I’ve searched high and low for a decent granola bar recipe and this one is the current winner. Most of the recipes I found on-line required an unacceptable amount of sugar, I wanted a granola bar not a candy bar. My opinion is that a granola bar is supposed to be a quick and easy source of healthy energy when you’re short on time.
These bars are considered chewy but don’t expect them to be the same as store bought. They will hold together but they will be a little crumbly. Other than the limited sugar requirement I really like this recipe because it separates the base dough and the flavorings. Once the base dough is done you can get really creative with your tasty bits and use what ever you want. This is also a good excuse to incorporate local fruits, nuts, and seeds.
My current favorite bars: semi-sweet, chocolate chips, dried cherries, & flax seeds. Mmm…
Ingredients:
- 4 1/2 cups of rolled oats
- 1 cup all purpose or wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp salt (optional)
- 1 cup of butter (room temp)
- 1 cup of honey
- 1/3 cup of brown sugar
- 2 cups of tasty bits (mini chocolate chips, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, shredded coconut, anything you want, I use chocolate chips, dried fruit, with some chai and flax seed)
Extra Info:
Cook time:
- 20 minutes of prep, 20-25 minutes cook time
- approximately 24 2×2 Granola Bars
- These are supposed to be ‘chewy granola bars’ but they can be a bit crumbly. It may take a few tries to get it down.
- I haven’t tried this with gluten free products other than they might have a hard time holding together I see no reason why it wouldn’t work
Instructions:
- In a bowl thoroughly combined the oats, flour, baking soda, vanilla extract, butter, honey, and sugar until and slightly tacky. (it’s a very stiff mix so it will be a bit of a workout)
- Add in your 2 cups of tasty bits. (once again this is where you can go wild with your imagination and use whatever you think would be good.)
- Grease and line a 9×13 inch cook dish with aluminum foil making sure to leave excess foil around the edges to help with lifting the bars out.
- Press the dough mixture into the cooking dish. I press pretty firmly so the dough will hold together.
- Let the dough rest in the pan for 30 minutes to an hour. (this is necessary so the flour and oats can absorb some of the moisture and help the bars hold together)
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit
- Put the baking dish in the oven and cook for approximately 20-25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
- Let the dough cool on the counter for about 10 minutes then cut into what ever size bars you like. I personally like smaller 2×2 inch squares,(brownie size) I think the store bought bars are oversized.
- After the bars have been cut let them cool to room temperature before removing them from the cooking dish.
- You can wrap them up individually or load them into a plastic container for later use.
