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Do you love homemade granola bars? These healthy no bake granola bars are just 5 ingredients and really easy to make. Perfect for a quick snack or your kids lunchboxes.
- 1 c. creamy peanut butter, good quality
- 1/2 c. honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 3 c. old fashioned rolled oats
- 3/4 c. mini chocolate chips, divided
What Do I Need To Make Homemade Granola Bars
Heres a quick-reference grocery list of the ingredients youll need to make these no bake granola bars:
- Creamy peanut butter, good quality with minimal ingredients. Look peanut butters that include just nuts and salt and without added sugar or oils. Smuckers Natural creamy peanut butter is a great option, and includes just salt and peanuts.
- Sweetener: either honey or maple syrup. I tested these with both honey and Lakanto Maple Flavored Syrup, which is refined sugar free.
- Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
- Mini Chocolate Chips I use and love Lilys Dark Chocolate Mini Baking Chips.
Are you shopping for ingredients at Target? While youre there, pick up some of my 30 Best Healthy Target Snacks for some quick and easy healthy snack options.
What Makes These Healthier
These homemade healthy granola bars are a much better alternative to store bought bars! They are made with whole grains, and are minimally sweetened with maple syrup. They are also packed with healthy fats from the nut butter. nuts and seeds and there are no hidden ingredients, fillers or preservatives! Youll know exactly what is in these bars and you can customize them and add in any other nuts, seeds, or dried fruit youd like!
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Faq About Granola Bars
Can granola bars go bad?
Granola Bars can be refrigerated or frozen in order to extend the shelf life. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Are granola bars healthy?
Pre-packaged granola bars purchased from the store may contain a lot of sure and preservatives, making them relatively unhealthy. The great thing about granola bars is that they are easy to make at home, so you can control the amount of sugar and unhealthy ingredients that are put into them. Homemade granola bars can be a very healthy snack!
Are granola bars gluten free?
When purchasing store-bought granola bars, check the label on the packaging to determine whether or not they are gluten free. When making them at home, be sure to read the label on the oatmeal included in the recipe to ensure it does not contain wheat. Otherwise, most other granola bar ingredients are gluten-free.
How To Keep Homemade Granola Bars From Falling Apart
This is the hardest part of making homemade granola bars…they crumble! My solution is to push the dough into an 8×8 pan lined with parchment paper. Place another piece of parchment paper on top, then use the bottom of a small glass to really compact the bars. Squishing them together is the most important step to bars that hold their shape! I also put them into the freezer for 4 hours before cutting to really help them solidify.
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Tools Needed To Make Granola Bars
To create this recipe, you will need a few kitchen tools including a large mixing bowl, small mixing bowl, stirring utensil, loaf or brownie pan, and a spatula .
The size of the pan you use will determine how thick the granola bars are. A loaf pan will create thicker bars, while a brownie pan will produce a thinner result.
For measuring, you will need the following sized cups: 1/4 tsp, 1/2 tsp, 1 tsp, 1/4 cup, 1/2 cup, and 1 cup.
More Healthy Snack Ideas
Did you give this Healthy, Homemade No-Bake Trail Mix Granola Bar Recipe a try? Let me know by leaving a comment and recipe rating below!
If you do make this recipe, dont forget to tag me on or seeing your creations always makes my day. You can also to never miss a new recipe or nutrition education post!
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The Simplest No Bake Granola Bars
Who else is team I need a snack to get me through from lunch to dinner? I, for one, cannot get through my afternoons without one. That post-lunch, mid-afternoon 3 PM slump is a real struggle! I like to think it is because my brain is working so hard that I need more fuel to make it through, you know?
Often, I like to snack on granola bars. Theyre protein and nutrient-rich, and they come in such a large variety of flavor combos. But my favorites above all else are these easy, no bake nutty granola bars. I make them right at home, and they are divine!
I tried these for the first time a few weekends ago when I was home because like Ive said before, my dad always loves when I make him snacks to take to work. These nutty granola bars are perfect for that because they are loaded with healthy fats to keep you full through the afternoon.
