8 Easy Homemade Granola Bar Recipes

4.91 from 83 votes

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8 easy homemade granola bar recipes that come together in a snap. These easy no-bake healthy snacks are made with oats, honey, nut butter, and EIGHT different flavor mix-ins to make your dream granola bar every time.

Homemade granola bars are awesome! They taste delicious, travel well, are just plain easy to make, and are inexpensive. Need a snack for preschool, after t-ball, or to take in the car to a game? Granola bars will be there, no matter what needs to be done! This recipe makes perfectly chewy granola bars

One of the best things about granola bars is that it’s highly customizable. You can make your own at home, changing the ingredients to suit your taste preferences. This allows you to control the amount of sugar used and avoid any additives or preservatives found in some store-bought varieties.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Recipe Ingredients

  • Old-fashioned rolled oats
  • Nuts
  • Honey
  • Butter – unsalted
  • Brown sugar
  • Vanilla extract

See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.

a round plate with rectangle strips of homemade granola bar recipe with chocolate chips on top.

How to Make Homemade Granola Bars

clear mixing bowl the progress of making the homemade granola bar recipe.
clear mixing bowl the progress of making the homemade granola bar recipe.

Step 1: Toast the nuts and oats and boil sugar, butter, and honey.

Step 2: Add the oats, nuts, mix-in, and honey mixture to a bowl and stir.

granola bar mixture being pressed into pan by measuring cup.
top view of granola bars on a cutting board.

Step 3: Press the mixture into a pan and refrigerate to set.

Step 4: Remove from pan, cut, and enjoy!

Recipe FAQs

How do you get granola bars to stick together?

Press the bars into the pan very firmly. I normally grease the bottom of a glass cup or measure up and use it to stamp down the mixture in the pan.

Is a granola bar a healthy snack?

They are a great, well-rounded snack with lots of fiber and whole grains, and they are bursting with flavor. Plus, making things at home means that the list of ingredients is short, and that’s always a good thing!

What’s the healthiest granola bar to buy?

Buying an organic granola bar is the healthiest option. In this house, we really like Annie’s granola bars.

top view of granola bars in a plastic container.

Expert Tips

  • If you like a stronger honey flavor, use 1/3 cup honey and 1/4 cup brown sugar in this recipe.
  • If you are going to add chocolate, you’ll want to wait until the hot honey and oat mixture cools a little bit and is closer to room temperature (about 15 minutes), or all the chocolate chips will melt (it still tastes great but doesn’t look as nice).
  • Toasting the nuts and oats is optional, making the granola bars taste like cookies. I highly recommend it.
a plate of homemade granola bars with chocolate chips.

Tips & Tricks for Making Homemade Granola Bars

Here are My 8 Granola Bar Variations

Blueberry Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • Almonds
  • ½ cup dried blueberries
  • ¼ cup shredded coconut

Dark Chocolate Cherry Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • Pecans
  • ½ cup dried cherries
  • ¼ cup dark chocolate chips

Tropical Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • Cashews
  • ½ cup chopped dried fruit (pineapple, mango, and mandarin oranges)
  • ¼ cup coconut

White Chocolate Cranberry Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • Almonds
  • ¼ cup dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup sunflower seeds
  • ¼ cup white chocolate chips
Title Image for 8 Homemade Granola Bars with images of 8 different homemade granola bars

Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • ¼ cup creamy peanut butter (add this when you add the vanilla and salt and stir well to combine)
  • ½ cup M&M’s
  • ¼ cup mini chocolate chips

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • ¼ cup creamy peanut butter (add this when you add the vanilla and salt and stir well to combine)
  • ⅓ cup broken pretzel pieces
  • ¼ cup peanut butter chips
  • ¼ cup mini chocolate chips

Spiced Nut Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • ½ cup almonds
  • ½ cup pecans
  • ½ cup cashews
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon (add this when you add the vanilla and salt)

Sunflower Pecan Granola Bars

  • Master mix
  • Almonds
  • ¼ cup sunflower seeds
  • ¼ cup candy-coated sunflower seeds
  • ¼ cup shredded coconut

More Healthy Snack Recipes to Consider

4.91 from 83 votes

Base Granola Bar Recipe

The base recipe for 8 easy homemade granola bar recipes that come together in a snap. Variations include peanut butter chocolate, M&M, Sweet and Salty, and more!
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Total: 25 minutes
Servings: 16

Ingredients 

  • 2 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup nuts, roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3/4 cups total extra mix-ins, (about 1/4 cup of 3 different ingredients such as dried fruits, coconut, chocolate chips, etc. please see the post following the recipe for 8 options.)
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Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with parchment or foil and lightly spray with cooking spray.
  • Place the oats and nuts on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly toasted.
  • While the oats are toasting, add the honey, butter, and brown sugar to a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, stirring constantly. Let the mixture bubble, while stirring, for 1 minute and then remove from the heat.
  • Place the nuts and oats in a large bowl.
  • Stir in the vanilla and salt to the butter mixture. Pour this mixture over the oat and nut mixture and stir to combine. Add any extra ingredients (except for chocolate) and stir to combine. Make sure none of the oats are dry.
  • If you are adding chocolate, wait about 15 minutes for the mixture to cool a bit before adding the chocolate and then stirring to combine.
  • Place all of the oat mixture in the prepared pan. Use a rubber spatula or the bottom of a greased measuring cup to press the mixture into the pan. Press it in very firmly, this is what makes the bars stick together.
  • Chill the granola bars for at least 2 hours. Lift the bars from the pan using the edges of the foil or parchment and place them on a cutting board. Cut into desired shape/sizes and serve.
  • Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 10 days. If you are stacking the granola bars place a piece of parchment between the layers to help prevent sticking.

Video

Notes

  • The nutrition info was calculated with using almonds for the 3/4 of a cup of “mix-ins”.
  • If you don’t want to use nuts, skip them or replace them with something like shredded coconut.
  • You can skip the step where you toast the oats and the nuts, but it really takes them to the next level of deliciousness. I highly recommend it. If you’re in a hurry, though, you can skip it!
  • Don’t cook it higher than medium heat; the honey will scorch if you cook it at a higher temperature.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 of 16 servings, Calories: 134kcal, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 8mg, Sodium: 40mg, Potassium: 83mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 89IU, Vitamin C: 0.04mg, Calcium: 15mg, Iron: 1mg
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4.91 from 83 votes

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303 Comments

  1. Roselyn Carozza says:

    5 stars
    one question — how long will these stay fresh? I hope to seal them with food sealer individually.

    1. Melissa says:

      They last a good long while and even longer in the fridge! I’d say 5-7 days out and 10+ cold.