If your family is just as busy as ours, you know that having delicious snacks that your kids can grab as they run out the door to soccer practice is important. I love having the ability to make those snacks from scratch so I know exactly what is in them. These easy to make granola bars totally fit the bill. They come together with simple ingredients that are easy to keep in your pantry anytime the craving for chewy granola bars strikes.
How to Make Homemade Granola Bars
Substitutions and Variations
Swap the peanut butter for almond butter or sun butter.Leave out the dried cranberries and put in raisins instead.Take out half of the chocolate chips and put in finely chopped peanuts.Exchange the cereal for more oats.
Quick Cooking Oats for Granola Bars
Quick cooking oats are just old fashioned oats that have been finely chopped. Their smaller size is what makes them cook quickly. We love using them in this recipe because their small size is part of what makes the bars so chewy. If you only have Old Fashioned Oats you could run them through your blender. You could also just use them as is and know that the granola bars will be slightly less chewy. Please see my photos below to see how you can take Old Fashioned Oats and break them down for this recipe.
Storing Granola Bars
These bars should be stored in an air tight container and will keep for up to one week. You can also freeze these homemade granola bars. Place them on a parchment paper lined plate and freeze for 2 hours. Transfer to an airtight container, stacking if necessary, and freeze for up to three months. You can put the frozen bars in backpacks in the morning and they will be thawed by snack time.
Other Great Healthy Snacks
Homemade HummusRoasted ChickpeasCrockpot Applesauce
