Sure, I’ve been making my own Larabars and granola for a minute now but I’ve never even considered making my own granola bars. The funny thing is I generally find myself underwhelmed by the granola bars available in the supermarket. They generally have a lot of sugar, the ingredients aren’t that awesome and they aren’t at all fillings. A lot of these bars are like candy bars with oats. Don’t get me wrong, I eat them, but I’m generally disappointed.
I happened to be flipping through Barefoot Contessa’s and noticed that Ina has a recipe for granola bars. I’ve flipped through this book dozens of times and have never noticed that before! I already had all of the ingredients in my cupboard (except for the wheat germ) so I decided to make me some granola bars!
I followed the recipe for the most part but used coconut oil instead of butter to keep the dairy out. The great thing about this recipe is that you can really customize the mix-ins to meet your personal tastes. Why not swap out the honey for maple syrup? Or use dried cherries instead of cranberries? Hazelnuts would be fabulous too.
I’m so in love with these granola bars! They aren’t super chewy like the Quaker oats bars and they are not as crunch as the Nature’s Valley bars – they are somewhere in the middle. I love that they aren’t too sweet and actually feel like they might be a bit healthy. They are totally packed with goodness and made a nice little breakfast for me once I arrived at work. I’m looking forward to trying this again with some variations.
Homemade Granola Bars
2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
3 tablespoons coconut oil
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup chopped pitted dates
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup dried cranberries
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 12-inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper.
Combine the oatmeal, almonds, and coconut on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Monitor closely as the mixture is apt to burn. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and mix in the wheat germ.
Lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees F.
Combine the coconut oil, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the dates, apricots, and cranberries and stir to combine.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature.
(From Ina Garten’s )
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i am also obsessed with making my own granola bars. in my last batch i swapped maple extract for vanilla and they were sooooo good!
These look fabulous. I make my own granola all the time, but for some odd reason, I’ve never tried making granola bars before.
Can’t wait to try these out! I love the idea of a not-too-chewy and not-too-crispy bar… the Nature Valley kind are always too crunchy for my tastes. I think there’s a trip to the bulk store in my near future.
Trust me, these are really fabulous! I’m plotting my next batch…
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We have one granola bar recipe on our site, and it’s high time to try another version. The coconut oil is a great touch. Gonna try that!
oh! I’ll have to check out your recipe
These look awesome. My husband and I eat a ton of granola/energy bars, so it’d make sense for me to make them myself. I love Ina, too.
Found this recipe on Foodgawker and made these last night. Fabulous! thanks
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[…] today is the serious day – morning teas for the week. I found this granola bar recipe at the What’s on my Plate blog some time ago and kept it in a folder. It was easy to prepare but it is a little crumbly and I […]
Can make this with steel cut oats? Thaaaanks
Hmmm good question! I think it would be safe to use a mix of regular oats and steel cut oats. Would add a nice nutiness.