I’m already starting to think about how I will fuel myself (quickly) after the little bambino arrives this fall. I’m not one who functions well with long periods between meals, so planning in advance is going to be my best ally. The healthier and more balanced, the better I‘m sure I’ll feel. Bring on the healthy, hippie foods, I say! In addition to freezer friendly meals – like veggie burgers and balls, chili, soup, falafel, enchiladas, pasta + pesto sauces, burritos, etc. – I hope to prepare snacks in advance that I can individually wrap and store in the freezer. Things that I can toss into my purse or quickly unwrap when I need a boost will be so handy. Amidst uncertainty, it always feels good to have a back up plan (even if my reality will be take out food more than not).
These lightly-sweet granola bars are a great option because they are only sweetened with bananas and sweetened dried fruit. No sugar crashes here! You could even remove the dried fruit if you really wanted to, but I love how the dried cherries provide a pop of sweetness throughout. But it’s not what the bars don’t have – it’s what they do have. How about hemp seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, rolled oats, almonds, pumpkin seeds, cinnamon, banana, and more. These wholesome bars are crunchy, hearty, and chewy in the best way possible. And super filling thanks to the balance of protein, fibre, carbs, and healthy fats. One bar clocks in at 6.6 grams of protein and almost 5 grams of fibre (you can see the complete nutritional info in the recipe below). If you wanted to boost the protein even more, you can increase the hemp seeds (and maybe reduce the sunflower seeds a bit).
For even more staying power, try spreading on some nut or seed butter (with chia seed jam to make it a party!) or even a bit of coconut oil. That’s never a bad idea. Is it snack time yet?
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Feel Good Hearty Granola Bars
Yield
14-16 large bars
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Hearty, soft-baked, and chewy, these no-sugar-added granola bars will fill up the tank and keep your energy stable. Feel free to play around with the mix-ins, as the recipe is quite adaptable. Also, if you’re feeding a nut-free crowd, you can easily swap out the walnuts and almonds for more seeds (or chocolate chips, if you’re feeling wild!). This recipe is adapted from Anjali's Oat Snack Bars recipe, which was originally adapted from Faith's 4-Ingredient Banana Oat Bars.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (360 g) mashed ripe banana (about 3 large)
- 1 teaspoon (5 mL) pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups (200 g) gluten-free rolled oats
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup (60 to 90 g) dried cherries, cranberries, or blueberries, to taste*
- 1/2 cup (50 g) walnuts, chopped
- 1/2 cup (75 g) sunflower seeds
- 1/2 cup (80 g) pepita seeds
- 1/2 cup (60 g) sliced almonds
- 1/4 cup (35 g) hemp hearts
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a large rectangular baking dish (approximately 9" x 13") and line with a piece of parchment paper (with overhang) so the bars are easier to remove.
- In a large bowl, mash the banana until smooth. Make sure you have 1 1/2 cups (if you have extra mashed banana, you can freeze it for a smoothie).
- Stir in the vanilla.
- Place the oats into a food processor (or blender set on the lowest speed) and pulse until the oats are coarsely chopped (but still have lots of texture). Stir the chopped oats into the banana mixture until fully incorporated.
- Stir the dried fruit, walnuts, sunflower and pepita seeds, almonds, hemp hearts, cinnamon, and salt into the banana-oat mixture until thoroughly combined. The dough will be very heavy and a bit wet.
- Spoon the mixture into the prepared dish. With lightly wet hands, smooth out until even and uniform. Press down on the dough until compacted.
- Bake for 22 to 26 minutes, until firm and lightly golden along the edges.
- Place the dish on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, then carefully slide a knife to loosen the ends and gently lift out. Place the slab on a cooling rack until completely cool.
- Once cool, slice into bars. I like to use a pizza slicer as it easily cuts through the dried fruit and nuts. Leftovers can be wrapped up and stored in the fridge for a week, or stored in the freezer for 4 to 6 weeks.
Tip:
* You can omit the dried fruit and sub in chocolate chips (or add a mix of both).
These bars aren't super sweet, so if you prefer something sweeter you may want to add a touch of sweetener.
To store these in the freezer, wrap the bars individually in parchment paper using 6-inch by 12-inch pieces of parchment, then tie with string or tape to secure. Finally, place all of the bars into a freezer-safe zip bag, press out all the air, and seal it shut. Or, you can simply wrap each bar with plastic wrap or tinfoil.
Make it Nut free: Swap the almonds and walnuts for more sunflower, pepita, and hemp seeds.
Approximate nutritional info: (per bar, based on 14 large bars using 1/2 cup dried sweetened cherries): 186 calories, 8.7 grams fat, 22 grams carbs, 4.7 grams fibre, 6 grams sugar, 6.6 grams protein. Without dried cherries, bars have approx. 3.6 grams of sugar and 166 calories.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
PS- The winner of the Vitamix contest has been announced at the bottom of this post! A big thank you to everyone who took part in the #osgcookbook Vitamix giveaway and to Vitamix for donating the machine. I had a blast seeing all your pictures come in over the past 2 weeks.
