You’re running out the door for work, school, a workout, a hiking or camping trip, or to check off errands on your daily to-do list. As you’re rushing around the house to leave, you realize your stomach is growling. Ugh, there’s no time to eat! No need to stress over something you can solve in an indulgent, yet healthy, but sustainable and quick way. Why not spare 30 minutes (or less) to make your own granola bars using your favorite ingredients? I’m sharing with you some granola bar basics. Then, you can customize them to fit your flavor preferences. Check out two of my favorite, no-bake granola bar recipes.
Granola Bars are a Simple, Quick, & Super Customizable Treat
A favorite quick snack in my household is a homemade granola bar made using whatever ingredients I have in my pantry and fridge. You might be surprised at what I’ve put in my granola bars over the years. The potential flavor combinations are endless.
I have made many granola bars with different nuts, seeds, sweeteners, nut butters, and spices. My recipes below are specific because they are favorites; however, you can sub really any of the ingredients based on what you like or have available. The bottom line is if you have some oats, a nut butter, and nuts or seeds, you can make a protein-packed, satisfying treat. Everything else added simply tickles your taste buds.
Chocolate Chip Cashew & Almond Strawberry Granola Bars
These granola bar recipes are indulgent, dense, and make hearty snacks or meal replacements. You can mix up the nut butters and nuts. You don’t have to use almond butter with almonds. Try peanut butter with almonds, almond butter with cashews, or cashew butter with pistachios.
If Medjool dates aren’t your thing or you can’t find them, use raisins! That’s right! The purpose of the dates is to provide a sticky sweetener to bind the ingredients. Raisins are very cost effective and provide the same sweetness and texture. There are NO rules! Once you have a general understanding of the purpose of each ingredient, you can sub with “like-minded” similarities. Just have fun and use what you have or like!
Granola Bars Basic Set of Ingredients
A good, hearty, and sustainable granola bar without a lot of processed ingredients may look something like this. In fact, the following is the basis of all of my no-bake granola bars.
- Main ingredient: rolled oats (gluten free, if you choose)… Rolled oats (as opposed to quick cooking oats) provide a hearty, chewy texture that hold up well to all the other ingredients. Like after eating oatmeal, you maintain a sense of satiety to get through your morning or afternoon.
- Secondary ingredient: nuts (any nut)… Chopped nuts add crunch and bulk to the granola bars. They contain protein, healthy fats, fiber, magnesium, and many other health benefits.
- Main sweetener and binder: sticky, naturally sweetened dried fruit (like dates or raisins)… They replace processed sweeteners like granulated or brown sugar. They maintain their shape instead of being dissolved by other ingredients thus holding everything together.
- Secondary binder and protein punch: nut butter (store-bought or homemade)… Your choice of nut butter provides flavor and sustainability. It also ensures a sturdy and dense bar that doesn’t fall apart.
- Secondary sweetener: natural liquid sweeteners like maple syrup or honey provide flavor and sweetness. They combine well with the nut butter to bind all the ingredients.
- Icing on the cake: any flavorings you like… Check out these options! Cater to your cravings by adding… mini chocolate chips or any mini candies (mini M&Ms), hazelnut spread (Nutella) in place of nut butter, fruit jams, chopped dried fruit, seeds (pumpkin, chia, hemp, etc.), spices (cinnamon, pumpkin pie/apple pie, cardamom, etc.), and extracts (vanilla, almond, chocolate, or fruit flavorings).
Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bars
These granola bars are pretty basic, but NOT your run-of-the-mill, store-bought versions. 😉 What set these apart are the dates and roasted cashews. Lest we forget the (homemade) cashew butter, maple syrup, and vanilla to take a basic granola bar over the top!
Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bar Ingredients
The ingredients for this recipe include: dates (Medjool are top notch), maple syrup (or honey), any nut butter (homemade cashew butter, here), any unsalted/unroasted nuts or mixed nuts (cashews, here), rolled oats, salt, vanilla, and mini chocolate chips.
