Homemade Gluten-Free Granola Bars Recipe
Updated
I make these quick and easy homemade gluten-free granola bars all the time. My kids love these for snack time, and I love that they are gluten-free, dairy-free, and more affordable than store-bought brands. Perfectly balanced with peanut butter and chocolate, these bars turn out soft, chewy, and delicious.
“I made this for my daughter, who just learned she’s gluten sensitive, and she loved them. It was so quick and easy to make too!”
– Cheryl
Homemade Granola Bars
These chewy and nourishing homemade granola bars come together with a few simple ingredients. Easy to prepare, there’s always a batch lingering in my kitchen for my kids to snack on. I started making these when most of my family started following a dairy-free diet, and let me tell you, homemade ones are way less expensive and taste just as good, if not better than store-bought.
I like to play around with the mix-ins and add something different each time I make them. Sometimes it’s dried fruit, nuts, or seeds, though quite often it’s chocolate chips.
This simple no-bake recipe is the perfect combination of healthy, convenient, and kid-approved.
Things I Learned While Testing
- Use smooth nut butter. This recipe works best with smooth nut or seed butter. If your nut or seed butter is too dry or thick, it will not mix well with the other ingredients.
- Do not cut the chilling time short. These granola bars need to be refrigerated to set and become firm. Refrigerate the bars for at least one hour before cutting them.
- Check for certified or purity protocol gluten-free oats. Oats are naturally gluten-free, but they’re often contaminated because they’re processed in the same facilities or grown in or next to fields that grow wheat, barley, and rye.
- Use mini chocolate chips. Regular chocolate chips are too big. I like Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips because they’re dairy-free.
- Chop the mix-ins into small uniform pieces. You should also only use ¼ cup of mix-ins. If the mix-ins are too large, or if you add too much, the bars might not firm up and hold together.
Homemade Gluten-Free Granola Bar Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter, nut or seed butter
- ⅔ cup honey
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3½ cups gluten-free quick oats
- ¼ cup gluten-free mini chocolate chips, dairy-free use Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Line an 8-inch by an 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together the peanut butter, honey, pure vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt until smooth.
- Add the gluten-free quick oats and mini chocolate chips. Stir until fully combined. The mixture will seem dry at first, but it’ll come together.
- Press the mixture firmly into the pan with your hands or a spatula. Use the back of a ¼ measuring cup to help flatten the mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour, then slice into bars.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How to Make Homemade Gluten-Free Granola Bars Step by Step
Gather your ingredients:
- Creamy gluten-free peanut, nut, or seed butter: The peanut butter helps bind the bars together. It is also full of protein, healthy fats, and a nutty flavor.
- Honey: Not only does it add sweetness to the bars, but it helps everything stick together.
- Pure vanilla extract: I always add pure vanilla extract to sweet recipes. It takes the flavors to the next level.
- Ground cinnamon: I love the light hint of flavor the cinnamon adds.
- Salt: It helps bring all the flavors together
- Gluten-free quick oats: Give these bars a perfect chewy texture.
- Mini chocolate chips: One of my favorite flavor combinations is chocolate and peanut butter. Make sure to use mini chocolate chips because regular chocolate chips are too big. I like Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips.
Get the baking pan ready and combine the ingredients: Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Grab a large bowl and stir together 1 cup (250g) creamy peanut butter, ⅔ cup (140g) honey, 2 tsp (10 ml) pure vanilla extract, ½ tsp (1.5g) cinnamon, and ¼ tsp (1.5g) salt until smooth.
Pour in 3½ cups (280g) gluten-free oats and a ¼ cup (50g) mini chocolate chips. Stir to fully combine. Don’t worry if the mixture seems dry; keep mixing, and the ingredients will come together.
Add to pan and chill: Transfer the oat mixture to the pan, and using your hands, the back of a measuring cup, or a spatula, press down firmly to flatten and spread it evenly. I find the bottom of my measuring cup works best. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Do not compromise on the chilling time. These bars need to be refrigerated to set and become firm.