When I made them, we decided to have them for dessert that night too and we both went back for seconds. Slightly sweet, slightly salty, and totally delicious!
How Do You Get Homemade Granola Bars To Stick Together
Pressing the mixture firmly into the pan is key to getting the granola bars to stick together after they are cut. Use your hands or the back of a measuring cup to press tother well. Once in the pan, freeze to set. This will help when youre ready to cut the bars.
Love peanut butter and chocolate? Check out my Reeses peanut butter cup cookies, and my BEST Monster Cookie Recipe.
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How To Store Leftover No Bake Granola Bars:
* You can store leftover healthy granola bars in the refrigerator for up to a week. Just keep covered in saran wrap or a plastic container.
And while these do need to be kept cold, they can travel well. You can throw one in your bag and enjoy it on the go.
I hope you give these a try for an easy, delicious homemade granola bar thats perfect for summertime.
Enjoy!
Kathryn
P.S. If you love this recipe, check out my healthy breakfast bars. Theyre also no bake, just 4 ingredients and 10 minutes to put together!
More Healthy Snack Options
- Healthy Breakfast Cookies These cookies arent just for breakfast and they are deceptively delicious. Kids will never know how healthy they are!
- These Healthy Snack Bites take less than 10 minutes to make and you probably have all of the ingredients sitting in your pantry. Great after school or anytime snack with no preservatives or unknown ingredients.
- Homemade Fruit Roll-Ups Eliminate artificial and unknown ingredients by making your own homemade fruit roll-ups! This is the ultimate snack food for kids. Great for lunch boxes, too!
- Packed with protein and honey to satisfy your sweet tooth, these Peanut Butter Honey Wraps are the perfect snack or lunch for kids! Easy to put together in a lunch or for an afternoon snack.
- Raspberry Honey Yogurt Fresh raspberries, honey and Greek yogurt join forces to create the most delicious, fruity and filling snack! Eat immediately or freeze for a cold treat.
- Instant Pot Applesauce Make your next batch of applesauce in your Instant Pot for an added touch of delicious flavor! This recipe requires only a handful of ingredients and takes just a few minutes to make.
Will you help add value to Pip and Ebby?If you make this recipe and love it, stop back and give it a 5-star rating and leave a comment. THANK YOU!
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Nutrition Benefits Of Homemade Granola Bars
Rolled oats provide a source of whole grain, complex carbohydrates rich in fiber. Oats are also an excellent source of micronutrients like:
- pantothenic acid
Nuts and seeds provide a source of heart-healthy fats, protein, and fiber, all of which help to keep you full and lessen any spikes in blood sugar.
While the nutrition profiles of nuts and seeds vary, they are generally good sources of micronutrients like:
All you need to make this recipe are the following simple, nutritious ingredients:
Full ingredient measurements + detailed recipe instructions are in the recipe card below!
No Bake Granola Bar Ingredients
To make these granola bars youll need two cups of puffed cereal, two cups of rolled oats, and a cup of creamy peanut butter. Additionally you will need a half cup of honey, a quarter cup of light brown sugar, salt, and vanilla extract.
If you dont have puffed rice cereal on hand or just want to try something a little bit different you can give these other cereal selections a try:
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Are Granola Bars Good For You
Granola bars are generally considered to be a healthy snack, but the picture is mixed. Yes, they contain lots of healthy unprocessed or minimally processed fiber-rich foods, such as the oats, nuts, and coconut. Also, many nutritionists recommend eating a small number of nuts each day!
However, granola bars do contain plenty of added sugar that is necessary to bind the ingredients together. And as we all know, theres nothing especially healthy about added sugar in any form, whether granulated or syrup, so dont overdo the sweet stuff in your overall diet.
There are other ways you can make your granola bars healthier. For instance, if preservative-free is your goal, then ensure the ingredients youre adding meet this requirement. You can also try substituting peanut butter for the butter, and cut back a tiny bit on the amount of sugar and honey.
