If you can’t find brown rice syrup, you can use maple syrup here. To make these granola bars vegan, substitute brown rice syrup for the honey. If the mix-ins are too large, or if you add too many, the bars won’t hold together. You should also maintain the ratios I use in the original recipe. Feel free to use what you like, but make sure that you chop any dried fruits or nuts to a small size. Shredded unsweetened coconut, chopped dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, and dried currants are a few of my favorites. Change up the mix-ins! I love the combination of mini chocolate chips and pepitas in these bars, but they’re delicious with other mix-ins too.I like to eat these granola bars straight out of the fridge, but if they’re frozen, let them thaw at room temperature for 20 minutes before you eat. They’ll keep for up to a week in the fridge, but you can also freeze them for up to 2 months. I recommend storing them with a sheet of parchment paper between layers so that the bars don’t stick together. Once you slice the bars, cover the pan and store it in the fridge, or transfer the bars to an airtight container. Pop the pan in the fridge for at least one hour before slicing and eating the bars. Don’t cut the chilling time short. It’s tempting to slice and eat these bars as soon as you press the oat mixture into the pan, but in order for them to be chewy and cohesive, they really need to chill.If your nut butter is too dry or thick, it won’t bind the oats, chocolate chips, and nuts or seeds into cohesive bars. Look for natural cashew or peanut butter with a smooth consistency to make this recipe, not the dry, stiff stuff that you might find at the bottom of a jar. Then, use the back of a measuring cup to smooth and flatten the tops of the bars.įinally, chill! Transfer the pan to the fridge, and allow the mixture to chill for one hour before you slice and eat the bars. Firmly press the mixture to the sides of the pan with your hands. Scoop the mixture onto the bottom of the pan, and cover it with another sheet of parchment paper. Next, press the bars into a parchment-lined baking pan. The mixture might seem dry at first, but keep stirring! Everything will be fully incorporated in no time. Second, fold in the dry ingredients – the oats, chocolate chips, and pepitas. Mix until the honey is fully incorporated. You won’t believe how easy it is to make this homemade granola bar recipe! Here’s what you need to do:įirst, stir together the wet ingredients – the cashew or peanut butter, honey, vanilla extract, and salt. If you don’t have mini chocolate chips, finely chopped dark chocolate will work in their place.įind the complete recipe with measurements below. Mini chocolate chips – Who doesn’t love nut butter and chocolate?! Be sure to use mini chocolate chips here, as regular chocolate chips are too big to make cohesive bars.Pepitas, crushed peanuts, or cashews – They add healthy fats, protein, and crunch.Sea salt – To make all the rich, sweet, and nutty flavors in this recipe pop!.Vanilla extract – It amps up the bars’ warm flavor.Honey – Along with the nut butter, it helps all these ingredients stick together! I love its warm amber flavor in this recipe.If you’re gluten-free, make sure that you use certified gluten-free oats. Whole rolled oats – They give these bars a perfect chewy texture.Natural peanut or cashew butter – It helps bind the bars together, and it adds protein, healthy fats, and irresistible nutty flavor.You only need 7 basic ingredients to make this homemade granola bar recipe: Filled with wholesome ingredients like oats, pepitas, and nut butter, they’re healthy enough to pass for breakfast, but they’re also a perfect afternoon snack. They’re chewy, sweet, nutty, and studded with just the right amount of chocolate chips. It’s a breeze to make, and the bars are fantastic. I might not have had the exact granola bars I was craving on hand, but I could make homemade granola bars that’d be even better!įast forward to now, and I’ve made this granola bar recipe more times than I can count. These days, I don’t keep packaged snacks around the house, but I always have old fashioned oats, nuts, and seeds in my pantry. They had a chewy texture, a sweet, oat-y flavor, and pockets of mini chocolate chips. A few weeks ago, I started craving the granola bars I ate as a kid.

Healthy cashew butter recipe