Chewy Granola Bars

These no-bake, peanut butter, coconut oil, coconut flake, chocolate chip, protein packed granola bars are insane.

You will love them and the people you share them with will love you. I promise.

These bars are super easy to make and are better than the chewy granola bars you buy at the store. I promise. You will also end up saving money, and mine were 100% organic and gluten free. Eat that Whole Foods! (Just kidding, I still super love you).

I never liked granola bars (surprise, surprise. I never liked anything) until I went to college and was desperate for cheap, easy meals. My Mom was always searching for ways to make me eat as a kid and she would always try and buy “fun” granola bar flavors for us. They were basically candy bars. I don’t know if Kudos Bars still exist? They were “granola bars” that were Snicker or Butterfinger flavored and then dipped in chocolate. Chewy Quaker bars went through a candy bar flavor phase as well and I remember my sweet Mom would always pack one in my lunch and one for an after school snack. I don’t think I ever ate one. I had a giant stockpile in my locker, backpack and melted under the seats in my car.

Now, as we all know, I eat everything all the time and love it all. Therefore, I had to get these granola bars out of my house within 24 hours because Mikey and I both couldn’t stop. When you tell yourself something is organic, high in protein, and “healthy” it seems so justifiable to keep eating it…

I will say that the girls at work loved these so much they hid them in a drawer away from everyone else. I was proud of them. That is a true Bethany move.

Chewy Granola Bars

Time: make 15 minutes, cool 2 hours
Difficulty: easy
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1 1/2 Cups Rolled Oats

1 Cup Crisp Rice Cereal

1 Cup Peanut Butter (or almond, cashew, etc. I recommend an all natural without sugar!)

1/2 Cup Coconut Oil

1/2 Cup Honey

1 Cup Shredded Coconut

1/4 Cup Mini Chocolate Chips

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine oats, cereal and coconut. Set aside

In a medium-large sauce pan, combine coconut oil, peanut butter and honey. Melt mixture together over low heat until the peanut butter is no longer chunky.

Once melted, add the oat mixture and stir well until coated in the peanut butter mixture.

Line a 9×9 pan with parchment paper and gently press the mixture into the pan. Let cool a bit before sprinkling chocolate chips on, otherwise when you press them down into the bars they will melt.

After cooling slightly, sprinkle chocolate chips over bars and press down firmly. I used a piece of wax paper on top and pressed them down that way. It worked great.

Place pan in the refrigerator for about 2 hours to cool or throw it in the freezer for a faster cooling time. You want the all natural peanut butter and coconut oil to harden a bit before slicing.

Once set, remove from fridge and pull out by using sides of parchment. Set bars on a cutting board and cut to desired shape and size. I started with them in long, rectangular shapes like chewy bars from Quaker, but ended up cutting them into squares because they were sweet.

These bars make a perfect snack or quick breakfast. They are sweet and delicious as well as packed with protein! They will keep you full and satisfied for a long period of time!