Preheat Oven: Roast Nuts & Oats
I always toast my nuts anytime I make nut butter or granola bars, but you don’t have to. The roasted nuts give off a nice, smoky flavor and the heat brings out the natural oils thus contributing to the flavor. I start by preheating the oven to 350˚F (176˚C). I use my toaster oven because everything heats up nicely in that small space and fits on the toaster oven baking sheet.
On an ungreased baking sheet, add 1 ½ cups of rolled oats and 1 cup of roughly chopped cashews. I have also used peanuts, pistachios, and almonds. I imagine mixed nuts would be good, too. Try to use unroasted and unsalted nuts, if possible. This way you can control every ingredient and flavor added to your bars. Shake the pan to disperse the mix in a single layer.
Place the baking pan in the oven and set the timer for 12 minutes to start. Shake the pan and rotate it at the halfway point (6 minutes). Add more time, if needed, but keep an eye on them so nothing burns. Take them out sooner, if they begin to darken too quickly.
TIP: Check the underside of the nuts, they’ll brown more quickly. If some nuts brown too quickly, just remove them from the pan and set them aside.
Date Pitting Time!
While the nuts & oats are roasting, prepare the dates. If using Medjool dates, go ahead and remove the seeds/pits. It is easy to do, just tear open or cut them apart with a knife and peel them out of the center. Discard the pits. You’ll need a heaping cup full which is about 8-9 large dates. Place them in a food processor and pulse/run the machine until they turn into small bits. They will likely form a sticky dough ball.
No food processor? No problem! Alternatively, use a knife and chop them up by hand into small pieces. If you’re using another sticky dried fruit like raisins, forego the pitting and just pulse them in the food processor or chop them up with a knife.
TIP: If the dates are fresh and at room temperature, they will be soft and tear apart easily with your fingers. If they are old or have been in the fridge where they have stiffened up, you will likely need a knife to cut into them to remove the pits.
Removing pits from dates w/ fingers Dates processed into pieces and ready (sticky, mind you!)
Combine the Dry Ingredients
In a large bowl, add roasted warm oats & nuts. Add a pinch of salt (a pinch for me is 2 fingers and a thumb). Stir well to mix it all up. Separate the sticky ball of dates and scatter them over the nut mixture. Then, use a spatula or your hands to break up the dates and combine them somewhat with the oats and nuts.
TIP: The heat from the nuts and oats will help break up the dates. Be careful because the nuts and oats may be too warm for your hands. The dates will NOT COMPLETELY combine with the oats and nuts so don’t worry. The nut butter and liquid sweetener will finish the job. 😊
Nuts & oats roasted & adding salt Scatter the sticky ball of dates over the mixture You can begin break them up with a spatula… BUT… I finish off with my hands
Combining All Wet/Soft Ingredients
Time to add the ooey, gooey flavorings. Scoop out ¼ cup of any nut butter you have into a small separate bowl. I made cashew butter last week for my previous blog post, so I’m using that in this recipe. Often times, I just use store-bought creamy peanut butter. I’ve also used homemade and store-bought almond butter here, too. Then, stir ¼ cup maple syrup into the nut butter. You could also use honey or whatever liquid sweetener you have. Finally, stir in ½ tsp vanilla. Once the liquid/soft ingredients are combined, pour the nut butter mixture over the oat mixture and mix well.
TIP: If your nut butter is thick, you can heat it up in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds to soften it up before stirring in the other ingredients.
Stir all wet/soft ingredients in separate bowl Stir the nut butter mixture into oat mixture Mixed enough when no oats or nuts remain loose
Add Chocolate Chips & Press ALL in a Pan
Finally, mix in ¼ cup or so of mini chocolate chips. At this point, the mixture should have cooled enough that the chocolate doesn’t melt. This is also the time you would add M&Ms or other candy or ingredient you don’t want to break apart or melt.
Once mixed, transfer the granola bar mixture to an 8×8-inch baking dish or other small pan lined with foil, plastic wrap, or parchment paper so the bars lift out easily.
Press the granola bar mixture down firmly until it’s uniformly flattened. You want the mixture to be well compacted so the ingredients will hold together. I like to use a rubber spatula to press down the mixture and flatten out the top.
Cover the dish and place it in the fridge for a minimum of 15-20 minutes to firm up. Then they’ll be ready to cut and eat!
