Favourite granola bar recipes?

[nmoira]

My kids love Nature's Path Chococonut bars, which I don't mind because the are low in sugar compared to other bars. However, the price just went up again, and I'm looking for a healthy and cheaper substitute. I'd appreciate anyone's sharing their favourite recipes. :001_smile:

[chickenpatty]

My family likes this one, especially when I add chocolate chips to them. I like that they are easy and don't require rice crispies (which I never have on hand).

 

They double and freeze very well, too.

[SonshineLearner]

I'd like to try to make some, but as a note, Cascadian Farm ones are on sale as of right now, at Fred Meyer's :) They have 12 grams of sugar for the chocolate chip ones. :)

[plath]

We LOVE these:

http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2010/02/thick-chewy-granola-bars/

[HappyGrace]

:bigear:

 

I've decided to stop buying granola bars-the bars get smaller and smaller and now that my dc are bigger, it's not cost effective.

 

I'd love recipes with no sugar, if possible (honey and maple syrup ok though.)

[nmoira]

Thanks! I'm going to try out one this week... maybe even do a batch for me with dates.

[DarlaS]

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/homemade-granola-bars-recipe/index.html

 

This is a good one you can tweak as you want. The first time I made some, I made the kind you freeze but don't bake. They taste good, but if you let them thaw at all they turn to mush. So you can't put them in your purse to eat 30 min later on an outing. The ones above are good though.

 

Do I read that correctly that you butter the pan and THEN line it with parchment paper? I've never used the stuff, but isn't it supposed to be non-stick all by itself?

[Sun]

Here's my recipe that DS and his friends love. I've modified it over the years to cut the sugar way down. There's still some, but they're significantly less sweet than store-bought ones. If you want them as sweet as store-bought bars, add more honey or sugar.

 

2 cups rolled oats

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup ground flax seed

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup honey

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup melted butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1-2 tablespoons milk, as needed

 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix together the oats, brown sugar, wheat germ, cinnamon, flour, raisins and salt. Add the honey, egg, oil and vanilla, and ix well. If you're having trouble getting everything to come together, add 1-2 tablespoons of milk. Pat the mixture evenly into the pan. One recipe fills the pan about 3/4 of the way across the pan’s bottom; 1.5 recipes fills it across the whole bottom

Bake for 18-25 minutes, until the bars begin to turn golden at the edges. Cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars while still warm. Do not allow the bars to cool completely before cutting, or they may be too hard to cut.

[kewb]

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/homemade-granola-bars-recipe/index.html

 

This is the recipe I use. It is easily tweaked. The barefoot contessa has not let me down yet.

[nmoira]

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/homemade-granola-bars-recipe/index.html

 

This is a good one you can tweak as you want. The first time I made some, I made the kind you freeze but don't bake. They taste good, but if you let them thaw at all they turn to mush. So you can't put them in your purse to eat 30 min later on an outing. The ones above are good though.

 

This is the first one we tried. I decided to ease the kids into the idea of homemade bars so used 1 cup cranberries and 1/2 cup chopped white "chocolate" in lieu of the dried fruit called for. The coconut used was quite finely shredded. Excellent. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly, except there was only raw wheat germ on hand, which I toasted with the other ingredients. Oh, and I didn't grease the pan before lining with parchment paper (what's up with that?).

 

Much better than store-bought... and much cheaper. Thanks!