Six Homemade Granola Energy Bars Recipes
Simple no-bake healthy granola bars made with all-natural ingredients. Have you ever read some of the labels of popular granola bars? You may be surprised what is hiding in such a so-called "healthy" granola bar! They can be full of high-fructose corn syrup, sugar, and ingredients that are so difficult to even pronounce. I love how Larabar makes bars with minimal ingredients but since they can be expensive, I wanted to create a homemade Larabar recipe that can easily be made at home.
We love to go hiking as a family and it is hard to find all-natural granola bars that will give us the energy we need and fill our bellies with nutritious ingredients. Also, hese No-Bake Oat Bars can be made gluten-free and dairy-free, so they are perfect for people dealing with food allergies.
The homemade granola bars are made with simple, all-natural ingredients -- rolled oats, dates, nut butter, honey, and coconut oil. Then your favorite mix-ins are added to give these energy bars variety. The healthy carbs give you the energy to last all day long! The dates are called nature's candy because they are sweet like candy without eating artificial sugars. They are the perfect base for these no-bake granola bars. Honey is used as a sweetener and binder instead of sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.
These All-Natural Homemade Granola Bars are easy to whip up in a food processor or high-powered blender (such as Vitamix or Blendtec). I can make a batch of bars in less than 5 minutes in my food processor! There's no baking involved. Just place the bars in the freezer for 15 minutes to allow them to chill and set up.
TROPICAL PINEAPPLE COCONUT MACADAMIA GRANOLA BARS -- All of the tropical flavors combined into one energy bar! This is for all of my coconut fans out there who love a little salty and sweet. The base of the oatmeal date bars are rolled oats, dates, almond butter, honey, and coconut oil. Unsweetened coconut flakes, dried pineapple, and chopped macadamia nuts are added. This is a filling, nutritious bar with healthy carbs and fats.
PEANUT BUTTER and CHOCOLATE GRANOLA BARS -- All of the Chocolate Peanut Butter Fans may rejoice! This bar is made with rolled oats, dates, all-natural peanut butter, honey, coconut oil, and dark chocolate.
WHITE CHOCOLATE APRICOT GRANOLA BARS -- The combination of sweet, chewy dried apricots and creamy white chocolate go perfectly together in this energy bar. This no-bake bar is made with rolled oats, dates, almond butter, honey, coconut oil, dried apricots, and white chocolate.
CHOCOLATE CHIP BROWNIE GRANOLA BARS -- A chocolate lover's dream without all of the guilt! This Healthy Chocolate Brownie Granola Bar is made with rolled oats, unsweetened cocoa powder, almond butter, dates, honey, coconut oil, and dark chocolate.
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH GRANOLA BARS -- This is your chance to eat healthier chocolate chip cookie dough! A healthy power energy bar made with rolled oats, dates, cashews, honey, coconut oil, and chocolate chips.
CRANBERRY WALNUT GRANOLA BARS -- Trail mix in a bar! This bar gives you energy for hours with rolled oats, dates, almond butter, honey, coconut oil, dried cranberries, and crunchy walnuts.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE NO-BAKE GRANOLA BARS:
- Start with Medjool Dates. Don't forget to remove the seed in the center! These are called "nature's candy" for good reason. Dates keep these bars soft and moist while adding all-natural sweetness. Using a food processor breaks down the dates in no time at all.
- Add a Nut Butter. This gives the energy bar hearty richness. Use almond butter, all-natural peanut butter, or cashews to create a creamy granola bar.
- Use Rolled Oats. There are two options with the oats -- you can either blend the oats with the dates and nut butter or stir them in after the dates, nut butter, honey, and coconut oil have been mixed in the food processor. It all depends if you want a hearty sturdier bar with the whole rolled oats or if you want them to be made into a flour-like consistency. If you blend the oats, the bars resemble more of a Larabar. If you just stir in the rolled oats, it resembles more of a granola bar.
- Use Honey as a Sweetener and Binder. Hello, Honey....you work wonders. I enjoy using honey in bars as it brings moisture and helps to bind the ingredients together. Honey works perfectly in these granola bars.
- Add Coconut Oil. We have heard of the benefits of coconut oil for years. These bars don't need much coconut oil but it helps to keep them soft and moist.
- Stir in the Mix-ins. Add dark chocolate, dried fruits, nuts, or whatever you prefer to customize your very own bar. Once you have the base granola bar recipe down, you can make anything your heart desires!
HOW TO STORE HOMEMADE GRANOLA BARS:
Keep the energy bars tightly covered in Ziploc bag in the refrigerator, freezer, or in your pantry. I keep them in my freezer and can pull them out anytime and let them come to room temperature, about 15-20 minutes. I can also stick them in my kid's lunch boxes for a healthy snack.
If you are looking for Healthy Smoothie Recipes, check out my 6 HEALTHY SUPERFOOD SMOOTHIE RECIPES.
