Homemade Chewy Granola Bars (without corn syrup!)
ByEvery homemade chewy granola bar recipe I’ve ever seen includes corn syrup and/or marshmallow cream (not ingredients we feel okay about eating). And every pre-made granola bar I have seen at the store (even the organic ones) have ingredients I don’t like feeding my family.
I finally figured out a chewy granola bar recipe that we like! It’s easy and includes all natural sweeteners and ingredients! These bars are way cheaper than store bought granola bars! Plus you can customize it according to your family’s taste and allergies! They can be easily wrapped individually to take in the car or packed in a lunch!
Now I will say this: I don’t recommend going overboard on these (or any) granola bar. Unsoaked oats can do a number on your digestive system. I just wanted to create a recipe that will help our family avoid the granola bars at the store when we need a quick, grab and go snack to take to soccer games or on trips. I consider these to be “compromise” snacks because of the unsoaked oats, but otherwise, I couldn’t be more thrilled to have finally figured out a yummy chewy granola bar!
Homemade Chewy Granola Bars
1/2 cup peanut butter or sunbutter
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil (or another oil of your choice)
1 cup oats
1 cup total of any combination of: sesame seeds, coconut flakes, sunflower seeds, dried fruit, mini chocolate chips
In a medium sized saucepan, melt together peanut butter, honey and coconut oil.
Remove from heat and add one cup of oats. Choose your favorite combination of coconut flakes, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, dried fruit and mini chocolate chips, to equal a total of ONE CUP. (I just got out my one cup measuring cup and poured in the ingredients until the cup was full.) Pour in and stir well.
Stir well, then spread mixture into a 8×8 or 9×4 pan.
Chill for two hours, then cut into bars.
Wrap in plastic wrap for a quick grab and go snack!
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This are amazing, thanks for the great recipe! A few folks asked about setting up. I started my melting process on low and when all of the coconut oil was thoroughly melted, I cranked the heat up to medium just for a minute. I used dark chocolate covered pomegranates, koala crisp cereal, coconut, pecans and flax seeds as my add-ins and these were just great, definitely on the candy bar end of the spectrum because of my particular add ins, so I will try a healthier version next time. Thanks for the awesome recipe!
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Just made these and they are chilling now. I used almond butter, olive oil (didn’t have coconut oil in the house), and mixed in mini chocolate chips, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, and sesame seeds! I hope they turn out!
They were so easy and fun to make. Will definately try out again !
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Thank you for sharing your recipe. I really like granola bars but just didn’t want the corn syrup. These don’t look to difficult to make. I’m going to try some. Thanks again (from Arkansas)
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Made these and loved eating them right out of the fridge. However, they get quite soft when they are left out on the counter. Is there anyway to have them more firm or did I do something wrong? If we were taking them as snacks somewhere I fear they’d be a sticky mess (but yummy!) by the time we went to eat them. Thanks for your help!
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Laura Reply:
March 21st, 2012 at 6:29 am
You didn’t do anything wrong, they just do better when stored in the fridge!
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Just made these with coconut flakes, sunflower seeds, and diced dried apricots! Yum!
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For the oats – is that quick oats or old fashioned oats, or does it matter?
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Laura Reply:
March 21st, 2012 at 6:23 am
I use old fashioned oats, but I’m not sure that it matters.
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Laura,
I’ve been making these for several months now and I just had to share with you what my husband said the other day after munching on one. He said, “I think these granola bars are the best food thing that has ever happened to our family!” :) I’m pretty sure my kids agree! Thanks for a great recipe!
Melissa
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hey would it work if i used vegetable oil?
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Laura Reply:
March 30th, 2012 at 1:21 pm
I’m not sure that it would. I don’t recommend vegetable oil because it is not a healthy oil, so I don’t have experience using it in this recipe. :)
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If you used unbleached parchment to wrap the bars, you can avoid plastic on your food and you can reuse or compost the paper.
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LindseyforLaura@HHM Reply:
April 10th, 2012 at 9:26 am
Wow, good tip! Thanks! :)
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Laura, I made your chewy granola bars, and used olive oil as I did not have coconut oil, and they were delicious…..we all loved them….can’t wait till I can find some coconut oil and make them again…have a question…does the coconut oil taste like coconut ?
