No-Bake Granola Bars
Some days, turning on the oven is the last thing you want to deal with, but you still want to make a homemade snack. That is exactly why you want a great no-bake granola bar recipe in your back pocket. No preheating, no baking time, no risk of a batch going a shade too dark while you get distracted. Just a food processor, a pan and the fridge or freezer doing the actual work.
Makes 10 bars. Prep time: 15 minutes. Chill time: 15 to 20 minutes. Total time: about 30 minutes. Note: contains nut butter.
What you need
- 1 heaping cup pitted dates (see the substitution note below if dates are not something you keep on hand or have difficulty finding in your local market)
- ¼ cup maple syrup or honey
- ¼ cup creamy peanut butter or almond butter
- 1 cup roasted almonds, roughly chopped
- 1½ cups Nature's Path Old Fashioned Oats (Gluten-Free Old Fashioned Oats for a gluten-free batch)
- Optional mix-ins: chocolate chips, dried fruit, additional nuts, a splash of vanilla extract
Don't have dates on hand? Pitted prunes are the closest substitute, both in stickiness and in how they process into a paste, and they are often easier to find and less expensive than dates. Dried apricots or figs work too. Whatever you use, if the mixture feels looser than a thick, sticky dough once combined, stir in an extra tablespoon of nut butter or maple syrup to help it bind.
How to make it
- Process the pitted dates (or your substitute) in a food processor until they break down into small bits and start to form a dough-like mass.
- In a large bowl, combine the processed dates, oats and chopped almonds.
- In a small saucepan over low heat, warm the maple syrup and nut butter together until smooth and easy to stir.
- Pour the warm liquid mixture over the dry ingredients and stir thoroughly, breaking up any remaining clumps of dates so everything is evenly distributed.
- Line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang on two sides to lift the bars out later.
- Transfer the mixture to the pan and press it down firmly and evenly using a flat-bottomed glass or measuring cup. Loosely packed bars fall apart when you cut them.
- Refrigerate or freeze for 15 to 20 minutes, until firm to the touch.
- Lift the block out using the parchment overhang, and cut into 10 bars with a sharp knife.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week, or in the freezer for longer.
Make it yours
The recipe is flexible enough to add customizations to truly make it your own:
- Add crunch. Stir in a handful of Nature's Path Coconut Chia Granola or Hemp Hearts Granola along with the oats for extra texture and a few more seeds in every bar.
- Go chocolate. Chopped Love Crunch granola or a handful of chocolate chips folded in after the mixture cools slightly turns these into more of a treat.
- Swap the nuts. Walnuts, pecans or a mix of seeds work in place of almonds.
- Keep it minimal. The five-ingredient recipe holds up just fine with nothing added beyond the oats, dates, nut butter, sweetener and almonds, if a short ingredient list is the goal.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make no-bake granola bars without dates? Yes. Pitted prunes are the closest substitute, since they have a similar stickiness and process into a paste the same way. Dried apricots or figs also work. If the mixture seems too loose to hold together, add an extra tablespoon of nut butter or maple syrup.
Why won't my granola bars stay together? This usually means the mixture was not pressed firmly enough into the pan, it was cut before fully chilling or the dried fruit used in place of dates was not sticky enough on its own to bind properly.
How long do no-bake granola bars last? Up to a week stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, or longer in the freezer.
Can I make these gluten-free? Yes. Use Nature's Path Gluten-Free Old Fashioned Oats in place of the regular oats, and check that any mix-ins you add are labeled gluten-free.
Sources cited
- Nature's Path Foods. Old Fashioned Oats nutrition and certification information. https://naturespath.com/products/old-fashioned-hot-oatmeal-np-us
About The Author
Linsey Herman
