You might have seen a million different videos on youtube about how eating nutritious treats can help you become more healthy. While you mindlessly browse through those videos, you might often feel helpless because you cannot make them. You never really have the ingredients you see! Or maybe you just cannot find the time to wait for large batches to bake, so you take solace in store-bought treats that are usually full of preservatives.
A common treat you see on the internet is a granola bar. Notorious for being easy to carry around and chomp on between your gym or yoga sessions. They also come in handy to just cut up and sprinkle some on your porridge in the morning Yes, we agree, Granola is extremely versatile. Although, store-bought granola bars can be counterproductive. Not only do most store-bought granola bar brands have additives, but they also have a horrible amount of sugar. How does that serve any purpose? We’re talking of healthy treats here!
The other option just stares you in the eye – making granola bars at home from scratch. It seems like a mammoth task though, especially because every recipe on the internet requires you to bake it. But what do you do when you don’t want to burn the kitchen down, or waste all those expensive ingredients if it turns out bad? Or even worse, if you just don’t have an oven?
The answer is simple – you don’t bake it. You heard that right. Get your meal-prep face ready, because below we give you a no bake granola bar recipe. Let’s jump right in!
Ingredients
It’s all about ensuring you choose the right amounts of the nuts, the spice and everything nice that goes into making this wholesome treat.
1. Dry Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup Oats – you can use either steel-cut or instant, depending on whether you want the oats to disappear in the mixture or retain their texture. Here, you can also use gluten-free oats too.
- 2 cups of mixture – Here you can use any kind of nuts (pecans, almonds, walnuts) or chocolate chips, shredded coconut, dried fruit, or even seeds (sunflower). We recommend you use ¼ cup nuts, ¼ cup shredded coconut, ¼ cup sunflower seeds, and ¼ cup chopped up chocolate.
- Don’t forget to add 1 tsp Cinnamon and ½ tsp Salt to the mix.
2. Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup of nut butter – you can use peanut butter or almond butter and the list goes on.
- ½ cup of Honey – For a vegan version, you can use maple syrup
- Beyond these, you will also have to add 1 tsp Vanilla Essence/extract.
Steps To Your Ultimate No Bake Granola Bar
Chop all your ingredients – This is the most important step since you don’t want chunks of fruits or nuts in the middle of a deliciously made granola bar, running the experience. Even your nuts can be blended with a few blitzes to attain the desired consistency. But it’s important that you don’t overdo it.
Mix it up! – Take a decent sized bowl and combine the dry ingredients. Add to this the wet ingredients – nut butter, honey, and vanilla extract. Use those strong arms to stir really well, the oats must be covered with the wet ingredients completely.
Press it down firmly – In a flat bottom square tin, irrespective of whether it’s glass or metal, line the bottom with parchment paper for ease of removal and slicing later. Use a spoon to transfer the granola mixture to the tin after which you can use a glass jar with a flat surface to press down on the mixture. Don’t be impatient and press it down as firmly and evenly as you can manage. You want to make sure that no air pockets exist because that is no good.
One last step to heavenly goodness: chill – Your mixture now needs to sit in a cool area or be refrigerated for at least an hour’s time. The longer the better actually. So if you’re patient and have space in your refrigerator, keep it in for a day before you slice it. Why is this important you ask? For the simple reason that the dry ingredients, especially the oats and nuts take time to absorb the butter and the honey. Cover the tin and let it sit untouched.
Slice and store! – It’s time to slice this giant granola into small cubes. Use a sharp knife and cut eight identical granola bars. When you store, don’t store them one on top of the other, since you don’t want them to stick to each other! You can wrap each bar in parchment paper and store it at room temperature for several days. If you want them to last for a week, simply store them in the refrigerator. There’s more, If you’re making a big batch and want them to last for months – pop them in the freezer!
Note: There are other variations too to give your granola bars their own unique flavors. For example, you can make almond and chocolate chip granola bars for the kids. All you need is 1 cup of chopped almonds and 1 cup of chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate as the mix-in. Similarly, you can also use one part shredded coconut or coconut flakes with one part chopped almonds. When it comes to fruit, you can use any dried or frozen fruit. Ideally, we would recommend you go with cranberries, as they enhance the flavors of the other ingredients as well. At the end of the day, it’s what you prefer, so go wild!
It’s your turn now to make them and enjoy them when you’re out running. Better yet, when you’re simply working and need a quick nutrient-dense snack for that extra kick!
Interesting: Healthy Paleo Granola Bar Recipe| Protein Bars: Are They A Healthy Meal Replacement?