I made these last night and they are FABULOUS and SO quick and easy! I didn’t have dried cherries so I used chopped dates & dried apricots and they were wonderful.
These look fantastic, Angela! I love the ingredients you chose, but most importantly – that these are health-packed! I can’t stand how many ‘granola bars’ there are these days that are laden with added sugar. They’re more like candy bars than anything else! Yours look so hearty and I love how many speckles of color there are.
Good Morning Angela,
Hope you are having a great day. My kids are sensitive to oats. I’ve tried the gluten free and organic and still react. Can you suggest a replacement for oats that would give kinda the same texture of a granola bar? Thank you and keep well. MIlena
These sound great and exactly what I need with a busy toddler!!! I was actually going to make some from your cookbook, but I might start with these now ;). I totally can’t wait for the day when I have a space big enough in my kitchen to line the shelves with nuts and seeds in mason jars either!!!
I just made these and they turned out great! They’re a little delicate, not to the point of falling apart but I wouldn’t carelessly throw them into a bag. I used flax seeds instead of hemp since that’s what I had. I never thought to use bananas as a binder in granola bars, genius!
Good for you for thinking of freezer meals for after baby arrives. I had three babies in three years and finally learned with the last one to have the freezer stocked with meals. I actually had 6 weeks of meals in the freezer with the last baby and it was heaven. I was always famished after giving birth and while breastfeeding.
Also stock your pantry with quick foods and ingredients for snacks -coconut oil and coconut butter, nuts, nut butters, dates, dried fruit… whatever you like to snack on. One of the best things I did was take my husband to the grocery store with me before the baby was born. That way when I handed him a list, he was familiar with the store and which brands we usually purchased.
BTW Just purchased your cookbook. Can’t get enough of your 5 minute enchilada sauce!
I commend you for preparing BEFORE the baby. I have three boys – ages 10, 6, and 4. I am trying to switch to a vegan diet while also cooking the meat they crave. It’s very hard for me to prepare meat but I am not sure what to do! Nonetheless, thanks for this recipe! I know I can get them to eat a granola bar. :)
Hi,love your recipes and my family is now hooked toquinoa salads.can we substitute the banana in these bars, my husband really dislikes rhem. Thanks
Looks like a great recipe!
Any suggestions on substitutions for the nuts? I’m allergic to both wheat and nuts…… any thoughts on adding quinoa (either flakes or toasted)?
I made these a couple of days ago and I LOVE them! The sweetness is perfect and not to over the top. I used dried cranberries & almonds in mine instead of the walnuts and cherries and it was fabulous! I even shared them around my office.Thanks for a great recipe!
Yum! These were awesome. I used dried cranberries instead of cherries and threw in some dark choco chips for good measure. Will be making these on a regular basis.
What an amazing way to get nuts and seeds into kids! I just made these and they aren’t even cool yet and my 2 and 3 year olds (and me) are devouring them! They don’t normally eat nuts because of texture so this is wonderful! I made them as written except I had a blend of hemp and flax vs. hemp only. These would be amazing with chocolate chips. You are a genius! Thank you so much.
Whoa! Those look like the granola bars I make! My recipe is a little different, but I did a double take when I saw your photos. :) friendly-home.net/2014/02/breakfast-granola-bars-recipe.html
Does the banana taste come through strongly? I’m going to give these a try this weekend! Glad to have a lower sugar option.
I wouldnt say the banana is overpowering but you can taste it in there. Hope you enjoy them!
I just made these to send to my daughter and they are delicious! I’ll be saving some for home now. Thanks for the wonderful and healthy recipe!
Thank you so much for this recipe! I did use it as a starting place, simply because I adore really in-your-face spicing. So I tripled the cinnamon, added a 1/4 tsp of fresh ground nutmeg, added some fresh ground star anise (1/8 tsp) and 1/8 tsp of cardamon. I also doubled the vanilla, added a scoop of peanut butter and ground 1/8 cup of ground flax seed, as well as two tablespoons coconut oil, as well as 1/4 brown rice syrup.
I was making these for my husband’s take-to-work breakfasts and just need to pop up the calories/spice and protein a little.
Anyway, even though I did adapt it quite a bit, I am so thankful for your base recipe. It never would have occurred to me and they are perfect for serious fuel. I love all of your food and just genuinely appreciate your site. The bars turned out great, by the way, and the house smelled amazing. Thank you again.
Hi Alane, Love your modifications! Thanks for sharing. And also, thanks for your kind words about the blog. hugs!
I made these bars last week and they are absolutely delicious! I added in chopped dates and substituted any of the nuts for seeds (pumpkin and sunflower). They freeze very well and they are perfect to keep in your purse in case hunger strikes. Thanks for the great recipe Angela!
Just made these bars and they are delicious! I love making your recipes, each one is so tasty!
Just made the Glo-bars after making a batch of the present bars. To change it up a bit I omitted the cinnamon, added carob chips instead of vegan chips (very expensive), and grated orange rind. It gives the bar a nice summery taste of citrus. We love these recipes especially during our workouts in preparation for our upcoming half Ironman. Thank you!!
Just finished making these, so good !! Thanks for the great recipe :)