These peanut butter granola bars require no-baking and can be made with any fruit, nut, or chocolate mix-in. Just be sure to keep the peanut butter oatmeal base the same!
It’s no secret that toddlers love to snack. In keeping with my semi-homemade theme to life as of late, you can find both packaged and homemade snacks in our house. And yes, I consider chopping and slicing fresh fruits and veggies to be semi-homemade! My packaged snacks for the boys usually include:
- Cheerios, Goldfish, or pretzels
- Nuts and/or popcorn
- Cheese sticks, yogurt, hummus
- Dried fruit, fresh fruit, and veggies— usually cut into slices or sticks
And our homemade snacks include ONE item. That’s right. I bring out the big guns and make one batch of muffins, bars, or snack bites all with my own two hands. And this week, I made these peanut butter granola bars.
There’s a simple formula I follow when it comes to putting together a packaged or homemade snack. There are 2 of 5 food groups: whole grains, lean protein, veggies, fruit, or dairy. The peanut butter granola bars have 3 out of these five components, so I call that a win! Plus they are no-bake, which is key for the non-baking Mom of the group. Another “win” about these peanut butter granola bars is that the mix-in’s are customizable based on your family’s favorites or what’s in your pantry. We had chocolate chips and dried cranberries on hand— two of Joey and Anthony’s favorites!
Snack on this: No-Bake Peanut Butter Granola Bars. Packed with protein and whole grains! Click To Tweet
If you’re up to making homemade snacks [one a week on a good week, once a month otherwise] like me, then be sure to check out my snacks page! And if not, kudos to you for spending your time elsewhere. Because homemade isn’t always healthier in my book of motherhood!
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ⅔ cup Rice Chex
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds [optional]
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine peanut butter and honey. Microwave for 20 seconds.
- In that same bowl add the oats and Chex, crumbling the Chex mixture as you stir. Stir in remaining ingredients.
- Line an 8x8 pan with wax paper. Press cereal mixture firmly in pan. Cool for an hour in the refrigerator.
- Slice into 8 bars. Keep bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Sun butter to make nut-free?
You got it!