Back Country Clusters are a delightful paleo snack that combines the natural sweetness of honey with a mix of nuts, seeds, and dried fruits. These clusters are perfect for a quick, healthy treat that’s both satisfying and nutritious. Let’s delve into the benefits and details of making these delicious clusters.
Benefits of Back Country Clusters
These clusters are a powerhouse of nutrients thanks to their varied ingredients. Nuts and seeds are excellent sources of healthy fats, protein, and fiber, which help keep you full and energized. They also provide essential vitamins and minerals such as magnesium, zinc, and vitamin E. Dried fruits add a natural sweetness along with antioxidants and additional fiber.
Ingredients for Back Country Clusters
- Nut/Seed/Dried Fruit Mix: This can include pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, sesame seeds, almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, dried blueberries, dried cranberries, raisins, and dried strawberries. Ensure that your mix has no added salt or sugar.
- Honey: Acts as a natural sweetener and binder for the clusters.
- Sea Salt: Enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Cinnamon: Adds a warm, spicy note that complements the sweetness of the honey and dried fruits.
- Chocolate Chips: Used for dipping the clusters, adding a rich, indulgent layer.
- Vegan Shortening: Helps melt the chocolate smoothly.
Tips for Making Back Country Clusters
- Preheat Your Oven: Start by preheating your oven to 350°F and lining a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine Ingredients: In a large bowl, mix your nut/seed/dried fruit blend with honey, sea salt, and cinnamon. Stir until everything is evenly coated.
- Spread and Bake: Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet, spreading it out to about 1/2 inch thick. Bake for 20 minutes, ensuring that the edges don’t burn.
- Cool and Harden: Once baked, let the mixture cool completely on a wire rack. Once cooled, break it into clusters.
- Dip in Chocolate: Melt the chocolate chips and vegan shortening in the microwave, then dip the bottom of each cluster into the melted chocolate. Place the dipped clusters on parchment paper and refrigerate until the chocolate hardens.
Storage and Serving
Store your Back Country Clusters in an airtight container to keep them fresh. They make a perfect snack for any time of day and are great for packing in lunches or taking on hikes. The combination of nuts, seeds, and dried fruits provides sustained energy, making them an ideal snack for active lifestyles.
Overall, Back Country Clusters are a nutritious and tasty paleo snack that’s easy to make and perfect for on-the-go. With a blend of nuts, seeds, and dried fruits, sweetened with honey and dipped in chocolate, these clusters offer a delightful balance of flavors and textures. Enjoy these clusters as a healthy treat that satisfies both your sweet tooth and your nutritional needs.
Back Country Clusters
Trail mix is so last year. Chocolate dipped clusters are what's in right now. Or do you not follow food style trends? Yeah, me neither, but these things are so good and so much more fun to eat than trail mix, so why not make them?
Ingredients
- 3 cups Nut/Seed/Dried Fruit Mix*, make your own or buy a pre-made mix -- make sure it's no-salt and no-sugar added though
- 1/2 cup Honey
- 1/2 tsp Sea Salt, if your nut/seed/fruit mix has salt, reduce this to about 1/4 tsp
- 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/2 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips
- 1 tsp Vegan Shortening
Nut/Seed/Dried Fruit Mix (any combination of the following):
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Sunflower Seeds
- Hemp Seeds
- Sesame Seeds
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Pecans
- Walnuts
- Hazelnuts
- Dried Blueberries
- Dried Cranberries
- Raisins
- Dried Strawberries
- Anything else you can dream up!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except chocolate chips. Stir to combine everything evenly.
- Pour the nut mixture onto the prepared baking sheet and spread it out so it's about 1/2" thick. Try to keep it away from the edges, as the honey will spread.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
- Remove and let cool completely on a wire rack.
- Once it's completely cool and hardened, break the nuts into clusters.
- Melt the chocolate chips and shortening in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring until smooth.
- Dip the bottom of each cluster in the melted chocolate, pressing down so it comes up the sides just a little bit.
- Set chocolate-dipped cluster on a piece of parchment. Once all clusters are dipped, put them in the fridge for a few minutes to harden the chocolate. Store in an airtight container.
Notes
I am baking at a high elevation (6,000ft above sea level). Boiling and candy baking times are shorter up here. In order to have your honey harden enough to make these clusters work at lower elevations/sea level, you may need to add a couple minutes to your bake time. Just keep an eagle eye on them to be sure they don't burn towards the end.
Nutrition Information
Yield 12 Serving Size 1 clusterAmount Per Serving Calories 318Total Fat 22gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 16gCholesterol 0mgSodium 294mgCarbohydrates 29gFiber 4gSugar 21gProtein 8g
Nutrition is calculated by a third party and may not be 100% accurate
Lynette
Monday 4th of April 2016
Add a tiny bit of coconut oil to the chocolate chips. Tastes amazing!
Leni
Sunday 18th of October 2015
Delicious! But do you have a trip to making the chocolate harden after you dip them? If they sit in air temperature my chocolate does not hold together? I used 1/2 baking chocolate and 1/2 chocolate chips? Thanks for the recipe! @paleopassions
Bridgette
Thursday 13th of August 2015
great treat, or dessert! made my house smell so YUMMY!
liza
Friday 12th of June 2015
My honey burnt a little in the pan.
jlc
Sunday 26th of April 2015
The honey doesn't cause the paper to stick to the nut mixture?