TIP: Place your chocolate chips in the freezer ~30 minutes before making the granola bars. Very cold chocolate will keep from melting when you add them to the granola bar mixture.
Add cold chocolate chips Mix well to combine Press in 8×8 pan Smooth out tops and edges w/ spatula Bars are ready to be covered and firm up in the fridge
Cutting & Storing Homemade Granola Bars
Cutting the Granola Bars
When you’re in a rush, it’s easy if you can have the granola bars cut, packaged, and ready for the taking. You and your kids can just pull them out of the fridge and throw them in a bag. You can cut them into long rectangles like store-bought versions or squares. I prefer squares. It’s just easy. I cut mine into 9 squares, 3 rows both directions.
Notice how easily they remove from the foil 9 squares
Storing the Granola Bars
For easy transport, I wrap each bar in a small sheet of plastic wrap. I tear off sheets of plastic wrap and lay them out like an assembly line. Then, I place a bar on each and fold up two edges of the wrap and then roll them down together. Finally, fold the other two loose edges underneath. Place them all in a zip-top gallon-sized bag or container and store them in the fridge or freezer. They are ready whenever you need a snack. You can also just stack them up, unwrapped, in a dish with a tight-fitting lid.
TIP: You can store these in the fridge easily for a month. You can also keep them in the freezer for much longer. Regardless, store them in a sealed container or in plastic wrap.
2 edges rolled down; other 2 edges folded under They won’t stick just stacked in a container
Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bar Close Up
Check out the details of this bar! Aside from the extra chocolate chips on top, try to pick out the individual ingredients. Do you see the oat slivers, chocolate chips, date pieces, and cashew chunks?
Almond Strawberry Granola Bars
As with the chocolate chip cashew granola bar recipe, you can substitute almost any of my ingredients for whatever you like or have in your pantry. You can also mix up the nut butters and nuts. You don’t have to use almond butter with almonds. I’ve many times used peanut butter with almonds in this recipe.
Almond Strawberry Granola Bar Ingredients
In this recipe, I use dates but raisins are fine, too. You’ll need honey (or maple syrup), any nut butter (homemade almond butter, here), unsalted/unroasted whole almonds, rolled oats, salt, strawberry jam, and almond extract.
Repeated Directions From Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bars
This recipe has the same directions as the chocolate chip granola bars, the difference lies in the ingredients. Repeat the steps starting with preheating the oven to 350˚F (176˚C) to toast both the almonds and oats. Then, measure out and rough chop 1 cup of almonds. Place the almonds and 1 1/2 cups of oats in an ungreased baking pan. Roast for 12-15 minutes shaking the pan at the halfway mark.
While the nuts and oats roast, remove the pits from the dates and process them into pieces (knife is fine). Then, combine the warm roasted nuts, oats, and dates together using your hands, if necessary, to disperse the dates throughout.
TIP: Almonds are a heartier nut and can roast longer than cashews. I roast my almonds for 15 minutes.
1 1/2 cups oats & 1 cup roughly chopped almonds Dates pitted and processed into pieces Oats and almonds roasted (not TOO brown) Dates mixing in with the warm oats & almonds
Combine the REST of the Ingredients
Flavor time! Scoop out a 1/4 cup of any nut butter you have into a small bowl. I made almond butter last week for my previous video, so I’m using that in this recipe. I have also used store-bought creamy peanut butter. Stir 1/8 cup (2 tbsp) honey into the nut butter. You could also use maple syrup or whatever liquid sweetener (agave) you have. Stir in 1/8 cup (2 tbsp) strawberry jam and 1/4 tsp of almond extract. Once it’s all mixed well, pour it into the oat mixture and mix well. Press it into an 8×8-inch pan lined with foil, plastic wrap, or parchment paper.
Notice the strawberries from the jam Wet ingredients added Mix it all up! Press it into an 8×8 pan
Final Touches! Spontaneous White Chocolate Drizzle…
As I was making this recipe, I had a spontaneous thought. It occurred to me that white chocolate would be fantastic with the almond and strawberry flavors. Soooooo… I couldn’t help myself. I found a white chocolate bar in my pantry and decided to melt it (half of it, that is) and drizzle some over the top of these bars before covering them and placing them in the fridge. As expected, they turned out GREAT! The chocolate made them pretty and that much more indulgent.
