Delicious cookie flavor without having to turn on the oven. These Chewy Oatmeal Cookie Granola Bars are so easy to make, have no refined sugars & completely guilt free!
Last week we had unseasonably warm weather. As in sunshine-y, humid, sweaty, summer-time heat in early spring when there’s usually snow on the ground and I’m huddled under a blanket. I was in love.
And also petrified. Because the realization that summer is around the corner also means that my wardrobe needs to change from chunky sweaters to shorts. And since I spent all winter eating butter – hitting the gym is a definite must.
So it’s time for a healthier snacking option.
Enter Chewy Oatmeal Cookie Granola Bars. Think delicious, soft, cinnamon filled, vanilla infused Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. In gluten free, dairy free, no refined sugar, optionally vegan, no-bake form. That’s a lot of descriptors.
And while there’s so many ways to describe these delicious breakfast/snack bars – they’re ridiculously easy to make. All the ingredients are simple & natural, and there’s very little prep time. First we’ll toss together some oats, oat flour, coconut, raisins & cinnamon in a large bowl. Now – I don’t normally have oat flour on hand – so instead I make my own by grinding oats in the food processor/blender for about 30 seconds. And Voila – Oat flour without the extra grocery trip.
Then in a large microwave safe bowl we’ll melt together some almond butter, coconut oil and honey or agave (if you’re vegan). You could use peanut butter instead of almond butter in this recipe. However, I find that peanut butter has a more powerful flavor which masks the taste of the cinnamon and vanilla. Therefore if you use peanut butter the taste will be more like peanut butter oatmeal cookiea. Equally delicious – just less reminiscent of oatmeal raisin cookies.
Finally – add in some vanilla to your almond butter mixture and stir everything together. The batter is then pressed into the pan and chilled for about 30 minutes in the freezer to harden.
And there you have it. Deliciously Chewy Oatmeal Cookie Granola Bars with zero guilt. Don’t you just love it when healthiness & tastiness collide?
Chewy Oatmeal Cookie Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1 and ½ cups oats
- ½ cups ground oats
- ½ cup shredded coconut
- ½ cup raisins
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ cup almond butter
- ⅓ cup honey or agave
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions
- Line an 8x8 inch square baking pan with parchment or wax paper leaving an overhang on each side.
- In a large bowl toss together the oats, ground oats, coconut, raisins & cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a medium sized microwave safe bowl melt together the almond butter, honey/agave and coconut oil for 1 minute. Remove and stir together the mixture using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Stir in the vanilla. Pour the almond butter mixture into the oat mixture and stir everything together until evenly combined and the oats are well covered.
- Pour/spoon the mixture into your prepared pan pressing it tightly down so that the entire bottom of the pan is covered in an even layer is packed tightly. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the freezer, cut into bars using a sharp knife. Store at room temperature in an air tight container.
Nutrition
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