Chewy Chocolate Chip Coconut Granola Bars
By Laila ·
The easiest homemade granola bar recipe! Inspired by my chocolate covered coconut bars (aka bounty!) - Made with a few ingredients, plus it's priority allergy free, gluten free, and naturally sweetened. Perfect food to grab on-the-go, fuels your body without the added junky ingredients of store-bought.
Get ready for an incredible recipe that will help with those rush-out-the-door mornings and rumbling tummy snacks! Chewy Chocolate Chip Coconut Granola Bars, people!!
Let’s get started.
Granola Bars might sound healthy
Most of us are fans of granola bars – but did you ever look at the label and notice those junky ingredients added just to make sure your granola bar is the softest and/or chewiest ever? And they’re loaded with sugars – yes, more than one type and name for sugar.
So although they’re thought of as a healthy snack, they’re in actuality not the best choice to have.
For those of us who want it all, these delicious AND healthy Chewy Chocolate Chip Coconut Granola Bars are it!
Why homemade is best. Every Time.
I often preach this on NDNC, but the best thing about making your own food is you know exactly what you put into it. And this is so important because let’s face it, if there’s no reason for you to look at the labels then you’re more than likely not going to.
Making these healthy granola bars is so easy and fun. Your kids can help with the prep and the eating! There’s just 5 ingredients in this naturally sweetened recipe {not counting the pinches of sea salt}. No corn syrup, high fructose anything, or artificial sweeteners.
And I promise you that once you make the first batch, you’ll be a repeat homemade granola maker without a doubt.
Check out these other sweet recipes – Healthiest Fruit Tarts. Skillet Apple Cherry Maple Crumble. Perfect Crispy Marshmallow Treats.
Quick vs old-fashioned oats
I used quick oats instead of old-fashioned rolled oats mainly because I ran out of the latter :) But also because I wanted to see if using quick oats would really make for a bad granola. They have a bad rap for some reason – people complain that using them causes the bars to mush and taste gross.
But all 5 batches of my granola bars came out perfectly chewy and delicious every time. So feel free to use whichever is in your pantry.
Don’t you love recipes that are forgiving? So do I ;)
These bars are school safe too!
I also chose to omit nuts in this recipe because I wanted a healthy snack that my kids can take to school. With so many kids with food allergies, it made sense to want to make a granola bar that everyone can enjoy safely.
These Chewy Chocolate Chip Coconut Granola Bars are the perfect snack for schools and at work because they are not only ridiculously amazing, but they’re also free from:
dairy
egg
soy
peanut
tree nuts
sesame
mustard
wheat/gluten
fish/shellfish
Make these and let me know what you think in the comments below. And don’t forget to rate the recipe whatever you think it deserves. Doing so helps mr. Google find me – which is important so others are able to find this blog too! Also be sure to follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.
Happy granola making! xx
Recipe
Chewy Chocolate Chip Coconut Granola Bars
The easiest homemade granola bar recipe! Inspired by my chocolate covered coconut bars (aka bounty!) - Made with a few ingredients, plus it's priority allergy free, gluten free, and naturally sweetened. Perfect food to grab on-the-go, fuels your body without the added junky ingredients of store-bought.
- Prep
- 15 mins
- Cook
- 10 mins
- Total
- 25 mins
- Serves
- 14 bars
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1Preheat oven to 350F.
- 2Lightly grease a 9x13" pan and line with parchment paper. Leave extra paper hanging on either end of pan to make lifting the granola bars easier.* Set aside.
- 3Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and add oats. Spread evenly and place in preheated oven. Toast oats for 7 minutes, then remove to stir the oats around, and return to the oven for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven.
- 4In a small pot on the stove over medium heat, warm honey and coconut oil until oil has melted. set aside.
- 5In a large bowl, combine well toasted oats, coconut, 3 tablespoons of the chocolate chips, and salt.
- 6Add warmed honey + oil and using a spatula, mix very well until all ingredients are fully combined.
- 7Next, dump granola mix onto prepared pan and using same spatula, spread mixture evenly, firmly pressing as you go. Add last 1 tablespoon of chocolate chips and press them into granola.
- 8Place in preheated oven and bake for 10-15 minutes*
- 9Remove from oven and let cool completely before handling - or bars will become loose granola!
- 10Once cooled and set, remove from pan and cut into even pieces. Store leftovers in a lidded container at room temp or in the fridge for a crispier bar.
Notes
Adding parchment paper to your baking sheet/pan is an optional step but I found it allows for easier removal and cutting of bars. Allow a bit of a hang so that you can lift the granola with ease. Keep in mind that once the bars come out of the oven they WILL be soft. So be sure not to touch them until they've completely cooled. I baked mine for 10 minutes and then placed pan in the fridge to help speed the setting process. I baked a couple of batches for 15 minutes and the bars turned out well. I just preferred the 'chewiness' of the 10 minute bars. So if you find that after having baked the bars for 10 min. and allowed them to set that they're too chewy for you, then pop them back in the oven and bake a few minutes more. Let cool. Also, depending on the type of pan you use to bake your granola, it might take longer for the bars to cool. For example, bars baked using an aluminum or a glass baking pan will set quicker than if you were to use an enamel dish (bc it retains heat longer) etc. Just be mindful of that. Store bars at room temp in a lidded container. Calories: 212 kcal