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Christy Reply:
April 21st, 2012 at 3:10 pm
I personally don’t love the flavor of coconut but have been using coconut oil in all of my baking and haven’t noticed a difference. It smells like coconut when it is baking but it doesn’t affect the flavor. I have used it as a flavoring for cooking fish on the stove and it did have a slight coconut flavor. But overall it is extremely minimal if at all.
Hope that helps.
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Love this recipe! When I make them, I add cocoa powder to the peanut butter mixture and then just use 2 cups of oats. YUM!
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Mrs. R. Reply:
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:46 am
We want to try this!…..how much cocoa powder did you use?
Thanks!
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Just made these last night for the first time. For some reason, I wasn’t quite thinking and just wanted to share my experience for others who will make these. After mixing the honey, oil, and peanut butter, I added the oats and mixed. I was in a hurry, so I immediately added the 1 cup mini chocolate chips (Enjoy brand) because I knew my kids would want mini-chocolate chips in their bars. Well, the chips instantly melted because the mixture was still too warm. Now the kids thought I made chocolate candy bars, not granola bars! Has anyone managed to make these with mini chocolate chips and NOT have them melt? If so, how long did you have to wait before adding the chips to the mixture? Thanks for your help. :-)
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karla Reply:
April 24th, 2012 at 5:53 am
I haven’t made this recipe yet……but I plan to! Just wanted to share an idea. I’ve used choc chips in other recipes of the same kind. A little trick I like to use, is to put the bag of chips in the freezer. If they’re slightly frozen they will hold their shape and thaw out while the rest of the mixture cools. Hope that helps!
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Stephanie M Reply:
April 24th, 2012 at 10:12 am
Great idea, Karla! I’ll try that next time.
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LindseyforLaura@HHM Reply:
May 11th, 2012 at 6:06 am
Karla had a great idea! Laura also recommends waiting for 5-7 minutes before adding in the chips so they don’t melt. :)
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Hi Stephanie,
When I made them I also used chocolate chips, but not the mini ones….and mine did not melt that much…maybe a little….so try the regular choc. chips next time….we loved them, and mine went very fast….will definitely make them again….did you use coconut oil ? Does it taste like coconut ? My son-in-law does not like coconut, so I don’t know if he would eat them or not, especially if they taste like coconut at all…..
Hope you or someone on here can answer that question for me…..Thanks
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Kay Reply:
April 14th, 2012 at 3:11 pm
Kentucky Lady-
Coconut oil does taste like coconut (& it’s good for you). I suspect (I haven’t made these yet) that at only 1/4 of a cup of coconut oil compared to the larger qtys of the other ingredients, the coconut taste won’t be detected or minimal at best. You could always use olive oil instead, just to be on the safe side. I just made cupcakes using coconut oil instead of vegetable oil & I can’t taste coconut at all (& that was 1/2 cup of coconut oil).
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Stephanie M Reply:
April 16th, 2012 at 12:18 pm
Hi Kentucky Lady,
Thanks for letting me know that regular chocolate chips would probably work better. Yes, we used coconut oil. It’s hard for me to know if it added a coconut flavor since we also added shredded coconut (yummy!). I don’t think it’d really add a coconut flavor, though, since we cook a lot with coconut oil (use it for sautes, pancakes, baking, etc) and I’ve never noticed it before. It might also depend on the brand a person uses. We use Spectrum brand oils in our home.
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Jasmine Reply:
April 23rd, 2012 at 5:11 am
Hey Stephanie, coconut oil doesn’t taste like coconut at all. It’s a neutral tasting and has at the most a slightly buttery taste to it. Hope this helps!
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Made a double batch of these today – they are awesome. We added a tablespoon of cocoa power to the peanut butter/honey/coconut oil mixture. For the add ins we used chopped cocoa dusted almonds, mini chocolate chips, pecans, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and pretzels (everything chopped). We also added a 1/4 cup of wheat germ. Extremely yummy and love there is no sugar or corn syrup. We will definitely make again!
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Stephanie M Reply:
April 16th, 2012 at 12:20 pm
Love the idea of broken up pretzels. Will definitely need to try that as an addition.
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Thanks Kay,for the info….I did use olive oil in the granola bars and they were wonderful, but I do want to try them with the coconut oil….my daughter just told me Walmart had the coconut oil…..guess I gotta visit Walmart…..
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Can fresh-ground peanuts be substituted for peanut butter?
It was interesting to learn of Sunbutter. So, if I grind sunflower seeds into a butter, would that work?
Finally,besides Walmart, where can I buy coconut oil?
