Healthy, Homemade Trail Mix Granola Bars (No-Bake)
These healthy, no-bake trail mix granola bars are a chewy, delicious, and nutritious make-ahead snack idea! Recipe is vegan, gluten-free, and high in fiber.
I am so excited to share this no-bake trail mix granola bar recipe with you today. It’s one of my favourite snack recipes I’ve made to date – I’ve been eating them all week!
As a dietitian, I always try to create snacks that are balanced in nutrition. Meaning – some complex carbohydrates for energy, balanced with sources of healthy fat, protein, and fiber to elongate your blood sugar curve and keep you feeling fuller for longer.
These healthy, homemade granola bars are packed with nutritious ingredients like nuts, seeds, oats, and dried fruit that provide that exact nutrition combination.
Nutrition aside, these bars are also super easy to make and there’s no need to turn on the oven! They’re meant to be made in advance, and keep well all week in the fridge. These granola bars are truly a perfect grab-and-go, meal prep snack idea!
This recipe is also vegan and can be made gluten-free by using certified gluten-free oats. If you’re curious about texture – these bars are on the “chewier” side, versus crunchy :).
I’d love to know if you try this one!
Nutrition Benefits Of Homemade Granola Bars
Rolled oats provide a source of whole grain, complex carbohydrates rich in fiber. Oats are also an excellent source of micronutrients like:
- manganese
- phosphorus
- magnesium
- copper
- iron
- zinc
- thiamin
- folate
- pantothenic acid
Nuts and seeds provide a source of heart-healthy fats, protein, and fiber, all of which help to keep you full and lessen any spikes in blood sugar.
While the nutrition profiles of nuts and seeds vary, they are generally good sources of micronutrients like:
- vitamin E
- magnesium
- phosphorus
- copper
- manganese
- selenium
Recipe Ingredients Needed
- oats (rolled or quick)
- almonds
- pecans
- sunflower seeds
- pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- hemp seeds
- dried cranberries
- dark chocolate chips
- almond butter
- coconut oil
- cinnamon
- maple syrup
- vanilla extract
- salt
Recipe Modifications
Here are some ideas for how to modify this recipe. Just be sure to keep the ingredient proportions the same as the original!
- swap almond butter with peanut butter or sunflower seed butter
- try different types of nuts, like walnuts, pistachios, or cashews
- try raisins instead of dried cranberries
Another note – you can double up the portions of a single seed or nut. For instance:
- if you only have pumpkin seeds, just use twice the amount in place of sunflower seeds (and vice versa)
- if you only have almonds, replace the serving of pecans with the same amount of almonds (and vice versa)
How To Make Granola Bars
Making these no-bake granola bars is super easy!
Start by lining a 8×8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper that goes over the sides of the pan. This helps lift the bar mixture out later.
Then, mix together all the wet ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
Then, mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add the dry to the wet and stir until the ingredients are well-combined and sticking together.
TIP: it’s a lot easier to pour the dry ingredients into the bowl of the wet ingredients, than the other way around! This helps prevent any loss of the wet ingredients and is all around less messy 🙂
Once the ingredients are mixed together, transfer them into the parchment-lined baking pan.
Spread everything out with a spoon, then use something with a hard flat surface to REALLY push the ingredients down well. I like to use the back side of a rectangular glass storage container with a bit of parchment underneath.
Transfer the baking pan to the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours – or even better, overnight!
When ready, carefully pull the mixture out of the baking dish using the sides of parchment paper. Place on a cutting board, and use a sharp chef’s knife to cut into bars!
How To Store Granola Bars
These bars will keep in the fridge for up to a week. Store them in an airtight container, with a piece of parchment between each layer (just fold or cut up the one you used to make the recipe).
If you’d like to freeze these bars, you can wrap them individually in parchment or wax paper, before transferring to a freezer-safe container or bag. Be sure to thaw before eating!
More Healthy Snack Ideas
- Chewy, Healthy Breakfast Cookies
- Savoury Spiced Roasted Nuts
- No-Bake Carrot Cake Energy Bites
- No-Bake Chocolate Cherry Energy Balls
- Chocolate Hazelnut Bliss Balls
- Homemade Trail Mix: 3 Recipes
Did you give this Healthy, Homemade No-Bake Trail Mix Granola Bar Recipe a try? Let me know by leaving a comment and recipe rating below!
If you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram or Pinterest – seeing your creations always makes my day. You can also subscribe to my email list to never miss a new recipe or nutrition education post!
Get the Recipe: Healthy, Homemade Trail Mix Granola Bars (No-Bake)
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup almond butter (creamy, unsweetened)
- 3 Tbsp coconut oil, melted (use microwave to melt)
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp maple syrup
Dry Ingredients:
- 1.5 cups rolled oats (certified GF if needed)
- 1/2 cup raw almonds, chopped
- 1/2 cup raw pecans, chopped
- 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup hemp seeds
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips (vegan if needed)
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Start by lining an 8×8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper that goes over the sides of the pan. This helps to lift the bar mixture out later.