Heated 1/2 bar of white chocolate in the microwave for 20 seconds, stirring intermittently Ready to cover and firm up in the fridge Cooled bars cut into 9 squares & ready to be stored
Almond Strawberry Granola Bar Close Up
Check out the details of this bar, too! Do you see the oat slivers, strawberry chunks, date pieces, and chopped almonds?
Granola Bar Final Thoughts
Baker’s Perspective
Overall, these recipes are easy to make. As stated, you don’t have to roast the nuts and oats, particularly if you’re in a hurry and just need to get it done. I think the heat from the roasting helps to combine and blend all of the ingredients together smoothly. The Medjool dates are not cheap and require a little work to remove the pits, but that extra step isn’t much work.
I think you could certainly simplify these recipes if you don’t roast the nuts and oats and use raisins instead of dates. Those two steps would cut down your prep time tremendously, even though it really only takes 30 minutes including the roasting.
Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bars
Chopping the cashews was easy as they are a relatively soft nut. Mixing the wet ingredients was as simple as stirring them all together. Adding cold chocolate chips at the end was key to keep them from melting. Easy dish.
Almond Strawberry Granola Bars
If you’ve never chopped whole almonds, then you should know they can jump around the board. They are relatively hard nuts, so they move around easily. Combining the ingredients is very straight forward… no technique required!
Taster’s Perspective
These recipes, while having the same/similar base ingredients, have very different flavors. Scott and I both really like these recipes. I think of the chocolate chip cashew granola bar more like an indulgent treat because of the chocolate chips. The almond strawberry is more like an elegant granola bar because of the almond extract and strawberry combination, though that bar is still indulgent.
Are you someone who says… “Yucky… Dates!”? Don’t be put off. I used to say that myself. Dates, particularly Medjool dates, are very sweet and taste like candy by themselves. In fact, sometimes I eat them just as I would candy. They are super satisfying. The stickiness and sweetness are what you taste in these granola bars.
Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bars
We liked the chocolate and cashew combination. It was like eating chocolate covered cashews with a nut butter center. No one ingredient dominated another. The maple syrup was not very defined, but the sweetness certainly enhanced the bar. I have made these with peanuts, too. If you like peanuts, totally use those nuts instead… chocolate covered peanuts!
Almond Strawberry Granola Bars
We really liked the almond and strawberry combination. You don’t really expect to get a nice chunk of “fresh” tasting fruit in a granola bar. BUT using fruit jam or preserves provide the “freshness” that granola bars lack. Instead of strawberry jam, you could easily add any jam or preserves that have fruit pieces. I didn’t plan on adding the white chocolate drizzle on top as I rarely have white chocolate in my house. However, that addition enhanced the sweetness and added a nice extra flavor with the almond and strawberry flavors. Another great bar!
If you’re looking for a different treat for your family, give these bars a try. Just remember to use the base ingredients and substitute with what you like or have. Forget the store-bought processed versions and indulge in these healthy, indulgent, whole-ingredient granola bars!
Check out my YouTube video on making these bars. “How to Make AWESOME Granola Bars: Chocolate Chip Cashew & Almond Strawberry with MANY Substitutions“
Check out BOTH recipes below!
Chocolate Chip Cashew Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed dates pitted Medjool are preferred (raisins are a good, cheaper substitute) (8-9 large dates are enough)
- ¼ cup maple syrup or honey (4 tbsp)
- ¼ cup creamy salted cashew butter or peanut butter, almond butter, or any other nut butter
- 1 cup unsalted/unroasted cashews or peanuts, almonds, etc. (roughly chopped)
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats gluten-free for GF eaters
- Pinch of salt
- ½ tsp vanilla
- ¼ cup or so mini chocolate chips add at end and mix lightly just until combined
Instructions
- Optional step: Preheat the oven to 350˚F (176˚C). Toast the oats and chopped nuts for ~12 minutes or until golden brown. Watch them carefully so they don’t burn. Consider shaking the pan to move them around at the halfway point. You can leave them raw instead of roasting them.
