Homemade Granola Bars are one of my go-to healthy snacks for kids. They’re super easy to make, require minimal added sweeteners, have a texture that even babies and younger toddlers can chew, and store SO well.
These bars are seriously delicious—and versatile. They’re a great way to save money on groceries (since a batch is much less than buying a similar amount of store-bought bars) and you can vary the flavors by adding fruit or veggie puree.
Plus, they’re loaded with nutritious ingredients and minimal sweeteners, so they’re a satisfying healthy snack for kids. The texture is a nice balance of crisp edges, but a softer texture.
And the flavor is so, so good!
(You may also like my Homemade Granola, Granola Bites, Crunchy Granola Bars, Chocolate Chip Granola Bars, and Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake.)
Table of Contents
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Ingredients You Need
Here’s what you’ll need to make this homemade granola bar recipe so you know what to have on hand and ready to go.
- Rolled oats: These are sometimes called “old-fashioned” oats.
- Shredded unsweetened coconut: To make these without coconut, omit and use additional oats.
- Flour: I use whole-wheat flour in this recipe. You can use you can use gluten-free flour if needed.
- Chia seeds: To make these without chia seeds, omit and increase the nut butter to ¼ cup.
- Honey: This helps hold the bars together. Only use for kids over 1.
- Nut or seed butter: You can use peanut butter, almond butter, or Sunflower seed butter.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at the easy process involved in making this homemade granola bar recipe. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the full recipe, including the amounts and timing.
Step 1. Add ingredients to a food processor, choosing your flavor. Grind until the mixture starts to hold together.
Step 2. Pour the batter onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and press flat.
Step 3. Score the batter with a knife, which makes them easy to break into pieces once they’re baked.
Step 4. Bake, let cool, and enjoy.
TIP: In Step 1, you’ll see the batter start to pull together and you can also check it by squeezing a bit between your fingers—it should be sticky enough to hold together when you squeeze it. Add a little more water or puree if it’s not quite sticky enough.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure! See the variation at the bottom that calls for omitting them and slightly increasing the nut butter. This keeps a good amount of healthy fats to ensure that the bars hold together and that the kids get a nicely balanced snack.
These bars are naturally egg-free and dairy-free. They’re also easy to make gluten-free by choosing gluten-free oats and a gluten-free flour blend.
Yes, this granola bar recipe freezes really well. Simply let them cool and place into a zip top freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge or at room temperature, or directly in a lunchbox.
How to Store
I store our homemade granola bars in the fridge (because I like them cold) in an airtight container and serve them up until we run out.
- In the fridge in an airtight container, they’ll stay fresh for about two weeks.
- At room temperature in an airtight container, they’ll last about 1 week.
- In the freezer, you can place cooled bars in a sealed zip top freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before serving.
Best Tips for Success
- For kids under one, you can substitute brown rice syrup for the honey. You can also try using applesauce.
- You can make them in the basic flavor, or banana, apple, sweet potato, butternut squash, or pumpkin.
- To make these without coconut, omit and use additional oats.
- To make these without chia seeds, omit and increase the nut butter to ¼ cup.
- To make this without a food processor, use quick or instant oats and stir everything together. (Or grind the oats and coconut in a blender, then stir the ingredients together in a bowl)
- Add chocolate chips to this recipe by pressing a few into the top of the rolled out batter just before baking.
Related Recipes
I’d love to hear your feedback if you try this recipe so please comment below to share!
Easy Homemade Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1½ cups rolled oats
- ½ cup shredded unsweetened coconut (or use ½ cup additional oats)
- ¼ cup honey (or maple syrup or applesauce)
- ¼ cup whole-wheat flour
- 3 tablespoons peanut butter (or sunflower seed butter or 1 egg)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- ¼ cup water (or ¼ cup mashed ripe banana, pumpkin puree, applesauce, butternut squash puree, OR sweet potato puree)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. Warm the honey and peanut butter for about 15 seconds if not stored at room temperature.
- Place the oats and coconut into the bowl of a food processor and blitz to grind into a coarse texture (similar to quick oats).
- Add the remaining ingredients, including the peanut butter and honey, and blend well.
- (You can also grind the oats or use instant oats, then mix everything together in a bowl.)
- Add ¼ cup water and blend until batter comes together like thick cookie dough. You should be able to press the batter together between your fingers and have it stick together. If it doesn't, add a bit more water.
- Place batter onto the center of the prepared baking sheet and use your hands to press thin, about ¼-½-inch thick and about 8×8-inches big. I measure roughly using an 8×8-inch baking pan. (You can also roll out the dough—just cover it with a piece of parchment paper first to make sure it's easy to do.) Use a knife to lightly score lines for squares in whatever size you like.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, remove from oven, and let cool completely on the pan.
- Break into squares and serve.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks in the fridge or a week at room temperature. To freeze, place cooled bars in a sealed zip top freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before serving.
