Chewy Granola Bar Recipe: Cranberry Chocolate Chip Bars
If Pinterest is to be believed, you can’t make these chewy homemade granola bars without wrapping them individually in parchment paper and baker’s twine.
But, believe it or not, my children will eat these granola bars even without a pretty twine bow.
Also, I didn’t have any parchment paper or baker’s twine.
When Bart and I lived in Boston and were both working full-time, I made these for our lunches every couple of weeks, but then Ella was born, and we moved, and I only made them once between then and now.
When I finally made them again back in 2015 and took my first bite, it took me right back to my dusty office in my school library, where I ate my lunch every day. I usually could only resist this bar until about 10 a.m., which I always regretted by lunchtime when there was no granola bar left.
This chewy granola bar recipe is even better now I don’t have to eat them in a dusty office crawling with spiders.
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chewy homemade granola bars
Cranberry, Coconut, and Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
This chewy granola bar recipe is packed with coconut, chocolate chips, and dried cranberries!
Ingredients
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup nuts I like cashews and almonds best
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup mini or regular chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut I like unsweetened, but either is fine
- 1/3 cup peanut butter
- 6 tablespoons melted butter or oil
- 6 Tablespoons honey maple syrup, or corn syrup
- 1 Tablespoon water
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x9 baking pan with tinfoil, spray with cooking spray and set aside.
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Put the oats in a blender and blend for about 5 seconds. The oats on the bottom will be very fine, and the oats on the top will be barely blended.
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Pour the oats in a mixing bowl and add the sugar, salt, cinnamon, nuts, cranberries, chocolate chips, and coconut. Stir and set aside.
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In a small saucepan, melt the peanut butter, butter/oil and honey together until smooth. Stir in the water, then pour it all over the dry mixture and stir until well-coated.
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Press firmly into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, until the edges are nicely browned.
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Let cool completely, then remove from the pan, peel off the foil, and cut into squares.
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These freeze beautifully!
Recipe Notes
(adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
If you liked this chewy granola bar recipe, you might also like these snacks:
- No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Energy Balls
- 4 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies (with no added sugar!)
- Trail Mix Granola Bars
This sounds perfectly delicious. I love a good granola bar, as do my kids. I'm going to try this on the weekend!
I love the combination of chocolate and cranberries. Those granola bars sound delicious! And good for you there's no spidery office anymore…
We made these and they were delicious. However, they just didn't hold together, so we just ended up eating them in chunks. What's the secret to getting them in bar form?
You really need to press them together. If they won't hold together, maybe add a little more honey. Good luck!
Making these today! (Sans cranberries because I don’t have any and I’m home all day without a car.) They look delicious!
I think you’ll love them!
Made these today with sunflower butter, cherries, almonds, and maple syrup – perfection.
Whoa, that sounds amazing!
I made these twice, switched to these for a couple weeks (http://www.earthyandy.com/plant-based-snack-recipes/hempies) and then my husband requested your granola bars again. In the oven!!! We all love them.
Another comment because clearly we can’t stop with these bad boys – I reduced the sugar to 1/4 cup and it did not work at all. Taste was fine but they fell apart. Also, sprinkling the top with kosher salt is NEXT LEVEL.
I enjoyed this recipe very much. Mine stuck together quite well. Maybe some forget to blend their oats? I’m bummed though that I may have overcooked mine. Tasted a tad burned….looking forward to mastering it the second time round.
Also enjoyed the fact that I have all these ingredients at home….pretty basic staples.