GRANOLA BAR RECIPES:
6 Homemade Granola Energy Bars Recipes
Ingredients
- PEANUT BUTTER and CHOCOLATE GRANOLA BAR:
- 12 Pitted Dates
- 1 cup Rolled Oats
- ¼ cup Peanut Butter natural
- ⅓ cup Honey
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil melted
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ⅓ cup Dark Chocolate Chunks or Chocolate Chips
- Peanuts optional
- TROPICAL PINEAPPLE COCONUT MACADAMIA GRANOLA BAR:
- 12 Pitted Dates
- 1 cup Rolled Oats
- 2 Tablespoons Almond Butter
- ⅓ cup Honey
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil melted
- ½ cup Coconut Flakes unsweetened
- ½ cup Dried Pineapple chopped
- ½ cup Macadamia Nuts chopped
- Pinch of Salt
- CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH GRANOLA BAR:
- 12 Pitted Dates
- 1 cup Rolled Oats
- ¼ cup Raw Cashews
- ⅓ cup Honey
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil melted
- ¼ teaspoon Salt if cashews are salted, don't add salt
- ⅓ cup Chocolate Chips
- APRICOT WHITE CHOCOLATE GRANOLA BAR:
- 12 Pitted Dates
- 1 cup Rolled Oats
- 2 Tablespoons Almond Butter
- ⅓ cup Honey
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil melted
- ½ cup Dried Apricots diced
- ⅓ cup White Chocolate Chips
- CHOCOLATE CHIP BROWNIE GRANOLA BAR:
- 12 Pitted Dates
- 1 cup Rolled Oats
- 2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder unsweetened
- 2 Tablespoons Almond Butter
- ⅓ cup Honey may use 1 more Tablespoon depending on preference
- 2 ½ Tablespoons Coconut Oil melted
- Pinch of Salt
- ⅓ cup Dark Chocolate Chunks or Chocolate Chips
- CRANBERRY WALNUT TRAIL MIX GRANOLA BARS:
- 12 Pitted Dates
- 1 cup Rolled Oats
- 2 Tablespoons Almond Butter
- ⅓ cup Honey
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil melted
- Pinch of Salt
- ½ cup Dried Cranberries
- ⅓ cup Walnuts
Instructions
- To make each Homemade Granola Bar Recipe:
- Combine dates, honey, nut butter or nuts, and coconut oil in food processor or high-powered blender (such as Vitamix or Blendtec). If you want to blend the oats into a flour-type consistency, add to food processor. If you want hearty oats (like a granola bar), stir in oats when you add mix-ins.
- Pulse mixture until smooth.
- Place mixture into a bowl and stir in remaining mix-in ingredients.
- Press into a small pan or baking dish (I use a quarter baking sheet) and place into freezer to chill for 15 minutes to allow the bars to set up.
- Remove from freezer and cut into bars.
- Store in pantry, refrigerator, or freezer.
I hope you love these 6 Homemade Granola Energy Bar Recipes! Let me know what you think on instagram @modern_honey. Thanks for stopping by!
Mary-Jo Wilson
I just made the peanut butter chocolate energy bars and they are amazing! Easy to make, too. This is my first try at homemade energy bars and I am making them with my son in mind who is studying so hard in his first year at university that he sometimes forgets to eat. I am looking forward to trying some of the other varieties.
If you have any tips to making cutting and wrapping the bars easier, it would be appreciated. I used squares of plastic wrap for individual bars, but it was awfully hard to cut the plastic wrap to the appropriate size.
Sarah
Pampered Chef has a silicon snack bar maker pan. That is what I used. I made the recipe as listed above and it filled 10 of the 12 spots on the pan.
Israel
I bought a silicon mold on Amazon, all you have to do is press the mixture in with your fingers. Put it in the freezer and then pop out and wrap.
Kayla
I use a silicone bar mold (Pampered chef) when I make them then I just put them in Ziploc bags when I need to transport them. I either put them in a lunch box with ice packs or just in my purse they hold up just fine without the fridge.
Rand MacIntosh
how long will the bars keep out of the fridge and freezer?
Rishabh Jain
keep them sealed, they can last upto 2-3 months atleast in airtight condition
Rishabh Jain
keep them sealed, they can last upto 2-3 months atleast in airtight condition
Giselle
I’m going on a 3 week hiking trip and would like to make these. Can I make these bars and keep them in my backpack for three weeks?
Kayla
Didn't use this recipe but another similar recipe was supposed to be kept in the fridge. When out of the fridge it just became like regular granola you'd get in the box, clumps of granola and add-ins. Still tasted fine!
Selina
Omg, finally simple recipes for diy energy bars. Thank you so so much! Have been searching for something like this for ages, which requires no baking nor any hard to find expensive ingredients.
Ashley
I absolutely love your homemade bars it's the best recipe. I'm having trouble with them not binding though I keep them in the freezer but they just fall apart
Can you enlighten me as what I'm doing wrong??
Lakshman Kapoor Vinayak
I tried the peanut butter chocolate energy bar today, and the results are fantastic! I have impressed everyone in the family, even though my brother is titled as the chef of the house 🙂 . This was a really simple recipe with easily available ingredients. Really excited to try out other healthy recipes from this website. Thanks a lot!
Heidi
These sound so yummy and healthy! I am on my way to the store and will buy ingredients I need. Note: your "print" button is not working.
Amanda
I was wondering what the nutritional info are on these bars please??
I found a lot of your recipes don’t have it, makes it hard when I need to know all this, as the dietitian has me on a strict diet
Anna
How many bars is this supposed to make?
Heidi
It depends how you cut them/how thick you make them, but I get a dozen. I use the Pampered Chef silicone bar maker.
Kayla
Once I made these I was HOOKED! Love how these have dates and honey in them. Any add-ins will taste super yummy and they are very filling. The hubby loves them too which is a win-lose because win: he loves them... lose: he eats them too and I have less for me lol!
Kayla
Don't know what your diet is but you can really add anything you want to these bars as long as you keep the base the same. The dates, honey, coconut oil/butter, and oats.
leah
Hi, I enjoyed the bars anything I can do to cut back the sweet in it. I really like the flavor but its really sweet. Thanks
mir
wow HOMEMADE without any extra stuff we don't need!!! YES! I can't wait to make them. Glad I stumbled onto this site & great reviews.