Healthy Homemade Granola Bars {Meal Prep Friendly Recipe} (2024)

FAQs

What do you use to bind granola bars together? ›

While there are several different sticky ingredients that you can use, we've found that the binding agent that works the best is honey! When added to your homemade granola bars, honey acts as glue that sticks all the pieces together.

Are Granola Bars Healthy or Unhealthy? While store-bought granola bars can be unhealthy and full of added sugars, these homemade granola bars are healthy in moderation. They're a delicious and nutritious snack option compared to those that come in a package.

Homemade granola bars aren't hard to make once you have all the right ingredients and they'll certainly save you money in the long term. It's hard to fight against the convenience and habit of picking up a box of bars at the store, but it really seems like it's worth trying to make our own.

Store them in the fridge or freezer.

I recommend storing them with a sheet of parchment paper between layers so that the bars don't stick together. They'll keep for up to a week in the fridge, but you can also freeze them for up to 2 months.

Honey. Sweetens the granola bars and helps bind the dry ingredients together.

If your granola bars are falling apart or seem too crumbly, here are a few tips. Make sure you use honey or another sticky sweetener such as maple syrup in the liquid part of the recipe; this recipe calls for honey. This will help bind together the ingredients and keep that signature bar shape.

Yes, granola can be eaten daily. As part of a balanced diet and if the portions are checked. Go for healthier options with less added sugars and saturated fats to get the most out of it.

Make sure that whichever granola recipe you use, it calls for some liquid, typically oil of some kind (I recommend olive oil for a subtle earthy, floral flavor, or melted unrefined coconut oil for subtly coconutty flavor). The liquid will help the chia seeds to gel, ensuring the granola sticks together.

Because granola contains carbohydrates, it can spike blood sugar levels in some people with diabetes. However, whether or not granola spikes your blood sugar levels, and how quickly it may cause a blood sugar spike, will vary depending on what type of granola you eat and what you pair it with.

Baking time: Increase the baking time for your granola. The longer you bake it, the drier and crunchier it will become. Keep a close eye on it to avoid burning, and stir it occasionally during baking to ensure even toasting.

What is a substitute for brown rice syrup in granola bars? ›

Surprisingly, long-expired food is still considered — by the regulators, at least — good enough to eat. That outdated granola bar packed with soft oats or that chocolate bar now displaying a whitish bloom may not taste very good, but they can still be consumed without making you sick.

These bars will soften at room temperature so keep them in the fridge, or wrap in parchment paper or saran wrap and freeze individually. However you eat them them, I hope you love these homemade chewy granola bars!

Possible downsides. Granola bars are often considered a healthy snack, but despite these marketing claims, many are loaded with added sugar, calories, and artificial ingredients. For example, Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Harvest granola bars can contain up to 15 grams of sugar per serving — mostly from added sugar.

Add an egg white.

The whites act as a kind of glue that binds the ingredients together. To ensure that the egg whites coat all the ingredients, I beat them with a whisk until foamy and increased in volume, which makes it much easier to fold into the granola.

Make sure that whichever granola recipe you use, it calls for some liquid, typically oil of some kind (I recommend olive oil for a subtle earthy, floral flavor, or melted unrefined coconut oil for subtly coconutty flavor). The liquid will help the chia seeds to gel, ensuring the granola sticks together.

Get as clumpy as you like.

First, press the granola into an even layer before you put it in the oven. Then, stir it only once halfway through cooking. For really good clumps, press down on the finished granola before it cools and avoid jostling it on the pan until cooled completely.