These protein-packed homemade granola bars are a quick, healthy snack your whole family will love. This is a granola bar recipe and a healthy snack option for your kids. These have become a household favorite recipe – so much so that I keep it on a dedicated recipe card for our weekly meal prep sessions.

Not only are they filled with healthy ingredients, but they also come together in minutes. For more healthy, chocolate and peanut butter protein snacks, check out my monster energy bites recipe.

Nutritious Ingredients

Unlike store-bought granola bars with brown rice syrup or brown sugar, these chewy granola bars are loaded with wholesome ingredients. This is a great way to give your kids a balanced snack with healthy fats, protein, and carbs to actually fill them up in a nutritious way. On my meal prep day, I like to make a double batch of these homemade protein bars so my kids have some easy and quick snacks on hand throughout the week. The peanut butter and chopped nuts give these bars a nice, nutty flavor making this high-protein snack a great option for even your pickiest eater. Don’t worry, if you need a peanut-free option, there are lots of optional ingredients listed below.

Simple Ingredients

Nut butter: The key to this recipe is using smooth and creamy peanut butter. If your nut butter is not smooth and creamy, feel free to add a little avocado oil or melted coconut oil to get it to a smooth and creamy consistency. My family loves peanut butter, but you can use any nut butter your family likes: almond butter and cashew butter are nice, flavorful options to give these bars that chewy texture. If you need to go nut-free, sunflower seed butter is another great option.
Honey: While you can often swap out honey and pure maple syrup in any recipe, you’ll want to stick with honey in this recipe because it is actually the sticky consistency that is needed to get the ingredients to stick together to form actual granola bars. If you want to use maple syrup, just convert this to one-inch sized protein balls instead of granola bars. This is another delicious and healthy option!
Vanilla Extract: Adding just a little vanilla extract gives these bars a depth of flavor giving them almost a dessert-like taste, making them a satisfying and healthy snack.
Salt: Just a pinch of salt will help bring out all the natural flavors of the granola bar ingredients. I use pink Himalayan salt, but whatever granulated salt option you have will work.
Oats: While oats are naturally gluten-free, cross-contamination often occurs with the way oats are harvested, so be sure your oats are certified gluten-free. Also, you want to be sure to use quick oats since there is no cooking or baking involved in this recipe.
Chocolate Chips: It’s best to use mini chocolate chips for this recipe as it makes evenly cutting the bars with crisp lines to look like granola bars so much easier. I used Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips as they are free from the top allergens. However, you can use any chocolate chips that you like: dark chocolate chips or even white chocolate chips. If not using a mini version, it’s a good idea to roughly chop the full-sized chips into smaller pieces for the aforementioned reasons.
Nuts: Chopped nuts give these chewy bars the perfect amount of crunch. You can use chopped peanuts, almonds, or whatever nuts you have on hand. For a nut-free option, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds make great options.
Protein Powder: For this recipe, I recommend that you use vanilla protein powder. My favorite protein powder is Amy Myers Protein Powder, and here is my affiliate link, which is a non-dairy but animal-based protein powder. I found this when I was on AIP and still use it almost daily. Of course, you can use your favorite plant-based protein powder or whey protein powder. While I think vanilla protein powder tastes best, you can certainly make these extra chocolatey by using chocolate protein powder.

Optional:

You can get as creative as you like with any of these optional add-ins to make these granola bars the flavor of your choice.

Dried Fruit: Instead of chocolate chips, add in raisins, coconut flakes, or dried cherries. If adding dried cherries, give them a rough chop before adding.
Melted Chocolate: To give these bars an elevated look, melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips with 1 tsp coconut oil or avocado oil using the double boiler method or microwave, being careful to stir frequently to avoid scorching. Using a spoon, drizzle over each bar in a back-and-forth, zig-zag motion.
Seeds: Add in 1/4 cup chia seeds or hemp seeds for added flavor, texture and extra plant-based protein.
Cinnamon: Cinnamon adds such a nice warm depth of flavor to this recipe. One teaspoon would be perfect for this recipe.

How to make Gluten-Free Granola Bars

Begin by preparing your 8×8 square pan, lining it with parchment paper. Cut a second piece of parchment paper slightly larger than the base of the pan and set both pieces aside.

In a large bowl, combine your wet ingredients: peanut butter, honey, and vanilla extract, stirring until they’re well blended. Next, add all of your dry ingredients to the bowl and mix thoroughly until the mixture takes on a cookie dough-like consistency.

Transfer your granola mixture to the lined pan. Place your extra piece of parchment paper on top of the mixture. Using the back of a measuring cup or glass, press down gently while moving in circular motions to create an even, compact layer.

Place the pan in the refrigerator and allow it to chill for at least one hour or until the mixture is firmly set. Once set, use the parchment paper handles to lift the entire block onto a cutting board, keeping the bottom parchment paper in place. Cut into rectangular bars sized to your preference.

Store the bars in an airtight container, with layers separated by parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Storage

Store bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator, separating layers with parchment paper to prevent sticking.