- Remove the pits from the dates. Use your hands or a knife depending on how soft they are. Process dates in a food processor into small pieces. They should form a sticky dough ball. Alternatively, use a knife and chop them up by hand into small pieces.
- In a large bowl, add the (warm) oats, nuts, and stir in salt. Add dates by scattering pieces along the top of the oat mixture. The heat from the toasted nuts and oats will help to break up the sticky dates. You may need to use your hands to disperse the dates throughout.
- In a small bowl, add the nut butter and maple syrup (or honey). If the nut butter is too thick to stir, microwave it for ~15-20 seconds until slightly heated (just enough so that the nut butter blends well with the sweetener). Stir in the vanilla. Pour over the oat mixture and mix well. Break up the dates using a metal spoon or spatula to disperse throughout. You may need to use your hands to ensure a good mix of ingredients. Finally, mix in chocolate chips. At this point, the mixture should have cooled enough that the chocolate doesn’t melt.
- TIP: Put your chocolate chips in the freezer ~30 minutes before making the granola bars to help keep them from melting when you add them to the granola bar mixture.
- Once thoroughly mixed, transfer mixture to an 8×8-inch baking dish or other small pan lined with foil, plastic wrap, or parchment paper so the bars lift out easily.
- Press down firmly until uniformly flattened. You want the mixture to be well compacted so the ingredients will hold together. I like to use a rubber spatula to press down the mixture and flatten out the top.
- Cover the dish and place it in the fridge for a minimum of 15-20 minutes to firm up. Cut into squares or traditional granola bar rectangles. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Almond Strawberry Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed dates pitted Medjool are preferred (raisins are a good, cheaper substitute) (8-9 large dates)
- ⅛ cup honey same as 2 tbsp
- ¼ cup creamy salted almond butter peanut butter or any other nut butter
- 1 cup unroasted/unsalted almonds or cashews, peanuts, other nut (roughly chopped)
- 1½ cups rolled oats gluten-free for GF eaters
- Pinch of salt
- ⅛ cup strawberry jam or other fruit jam (same as 2 tbsp)
- ¼ tsp almond extract
Instructions
- Optional step: Preheat the oven to 350˚F (176˚C). Toast the oats and chopped nuts for ~15 minutes or until golden brown. Watch them carefully so they don’t burn. Consider shaking the pan to move them around at the halfway point. You can leave them raw instead of roasting them.
- Remove the pits from the dates. Use your hands or a knife depending on how soft they are. Process dates in a food processor into small pieces. They should form a sticky dough ball. Alternatively, use a knife and chop them up by hand into small pieces.
- In a large bowl, add the (warm) oats, nuts, and stir in salt. Add dates by scattering pieces along the top of the oat mixture. The heat from the toasted nuts and oats will help to break up the sticky dates. You may need to use your hands to disperse the dates throughout.
- In a small bowl, add the nut butter and honey (or maple syrup). If the nut butter is too thick to stir, microwave it for ~15-20 seconds until slightly heated (just enough so that the nut butter blends well with the sweetener). Stir in the strawberry jam and almond extract. Pour over the oat mixture and mix well. Break up the dates using a metal spoon or spatula to disperse throughout. You may need to use your hands to ensure a good mix of ingredients.
- Once thoroughly mixed, transfer mixture to an 8×8-inch baking dish or other small pan lined with foil, plastic wrap, or parchment paper so the bars lift out easily.
- Press down firmly until uniformly flattened. You want the mixture to be well compacted so the ingredients will hold together. I like to use a rubber spatula to press down the mixture and flatten out the top.
- Cover the dish and place it in the fridge for a minimum of 15-20 minutes to firm up. Cut into squares or traditional granola bar rectangles. Enjoy!
Notes
Interested in some other recipes? Check these out!
Homemade Nut Butter: 3 Nuts & 3 Recipes
Australian & New Zealand Pavlova
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, please share it. Check out my YouTube Channel as well to see videos of kitchen tips, blog bakes, and dishes.