In the cooler months, I make granola all the time and I also make bars out of the same recipe! Even though it's still pretty hot in Toronto, I thought I would get a head start. Granola bars are super portable and an easy power snack when hunger hits at inconvenient times. These bars are also perfect for those hectic days when you're running around (like I always am chasing after a one-year old!!) and want to stay energized and joyous.
I prefer to make my own bars and granola because it's cheaper than buying them pre-packaged and then you can avoid ingredients like refined sugar and GMO canola oil.
Refined sugar and canola are two ingredients I do my best to avoid, and I find that even so-called cleaner brands of store-bought granola still add canola oil. The reasons I avoid canola are that over 90% of canola is genetically modified and the oil has to be highly refined to make it edible. I would rather just make my own granola, avoid these kinds of ingredients and instead use coconut oil and unrefined sugar, such a brown rice syrup, honey or maple syrup.
This granola bar recipe is one that I've made time and time again because Walker just loves it! It's also delicious made withChocolate Chia Granola, but you could use any of these granola recipes as your base for the bars. I had a huge amount of granola leftover from Vienna's first birthday party, so that's what I used and I added Manitoba Harvest Hemp Heart Toppers. They add a perfect hit of cinnamon and a wonderful dose of protein, healthy fats and fiber.
Hemp hearts are kitchen staple of mine and I eat them pretty much every single day! They also have a coconut and cocoa flavour for the "Hemp Heart toppers" which would also be lovely in these bars.
Once you've added all your ingredients to the granola and you put it onto your cookie sheet, if your cookie sheet is too large (like mine is) just use your hands (make sure they're wet so you won't stick) to pack it down. As you can see, it will pack together quite nicely and still sticks well even if the sheet is too large.
Let the granola cool completely before cutting into bars and removing from the cookie sheet. This will ensure it doesn't fall apart. The brown rice syrup does an excellent job of keeping the ingredients together. If you use a different ingredient to sweeten like maple syrup it may not be as sticky, but certainly as tasty!
Ingredients
- 4 cups granola*
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
- 3/4 cup coconut oil melted (measure when liquid)
- 1/2 cup brown rice syrup or coconut nectar
- 1/2 cup maple cinnamon hemp heart toppers**
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease or line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine all ingredients into a large bowl, mix together. Pour onto cookie sheet and press down with your hands (see my tip above about this).
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until the granola starts to get bubbly and golden brown.
- It's okay if you see the bars bubbling on top. When you remove them from the oven just pat it down with the back of the spoon.
Notes
*I used homemade granola that had lots of nuts and seeds in it. I linked some recipes above if you want to make your own.
**I used Hemp Heart Toppers that are a "maple cinnamon" flavour. If you don't have this product, simply use hemp hearts and add 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1 tsp of maple syrup.
I used brown rice syrup for two reasons, it's low in the glycemic index and because it's very sticky it is great for holding these together. You could also use maple syrup but I don't think it will stick as well. Honey is another option, I just never bake with honey because heat destroys all the beneficial enzymes, but if you don't care about that then honey will do too!
Makes about 24 bars
The second best part of making these bars is that your kitchen is going to smell amazing! The best part is that you have a super yummy power snack for a couple of weeks well . . . that depends on how many people are helping you eat them.
I'm happy to tell you that these granola bars won't fall apart, as evidenced by my granola-Jenga structure in the photo above.
When you make these, be sure to tag #joyoushealth on Instagram. I always love seeing your creations!
Have a joyous week!
Joy
Joy, do you refrigerate the granola bars after you have made them?
ReplyHi Christine! You can pop them in the fridge or even the freezer for longer storage. They are great to have on hand for those busy days. Enjoy. Heather- Joyous Health Team
Thank you! :)
ReplyLove it, I hope my hubby eats them, he's always on the run!
ReplyYou mentioned you do not cook with honey because it destroys some of its properties. Is that the same for maple syrup?
ReplyGreat question, Daniela! Maple syrup is a great natural sweetener but doesn't contain the same live enzymes that are found in raw honey. Maple syrup is one of our favourite sweeteners to bake with for this reason.I hope that helps! Heather- Joyous Health Team
Could I substitute brown rice syrup with blackstrap molasses?
ReplyHi Reema! It would definitely change the flavour of the bars, but it might work! Let us know how it turns out. Heather- Joyous Health Team
I make these on repeat, they are so good! I do find the coconut oil at 3/4 when liquid to make them really greasy so I've toned it back to just over 1/3 cup and get great results. Thanks for the recipe, Joy!
ReplyHey Hope! Yay! So happy you're enjoying them. That's great that you've found a way to suit them to your taste and preference as well :) Thanks for sharing! Rachel - Joyous Health Team
These look totally delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
ReplyHey Jane! Awesome! Let us know what you think if you try it :) Rachel - Joyous Health Team
These look amazing! I always get stuck when buying organic coconut oil because some are cold-pressed? What’s the best type to buy? Also, do you think these bars are high in sugar? I’m thinking the fiber might cancel it out if anything. (Im trying to detox myself from sugar!)
ReplyHey Elaine, Cold-pressed is ideal because it implies that very little heat has been applied to it so its still in its more raw form. These bars do contain sugar from the brown rice syrup but the healthy fat from the coconut oil and the fibre from the granola will slow the release of the glucose/sugar in your bloodstream to prevent any blood sugar spike and crash :) Rachel - Joyous Health Team
Thank you so much for finally clearning that up for me! Can’t wait to try these!
ReplyHey, would love to try these but just wondering how do i make these without the granola at hand? Like I would like to begin making this recipe with rolled oats and nuts/ seeds instead of the already baked granola as a starting point? Could you tell me how to go about that? Thanks much.
ReplyLike I mean how would the proportions for the oils/ sweeteners and the overall quantities differ ? Thanks :)
Hi Ritika! I would suggest you combine the same amount of rolled oats/nuts as the granola amount in the recipe, so 4 cups. If you want to make your own granola, I have lots of recipes -- on the blog and in my cookbook. This one is a very popular recipe on my blog: https://www.joyoushealth.com/23869-blog-chocolate-chia-granola
Also was not sure about the use of brown rice syrup.. there are a lot of mixed reviews out there - some say it’s high on the GI while I thought it’s the other way round. Could you plz shed some light on the reality? :) P.S- love your recipes .. so would really like to try this one :)
ReplyYou could use coconut nectar or honey if you prefer. There are pros and cons to brown rice syrup not unlike most sweeteners out there. The great thing about brown rice syrup is that it fructose free, but yes it is higher in the GI. Remember that the glycemic load of the entire meal is what really matters. So if you're combining it with nuts and seeds which have good fat and protein, the overall glycemic load will be lower.
Is brown rice sugar actually good for you? I read it's considered a refined sweetener and should be avoided... What else can be used to make these bars ?
ReplyYou can use honey instead. The benefit with brown rice syrup is really that it's completely free of fructose.
I don't use it that often but for those avoiding fructose it's a great option. I haven't made this recipe with honey but it's just as sticky so it should work.
Is brown rice syrup still considered healthy then ? Will honey hold well ?
Replywow!the recipe was just the one i was looking for.I used honey instead of brown rice syrup and it came out just fine.
ReplyGlad to hear that!