Cut and serve: Remove the pan from the refrigerator and slice the chilled oat mixture into even-sized bars. Serve for an easy snack, and enjoy!
Recipe Variations
- Change up the mix-ins: Use raisins, currants, cranberries, figs, dates, or your favorite dried fruit. Or, stir in shredded coconut, any of your favorite chopped nuts, or seeds.
- Swap the sweetener: Use pure maple syrup or agave in place of honey.
- Use any nut or seed butter: Any smooth nut or seed butter, whether it be almond, cashew, or sunflower seed, can be swapped for the peanut butter.
- Try a different type of chocolate chip: Use white chocolate chips (non-dairy if required), semi-sweet, dark chocolate, or even peanut butter. If you only have full-sized chips, cut them in half.
Serving Suggestions
These granola bars are a great snack that I’ll often pair with a few pieces of fresh-cut fruit or veggies, along with a tall glass of oat or almond milk. When I’m up for the task, I’ll have a few other healthy, gluten-free options on hand, like these soft and moist gluten free lemon poppy seed muffins, a batch of almond flour biscotti for dipping in my coffee or tea, and these cute gluten-free animal crackers.
Storage Instructions
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to a week.
I like making a big batch and freezing them, so I always have them on hand for my kids and me. Place cut bars in a plastic freezer bag. Use a piece of parchment as a liner between the layers of bars or flash freeze them on a cookie sheet, and once frozen, transfer to a freezer bag. Defrost at room temperature for 30 minutes.
More Gluten-Free Oat Recipes To Try
- Gluten Free Overnight Oats are a staple in my meal prep routine, as they are perfect for a filling and delicious start to the day.
- These delicious Banana Oatmeal Cookies are great for breakfast, dessert, or an easy snack.
- These delicious and sweet Banana Oatmeal Muffins feature hearty oats and a crumbly golden streusel.
Super easy to make in less than 10 minutes.
Taste just like a granola bar.
I made this for my daughter, who just learned she’s gluten sensitive, and she loved them. It was so quick and easy to make too!
Anxious to try these. Can they be frozen?
Hi Debra, I don’t see why not!
I love this recipe. I’ve made it many times already and have added different add-ins. this time I added in cherries. I also use pure organic maple syrup in mine and it gives it a whole different flavor. but the honey is awesome as well. I will continue to make these for a long time and I have shared it with my friends. thank you so much for your recipes.
Hi Sandy! I love the idea of using maple syrup in these. Thank you so much!
These are really delicious! I swapped out a cup of oatmeal for a cup of Rice Crispies cereal to get a fun, crunchy texture, too!
OMG these are sooo good!!! I haven’t had a granola bar in years. And when I’ve had any store brands in the past they were gross. I used chocolate sunbutter instead of peanut butter, because of allergy. Also used agave instead of honey for my blood sugar. Used Bob Red Mill quick cook Oats. The bars came out so soft, not gross and chewy like packaged bars. My non gf husband said they are so good. Def will be making these again and playing with other fun toppings!!
I used a half and half mixture of almond butter, and sunflower butter, chopped up some raisins, pecan pieces and dried apricot and mixed with raw honey. Very thick and dense, did need to add a 1/4 cup more of the sunflower butter and a about 2 more tablespoons of honey to make sure the mixture stuck together. The nice thing about these bars is they don’t need baking. Thank you for coming up with the recipe.
This is a great recipe as is and as a base for a variety of mix-ins. The first time I used full sugar peanutbutter and the honey and while very yummy that way, I knew it was too much sugar. So second time around we used no-sugar peanut butter, 1/3 cup honey and 1/3 cup of date paste (has lower glycemic index) and still was yummy and sweet, probably will cut more next time but was concerned they may not hold togther with out the stickiness. Worth a try though! We used chopped dates instead of chocolate chips (daughter can’t have chocolate) and added pecans the second time too, very simiple and versatile recipe for what you have on hand, food allergies and tastes. TY! 🙂
My sister and I love making these! So easy and healthy! Thanks so much!