawberries so I grabbed some black currants that my friend had given me fresh from her garden. I decided I’d do half the recipe with strawberries and half the recipe with black currants. Just to see what would happen.

I mixed the two types of berries with lemon juice, sugar and vanilla extract and left them sitting in their bowls while I recklessly yanked my food processor out of the cupboard. I nearly dropped it on my head it was up so high, but I was on a mission.

I quickly pulsed the oats, coconut oil, almond butter, brown sugar and other ingredients  together in the food processor but I noticed cynically that my almond butter was very, very dry. I threw in an extra tablespoon of coconut oil to try to balance out the dry spell, but looking back I should’ve added more.

After spooning 2/3 of the mix into the pan, I gently squooshed the berries on top, followed by the rest of the oat mix. Not long after, it was in the oven doing it’s thing.

The house smelled amazing. There’s just nothing better than the smell of baked goods.

The hardest part was waiting for them to cool enough to cut them and try a few. This is doubly hard when you have a small child who’s asking ‘When is the cake ready? When is the cake ready?’ over and over again.

These bars were so delicious that after eating one of each I felt sinfully satiated. Having these for breakfast or as a snack is a MUST in my world now. The one down-side was they kept falling apart and crumbling into amazing pieces and delicious crumbs, which is not so great if you’re trying to sneak one discreetly at the library. (Trust me. I speak from awkward first-hand annoyed-librarian experience.) I think these extra crumbies could’ve been avoided if my almond butter had been runnier. Fucking almonds.

The strawberry ones were deliciously sweet. The black currant ones were delightfully tart. They take you just to the edge of sour. They dangle you over the abyss as you stare sour straight in the face, and they pull you back again just in time. Tart all the way baby. Tart till the end.

If you like your fruit less edgy and dangerous, you can eat it away from a precipice and maybe just add an extra tablespoon of sugar if using black currants.

Either way, these are lovely enjoyed in the sun with a cup of coffee in your hand. Sets you up for the day in the Thug Kitchen way.