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Laura Reply:
April 18th, 2012 at 5:21 am
Yes, freshly ground peanuts would work, as would sunbutter, which can be made just like peanut butter. Here is a post telling of different good sources for coconut oil: http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/coconut-oil-why-it-is-good-for-you-and-where-to-buy-it
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My kids go through snacks so quickly so I’ve wanted to make instead of buy granala bars. I’ve read nothing but good things about this recipe. Can’t wait to try it!
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Shalon, you will not be disappointed…..they are wonderful…..can’t wait to get some coconut oil so I can make them again…..
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These are a staple in our home, and I now make a triple batch at a time in a large lasagna pan, keep it in the fridge and we cut one out whenever we want one. Here is the blend we all agree on:
1 1/2 cup peanut butter or sunbutter
1 cup honey
3/4 cup coconut oil
3 cup oats
1 cup coconut flakes
1 cup sunflower seeds
1/3 cup ground flax seed
2/3 cup mini chocolate chips
We found chocolate flavor comes out a bit more when the chips melt, but I try to get the temperature of the honey/oil/pb mix to be warm enough to just melt them a tad without completely melting them, just finger test it before adding the dry ingredients.
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Do these have to be stored in the fridge? And I’m desperately trying to find a recipe for a son that is 6’0 and 130lbs. Trying to find a homemade snack that has nutritional value and will help bring some calories to his day. He is not a big eater and I’m worried he isn’t gettin the caloric intake he should. It’s tough when they would rather skip eating. HELP. I tried this recipe and I like it, but putting 1 whole cup of chocolate chips made it more like a candy bar. He doesn’t seem to like oats. What do you suggest?? Any thoughts are appreciated.
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Laura Reply:
April 19th, 2012 at 1:20 pm
Yes, I store mine in the fridge. If he doesn’t like oats, you could try adding more seeds and nuts and coconut flakes possibly.
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Mary Lou, instead of using a cup of chocolate chips, use like 1/4 cup of choc. chips,1/4 cup of sunflower seeds, 1/4 cup of dried fruit,1/4 cup of coconut…..that makes a cup, or use your own ideas and use whatever else you want…could even use some trail mix……raisins, walnuts….just whatever you like…..
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BTW…forgot to add. I did not put mine in the fridge…..gave some to my daughter and left the rest on the counter covered with plastic wrap…..they really are delicious…….
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Around how many calories are in this receipe if made like above? Does anyone know?
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Melanie Reply:
May 6th, 2012 at 12:34 am
I use half coconut flakes and half chocolate chips in mine. If one recipe is 8 servings, I calculated about 320 calories per serving.
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I made this recipe using coconut oil, peanut butter, honey, some golden raisins, dried cherries, dried blueberries, mini M&M’s that come in the little tubes and also threw in some diced dried plum and sunflower kernels can’t wait to try them.!
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Here’s another no-bake recipe that I’ve been using (w/o corn syrup or marshmallow creme)that my hubby says is addictive:
http://www.alli-n-son.com/2010/08/09/chewy-nobake-granola-bars/
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
2-1/2 cups oats or leftover granola
1/2 cup total of the following ingredients: wheat germ {about 1/4 cup}, ground flax seeds {about 2 tablespoons} and whole flax seeds {about 2 tablespoons}. Or substitute with more oatmeal, rice cereal nuts.
1/2 cup Crasins
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
In a medium saucepan, combine the brown sugar with the honey and butter. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
Add the remaining ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, to the saucepan and fold the ingredients to evenly coat with the sauce. Transfer the granola mixture to a 9-by-13-inch ungreased baking pan and press firmly to evenly fill. Gently press the chocolate chips onto the top of the granola. Let the granola mixture set in the fridge until firm, about 15 minutes, then cut into 2-1/4-by 3-inch bars.
Store in the fridge.
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I love the protein bars with rice crispies, peanut butter and chocolate but they aren’t very healthy or cheap. I wonder how these would be if I substituted the rice crispy cereal (the brown rice version) instead of the oats and used the mini choc chips and peanut butter combo. Anyone tried this?
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I made these a couple of weeks ago and LOVED them – my add-ins were chopped walnuts, chocolate, butterscotch, and white chocolate chips. (Not healthy, but pretty darn yummy!) I’m making another batch today with puffed rice cereal, coconut, and mini chocolate chips on top. Thanks for the recipe! There are so many variations!
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