- Then, mix together all the wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl.TIP: make sure your almond butter is super soft + creamy. If it's too hard, soften it in the microwave first!
- Then, mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ones and stir until they are well-combined and sticking together.TIP: it's a lot easier to pour the dry ingredients into the bowl of the wet ingredients, than the other way around! This helps prevent any loss of the wet ingredients and is all around less messy 🙂
- Once the ingredients are mixed together, transfer them into the parchment-lined baking pan. Spread everything out with a spoon, then use something with a hard flat surface to REALLY push the ingredients down so they stick together well. I like to use the back side of a rectangular glass storage container with a bit of parchment underneath. Don't skip this step!
- Transfer the baking pan to the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours – or even better, overnight
- When ready, remove the baking pan from the fridge and carefully pull the mixture out of the baking dish using the sides of parchment paper. Place it on a cutting board and use a sharp chef's knife to cut into evenly-sized bars!
Notes
- swap almond butter with peanut butter or sunflower seed butter
- try different types of nuts, like walnuts, pistachios, or cashews
- try raisins instead of dried cranberries
- if you only have pumpkin seeds, just use twice the amount in place of sunflower seeds (and vice versa)
- if you only have almonds, replace the serving of pecans with the same amount of almonds (and vice versa)
Did you make this recipe?
Let me know by leaving a recipe rating below, or by tagging @walderwellness on Instagram. I love seeing your beautiful creations!
12 Comments on “Healthy, Homemade Trail Mix Granola Bars (No-Bake)”
Made these bars with pistachios and cashews. They were very good and so incredibly easy to make!
Hi Aleyah,
Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed these bars. LOVE the pistachio + cashew addition – I’m going to need to try that combo myself next time.
Hope you have a lovely weekend 🙂
Hi tried these bar but it doesn’t come as bar they are all broken but taste good.
Hi Suzy,
I’m so sorry to hear they didn’t stick for you! I tested the recipe 3 times to make sure that didn’t happen, and I know others have found success.
Some troubleshooting to prevent this from happening:
– Double check that the correct amount of “wet” ingredients are used (the almond butter, coconut oil, and maple syrup). If you’d like to try adding more maple syrup you can do this too, but it shouldn’t be necessary
– Make sure to press down on the bars in the pan really firmly using a hard surface (step #4). I suggest doing this for at least a minute. This really compresses all the ingredient’s together!
– Try refrigerating overnight so the bars have a greater chance to firm up
Please let me know if you have any questions! My apologies again – I hope that you were at least able to enjoy the taste and use this as a homemade granola 🙂
Came out really well – my friends all took them home.
Press hard to make sure they stick in the fridge but they’re phenomenal.
Hi Ari! I’m so happy to hear that you and your friends enjoyed these granola bars! Thanks for the tip – pressing down is necessary to make these stick 🙂
These are soooo yummy! My partner placed them in a cookie sheet pan so they were a bit thin, but they stuck together well and are such a great snack!
Hi Tori! Thank you so much for sharing your experience!! It’s so appreciated. I’m so happy you enjoyed them, and glad to hear they still worked out in a cookie sheet 🙂
19” of snow outside and just finished shoveling for the third time today. Had made the energy bars last night and boy did they hit the spot. Easy to make and oh so good.
Hi Kathy,
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed the bars! I hope they kept you energized through all that snow shovelling – that’s a lot of snow! Thank you so much for sharing your experience and hope you stay warm 🙂
These are super simple to make. Clean ingredients. Delicious of course, but do not stay together. I had my hubby press them and they crumble so quickly out of the freezer. These are not a bar you can carry with you as they “melt” and crumble. I can eat them directly from the freezer and they are so good but the longer they are out, the softer they become. You cannot hold on to these bars like a regular bar or they will fall apart. Delicious, but cannot be eaten on the go.
Hi Trish!
Ah I’m so sorry to hear that these didn’t stick together for you! I tested the recipe 3 times because I wanted to make sure they stuck together – it seems like it works well for some, but crumbles for others. Bah 🙁
Some troubleshooting that might help:
– Double check that the correct amount of “wet” ingredients are used (the almond butter, coconut oil, and maple syrup). If you’d like to try adding more maple syrup you can do this too as it helps bind the ingredients, but of course it will increase the sugar content of the recipe a bit
– Make sure to press down on the bars in the pan really firmly using a hard surface (step #4). I suggest doing this for at least a minute. This really compresses all the ingredient’s together!
– Try refrigerating overnight so the bars have a greater chance to firm up. I also recommend storing them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to eat them.
Again I’m so sorry they fell apart on you. I hope you were still able to enjoy it though – possibly as a granola recipe?