Notes
- To make these with fruit or a veggie flavor, omit the water in Step 4. Choose one flavor from below. Proceed with the recipe as directed, though know you may need to bake up to an additional 10 minutes. Look for the edges to start turning golden brown. It just seems to take a little longer when you add a puree.
- Banana: Add ¼ cup mashed recipe banana or banana puree.
- Pumpkin: Add ¼ cup pumpkin puree.
- Apple: Add ¼ cup applesauce or Apple Puree.
- Butternut: Add ¼ cup butternut squash puree.
- Sweet Potato: Add ¼ cup sweet potato puree.
- To make these without coconut, omit and use additional oats.
- To make these without chia seeds, omit and increase the nut butter to ¼ cup. Or use ground flaxseeds.
- To make this without a food processor, use quick or instant oats and stir everything together. (Or grind the oats and coconut in a blender, then stir the ingredients together in a bowl)
- Gluten-free: Use gluten-free cup for cup flour in place of the whole-wheat.
- Add chocolate chips to this recipe by pressing a few into the top of the rolled out batter just before baking.
- Use room temperature honey and nut or seed butter to make the batter come together easily, or warm them briefly.
- Wet your fingers or use a piece of parchment to press the batter down if it’s sticking to your hands.
Nutrition
This post was first published June 2017.
I am addicted to these granola bars! Originally made them for my toddler, who is an incredibly picky eater, but it ends up being me eating them. I didn’t use coconut or chis seeds (didn’t have them) but I did use crushed pumpkin seed and mini chocolate chips. They are so good! I cannot believe how much of a hold these bars have on me!
I made these using applesauce instead of water. Followed the recipe precisely. However, they came out too soft – fell apart when I picked them up. Suggestions? Thanks.
Did you change anything else?
I never leave reviews anywhere but these bars are amazing and people need to know about them! I make these for myself every week to have with an evening tea or even for a quick breakfast. Have tried other bar recipes and my heart always comes back to this one right here. Just made a batch this morning so had to share! So, so good.
I’m so glad I found this recipe. I needed a fuss free snack I could grab at any time, knowing that it was healthy for my toddler – and me! So far I’ve only made it with banana which worked really really well AND my LO loves them. I’m keen to try the other flavour suggestions, and experiment with others to get some secret nutrients in.
I’m so glad to hear that!
I made these with applesauce and instant oat version for my almost 13th month old and she loves them! Love this recipe and my husband loves them too lol
I’m so glad!
Do you think almond flour would be a good substitute for whole wheat here?
I’m not sure that it will hold together the same way.
So delicious! We all love them! Made the recipe as written.
I’m wondering about the chia seeds because where I’m from (Finland) it’s recommended that chia seeds soak in water before use of any kind. This is because they can swell up to at least 10 times their size and can cause problems in the digestive tract if eaten raw. So I’m scared of using them raw. How would you modify the recipe if the chia seeds had been soaked? Thanks!
I haven’t made this recipe any other way and the seeds absorb some of the liquid that’s added and help to hold the bars together. If you try soaking them first, let me know how they turn out!
I made them this weekend but they came out a bit crispy. What should I try to make them softer?
You could make them a little thicker? Though usually they do soften in storage so they could be softer now?
Hi! I want to eat these with my toddler. but hubby and I are doing Whole30. Can these be made without the oats? I plan on using almond flour and then applesauce to sweeten. Could you also sweeten with dates?
I haven’t made them any other way so I can’t say for sure but let me know how it turns out!
Hi,
I don’t like to add sweeteners to my toddlers food yet. Would this recipe work without the honey? If so, do you recommend adding additional nut butter to keep it together?
Hi- I would use additional of whichever fruit you’re using to ensure it has enough flavor.
I have tried this before and it was a hit. I have a 7 and 13 year old. I like how sipmle this recipe is and how easy it is to add or omit somw things. My oldest needs extra things in baked goods. This time I added 1tlbs chia and 1 of flax along with some hemp protein powder, sunflower seed and mini chips so because of the extras I needed to add some more water. I also normally don’t do the egg but did it this time so I am excited to see how the bars turn out. Your recipes are wonderful and it says toddler food but they don’t just have to be for toddlers. 🙂
I made these with almond butter instead of peanut butter, maple syrup instead of honey, and applesauce instead of water. They are awesome and my toddler enjoys helping me make them! I want to try pumpkin puree in the fall!
Great recipe
I used maple syrup, peanut butter and a baby pouch of prune purée that I had. They turned out lovely. I felt great giving them to my 3 year old in place of packaged snacks and she really liked them. I’ll be making more and plan to try sweet potato next along with a different nut butter (so a peanut allergy friend can have them). Thank you very much!
Made these today and my 15 mo picky eater has already eaten 2! My husband and I love them too. Thanks for the great recipe!
To note I subbed almond flour and used maple syrup in place of honey and apple purée in place of water. Baked for 22 minutes and came out perfect.
Awesome and I appreciate knowing that almond flour worked!