I have wanted to make homemade granola bars for quite awhile now. I just can’t stand how expensive they are at the stores, and so full of hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup or sugar! I’ve seen several recipes for granola bars, but I am not sure I will need to try any others out after tasting these! They were very easy to make, made a big batch, and tasted super yummy. They are great for the lunch box or an after school snack!
I found the recipe at Kitchen Stewardship. I will need to continue to look around and find more recipes on her blog, she earned my trust with this one recipe!
Homemade Granola Bars
41/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butter, softened* (I did 1/4 c butter and 1/4 c peanut butter. YUM! I’d like to try coconut oil instead of butter in my next batch)
1 cup honey (I used 3/4 cup, +1/4 cup water, then added 1/2 cup dried cranberries and 1/2 cup chocolate chips for more sweetness)
Add-ins: 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 cup chopped walnuts, dried fruit, sunflower seeds, coconut etc)
Lightly butter a 9×13 inch pan.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and honey together first, then add all ingredients except add-ins. Beat hard until combined. Stir in add-ins. Press mixture into the pan, really press so the bars don’t fall apart. (I used my hands).
Bake 325 degrees for 25 minutes until golden brown. Let it cool at least 10 minutes before cutting into bars. Let it cool completely in the pan before removing and serving.
This recipe makes at least 20 good-sized bars, which as Kitchen Stewardship said, “might be equivalent of 3 boxes of Quaker chewy bars. Even though butter and honey are on the pricey side, it still works out to be nicely frugal”
More thoughts from Kitchen Stewardship below:
Transformations:
- Add 1/4 cup cocoa powder and skip the chocolate chips
- Use 1/2 cup natural peanut butter in place of 1/2 cup of butter (tried this today ā it is divine!)
- The honey flavor is very distinct in this recipe, but when using peanut butter, it almost disappears. Iām wondering if PB is sweet enough that I can cut out some honey and just use water instead. ??
- Crumbs in the bottom of the storage bag? So yummy over homemade yogurt with fresh fruit.
this post is linked to:
Tasty Tuesday Parade Of Foods @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam
Show and Tell Wednesdays @ Blue Cricket Designs
Real Food Wednesdays @ Cheeseslave
jesssponseller
February 26, 2012 at 9:39 pmmaybe i made these wrong didn’t taste that great. how can you add more flavor maybe salt and sugar?? maybe it was the peanut butter i used or the agave honey?? Help, because they look delicious!
BIG_ANDY
September 23, 2010 at 4:48 amMy son has lost 100 Lbs in 18 months, and every morning he has a Joan’s Sweet Treat for breakfast. They come in two flavors Original and Oatmeal Raisin. They have 175 calories and 183 calories respectively. They are made with 100% natural ingredients, but the most important ingredient is the WHOLE wheat flour. This is not your regular store bought ENRICHED wheat flour. This is the grain ground into flour with ALL the nutrients that nature intended. These granola bars are VERY FILLING and will stick to your ribs. My son (age 20) would eat a bar on the way to his 8:00 class and he is satisfied until lunch. ALL for 175 calories.
Please visit the website http://WWW.NATURALTREATS.ORG
They taste great and you will enjoy them.
Anonymous
April 7, 2010 at 5:57 pmTip for “Jiffifying” natural peanut butter:
Blend in some coconut oil with the organic peanut butter to achieve a more Jiff-like texture, but without all the not so good ingredients!
Lisa
March 9, 2010 at 10:37 pmI liked your post on homemade granola, too. I’m always looking for good granola recipes. Does that make me kinda nutty? š These look delicious. My 4 year old would love them. She pretty much loves anything with a chocolate chip in it. Thanks for sharing.
Missy
March 9, 2010 at 6:19 pmWow. Those look easy and delicious. I’m always looking for healthier, low cost snacks for my kids. Thank you for sharing this!
Amy
March 9, 2010 at 2:55 am~Kitchen Stewardship, I did bake them for 25 minutes, I do think next time I will try a little less. You are right, the crumbs are delish over yogurt!
~Anonymous, THANK YOU! I can tell you have been reading my blog because you know me well. I will for sure make these!! It seems like it would be similar to eating cookie dough, which my girls would love. I love that it would be healthy cookie dough!
Anonymous
March 9, 2010 at 2:19 amI’ve made a few things from your blog and really enjoyed them š Thought of something your family might enjoy in return, my kiddos absolutely love these-
http://wondertime.go.com/life-at-home/article/powerball-cookies.html
Marisa
March 4, 2010 at 7:54 amThis is a great idea – store bought are so expensive.
Kitchen Stewardship
March 4, 2010 at 6:04 amNice work, Amy! These look even better than mine! Did you happen to cook them for a bit less than 25 minutes? I’m beginning to think that’s one reason they’re crumbly, that they don’t need to bake so long. Thanks!
š Katie
teresa
March 4, 2010 at 1:17 amI can’t wait to try these! They sound delicious and you are right about the store bought ones, pricey and too many of the things we are trying to avoid.
For the Love of Naps - Sarah
March 3, 2010 at 7:05 pmI will try these!
megan
March 3, 2010 at 6:13 pmI love to make homemade granola bars. I agree with you – the ones at the store are just too expensive. I’ve been making the same ones for a few months, my husband loves them. Maybe I will branch out and try these – you can never have too many granola bar recipes!
Amy
March 3, 2010 at 5:58 pmWe tried the natural in our family and just couldn’t do it!!
I use Skippy Natural..mmmm…which is a wanna be natural:)
Donalyn
March 3, 2010 at 5:51 pmThose look so good Amy. Of course anything with huge chocolate chips all over the top is gonna look tasty to me. Do you use natural peanut butter, or the reg grocery store kind?