How To Make Homemade Healthy Granola Bars:
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How To Make Granola Bars
Can I Add Mini Chocolate Chips
Yes, you can add between 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup of chocolate chips to the bar without decreasing other ingredients.
However, make sure the batter is not too warm before stirring the chocolate chips in, or they will melt!
If you add chocolate chips, I recommend not adding the chocolate layer on top, or they will be very sweet.
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Customize Your Granola Bars
Good news: this recipe for peanut butter granola bars is very flexible. Stick to the base but from there you can adapt as you like! Heres what I can recommend:
- Use your fav nut or seed butter: if you wanna switch it up, you could try almond butter, cashew, pecan or even sunflower seed butter for a nut free version . Smuckers is one of my favorite peanut butters to use.
- Add your fav mix-ins: feel free to add dried fruit like raisins or dried cranberries, add mini chocolate chips, or swap the almonds for toasted pecans. YUM.
- Make them vegan: simply use coconut palm syrup or date syrup instead of honey. Be sure to use dairy free chocolate chips as well.
Frequently Asked Questions About Making No Bake Granola Bars:
Why is granola so bad for you?
Most store-bought granola is made with an excessive amount of high-fructose corn syrup or other refined sugar. This dramatically increases the calorie content per serving.
Is eating granola bars healthy for you?
Store-bought granola bars are heavily processed and are not considered healthy. They contain excessive amounts of refined sugar and unhealthy oils.
What is the healthiest granola bar?
The healthiest granola gar is the one you make at home. Because you get to control the ingredients, you can make healthy granola bars with little to no refined sugar, or unhealthy oils.
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How Do I Make Healthy Granola Bars
How To Make No Bake Granola Bars
If you try this recipe, please leave a review and star rating below! Its so helpful for readers to see which recipes have been tried and true by other readers! Thank you!
We love homemade granola bars in our house! You should also try these Chewy Homemade Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars, these 4-ingredient Peanut Butter Granola Bars with Chocolate, or these Chocolate Oatmeal Granola Bars. All delicious choices!
You should also check out this list of over 100 healthy snacks for kids!
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Rolled Oats Versus Quick Oats
This recipe works best with rolled oats because the bars hold together better. However, if you dont like the taste of rolled oats in no bake recipes , you can make this recipe with quick oats. The quick oats will soften when coated in the nut butter mixture. But the granola bars wont hold together as well. You will still be able to cut them, but once they soften they will break apart more than the version with rolled oats.
How To Make These Easy No Bake Granola Bars
This simple granola bar recipe takes less than 10 minutes to prepare and you only need a 8 simple ingredients!
Start with the wet ingredients. Add your nut butter and maple syrup to a large bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined.
Add in the rest of your ingredients on top of the nut butter and maple syrup. Use a spoon to mix until all of the ingredients are fully incorporated.
Transfer to a baking dish. I used an 8×8 baking pan lined with parchment and greased on the sides. Add your no bake granola bars mixture into the pan then pack it down tightly with your hands! Then I like to top with extra cranberries and pumpkin seeds to make the bars look fancy, but this is optional!
Let the bars cool in the fridge for 1-2 hours so they can firm up. Then slice them into bars, squares, or bite sized pieces and enjoy!
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Notes On Healthy No Bake Granola Bars:
- While these are no-bake, they do need about 2 hours of time to sit in the refrigerator to set up so they stay together. Please plan accordingly.
- I use peanut butter but you can substitute almond butter if you prefer.
- Melted butter or coconut oil will work. You could also use canola oil.
- Honey or maple syrup will work for the sweetener.
- Chia seeds are called for in the recipe, but I think flax seeds would work too. They add a boost of nutrition without affecting the flavor.
- If you dont have either, Ive also skipped them and used an extra 1/4 cup each of the oats and crispy rice cereal. Works just fine.
- Any brand of crispy rice cereal is fine for these.
As is, these granola bars are gluten-free, egg-free and can be dairy-free. These can also easily be made vegan if needed.