Soft and Chewy Granola Bars
These soft and chewy granola bars are simple to make and only require a handful of ingredients. These granola bars are filled with wholesome ingredients, like whole grain oats, honey, nuts and dried fruit. These granola bars are completely customizable, so feel free to add your favorite fruit, nuts or chocolate chips.
I’ve been thinking about making these soft and chewy granola bars for some time. My good friend, Jon Stutzman reached out to me in early spring about a new book he was writing.
Jon writes the most adorable children’s books, and honestly even if you don’t have kids, his books are a great read for adults. You know those types of books that have a subtle message that makes you think? Well, that’s how his books are. His most famous series is his Tiny T. Rex books. His most recent book, the one he reached out to me about, Tiny T. Rex and the first day oopsies is about the cutest T. Rex with short arms that faces common childhood challenges, showing that making mistakes happens and it is okay!
Alright, anyways, I don’t want to give away too much, but seriously check out his books, because they are some of mine and my kids favorites.
Well, when he reached out to me about his book, I immediately thought of granola bars as the perfect school and after school snack. My first couple of granola bars resulted in flimsy granola bars that just fell apart. But after experimenting with different proportions and ingredients, I finally came up with this recipe that results in soft and chewy granola bars that stay together, are soft, chewy and truly delicious! Plus, they are customizable, so you can add whatever fruit, nuts or even chocolate chips you desire.
Here is what you will love about these granola bars
- Customizable – you can add any dried fruit, nuts or even chocolate chips to these soft and chewy granola bars that you desire.
- Easy to make – these granola bars only take a handful of ingredients and just a few minutes to mix everything together
- Stay fresh for a couple weeks – these soft and chewy granola bars last for a couple weeks in the refrigerator or at room temperature. You can also freeze the granola bars for up to 3 months.
Here’s how to make these soft and chewy granola bars
Toast the oats
Preheat your oven to 325F. Add the oats to a 1/4 sheet pan then toast in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Toasting the oats enhances the flavor in these granola bars.
Melt together the coconut oil with the honey and maple syrup
In a medium size saucepan, add the coconut oil, honey and maple syrup. If you prefer, you can use all honey or all maple syrup in this recipe. I enjoy the mixture of both for flavor.
Cook the mixture over medium heat, just until the coconut oil melts, then remove from the heat.
Stir in the remaining ingredients
To the saucepan, add the oats and crispy rice cereal, cinnamon, salt and dried fruit. I used dried apples, but feel free to substitute for strawberries, dried cranberries, raisins, etc. Stir until well combined.
Get ready to bake
Pour mixture into a parchment paper lined 8×8 baking pan. Evenly spread mixture in pan, then firmly press mixture down. This helps the granola bar mixture stick together.
Bake in oven
Bake in 300F oven for 22 minutes.
Allow to cool
Allow granola bars to cool for 30 minutes at room temperature then 1 1/2 hours in the refrigerator. This allows for the granola bars to firm up and hold together before cutting them.
Slice and enjoy
Once cool, slice into 12 roughly equal granola bars and enjoy!
Storage
Store these soft and chewy granola bars in the refrigerator or at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze these in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.
The granola bars will be a bit softer at room temperature than in the refrigerator.
FAQ
- Can I use fresh fruit in this recipe? Fresh fruit will make these granola bars too soft due to the higher moisture content in the fresh fruit. Trust me, I tried using fresh fruit in some of my initial granola bar recipes and it just didn’t yield the soft and chewy granola bar texture.
- Can I use all oats? Yes, you can! I used a mixture of oats and crispy rice cereal for texture purposes. The crispy rice cereal provided a bit of crispness/crunch to the bars. Using all oats will result in a softer bar.
- Can I use instant oats? Yes, you can! Instant oats will result in a softer granola bar. Old fashioned oats gives the granola bars the chewy texture.
Here are a few other granola and granola bar recipes
Let me know what you thought!
If you make these soft and chewy granola bars, let me know what you thought in the ratings and comments below. I absolutely love reading all of your comments! Also, make sure to snap a picture of your granola bars and tag me @simplebakingwithpep on instagram. It truly makes my day to see all of your wonderful creations
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Soft and Chewy Granola Bars
- Total Time: 37 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
Description
These soft and chewy granola bars are simple to make and only require a handful of ingredients. These granola bars are filled with wholesome ingredients, like whole grain oats, honey, nuts and dried fruit. These granola bars are completely customizable, so feel free to add your favorite fruit, nuts or chocolate chips.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 cup chopped dried fruit (apple, cranberries, strawberry)
- 1/2 cup roughly chopped nuts (pecans, almonds, walnuts, peanuts, or a mix)
- 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 cup crispy rice cereal (such as Rice Krispies cereal)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325F. Line an 8×8 inch baking pan with parchment paper, making sure some of the parchment paper hangs over the edge.
2. Add oats to a ¼ sheet rimmed baking pan. Toast oats in preheated oven for 10 minutes.
3. Reduce oven temperature to 300F.
4. In a small saucepan, add coconut oil, maple syrup, and honey. Cook over medium heat on the stovetop until the coconut oil is melted and all ingredients are combined. Remove from heat.
5. Add in the oats, cereal, cinnamon and salt. Stir to combine. Add in the dried apple (or dried fruit) and nuts.
6. Scoop mixture into prepared 8×8 baking pan. Firmly press the mixture down into the pan.
7. Bake in 300F preheated oven for 22 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 30 minutes at room temperature, then place in refrigerator to chill for 1 ½ hours.
8. When ready to serve, remove bars from the pan, using the parchment paper handles to lift the bars out. Cut the bars into desired size on cutting board. I cut my bars in half horizontally, then cut into 12 roughly equal size bars.
Notes
- Storage – You can store these bars at room temperature or in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. They will be a bit softer at room temperature. You can store in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, for up to 2 weeks, or store in the freezer, in a freezer safe container, for up to 3 months.
- Feel free to use all honey or all maple syrup as your sweetener. I enjoy using the mixture of both for added flavor.
- It’s important to use coconut oil in this recipe, as this oil is solid at room temperature, which helps hold the bars together at room temperature. If you prefer, you can use butter in place of the coconut oil, but the bars may be a bit softer and will need to be stored in the refrigerator, as butter is soft at room temperature.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 22
- Category: Snack
- Method: Stove Top/Oven
- Cuisine: American
