Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
These chewy, crispy no-bake chocolate chip granola bars are easy to make — and they put all those store-bought bars to shame.
Chocolate chip granola bars are a staple in my pantry, but between my husband, my kids, and my kids’ hungry friends, I can’t seem to keep enough of them in the house. So I figured it was time to try and make them from scratch, and maybe even sneak in some health food. After many trials, I finally cracked the code and came up with a version that puts all those store-bought bars to shame. What’s more, they’re no-bake and take only ten minutes to make.
Table of Contents
“My kids rated these infinity out of ten. And my husband, the man who once left a 3 Michelin star restaurant proclaiming he’s ‘had better’ said these were delicious!”
What You’ll Need To Make Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
- Butter: Adds richness and helps bind the ingredients together.
- Brown Sugar: Provides sweetness and contributes to the chewy texture.
- Honey: Acts as a natural binder and adds sweetness.
- Vanilla: Enhances the flavor profile with its aromatic essence.
- Quick-Cooking/Instant Oats: Serve as the base for texture and substance.
- Crispy Rice Cereal: Adds crispiness and lightness to the bars.
- Sliced Almonds: Introduce nuttiness and extra crunch.
- Flax Meal or Wheat Germ: Offers additional nutritional value and helps with binding.
- Mini Chocolate Chips: Provide little pockets of chocolatey goodness throughout the bars.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the butter, brown sugar, and honey in a large pan.
Bring it to a boil, then let it bubble over low heat for a few minutes to thicken slightly.
Off the heat, stir in the salt and vanilla extract.
Then add the oats, crispy rice cereal, almonds, and flax meal (or wheat germ).
Fold the mixture with a rubber spatula until evenly combined.
Transfer the granola bar mixture to a 9 x 13-inch pan lined with aluminum foil.
Press the mixture lightly with a rubber spatula to flatten, then sprinkle the chocolate chips over top. Use the spatula to press the chips firmly into place and compact the mixture into the pan as much as possible. (The reason you don’t mix the chips in is that they’ll melt.)
Place the pan in the refrigerator for 1-1/2 -2 hours, until the bars are cool. Then use the foil overhang to lift the bars out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, cut into rectangles.
Keep the bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator; if you have to stack them, be sure to use parchment paper or foil in between the layers, otherwise, they’ll crumble and stick. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
It’s important to stick with quick-cooking oats which are rolled oats that have been coarsely chopped. Regular old-fashioned oats are too coarse and chewy for this recipe and cause the bars to fall apart. If you don’t have any quick-cooking oats in your pantry, you can make your own by pulsing regular oatmeal in the food processor a few times.
Sure! Store the bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. If you have to stack the granola bars, be sure to use parchment paper or foil in between the layers; otherwise, they’ll stick together and fall apart. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Before serving, move them to the refrigerator to thaw.
Yes, these bars offer great versatility. If chocolate chips aren’t your thing, you can opt for raisins or cranberries. Similarly, if almonds aren’t to your taste or if you are dealing with a nut allergy, swap them out for unsalted sunflower seeds. While oats and rice cereal are essential, you have plenty of freedom to substitute other ingredients as long as you maintain the wet-to-dry ingredient ratio.
You May Also Like
Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
These chewy, crispy no-bake chocolate chip granola bars are easy to make — and they put all those store-bought bars to shame.
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons honey
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- Heaping ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups quick-cooking/instant oats, such as Quaker Quick 1-Minute Oats (do not use regular old-fashioned oats)
- 1¾ cups crispy rice cereal, such as Rice Krispies
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- ¼ cup flax meal or wheat germ
- ⅓ cup mini chocolate chips (or to taste)
Instructions
- Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with aluminum foil. Spray the foil lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large pot, combine the butter, brown sugar and honey. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt.
- Add the oats, rice cereal, almonds and flax meal (or wheat germ) to the pan and fold with a rubber spatula until well combined.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and press down lightly with a rubber spatula to even out. Sprinkle the miniature chocolate chips over top, adding more or less to suit your taste, and press down firmly with the spatula so the chips stick.The mixture should be tightly compacted in the pan. Place the pan in the refrigerator for 1½ - 2 hours to cool.
- Use the foil overhang to transfer the uncut bars to a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, cut into rectangles. Store the bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you have to stack them, be sure to use parchment paper or foil in between the layers, otherwise they'll stick together and fall apart.
- Note: If you are substituting dried fruit for the chocolate chips, mix it in along with the other ingredients as opposed to sprinkling over top.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The granola bars can be frozen for up to 3 months. Let them cool completely and store in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, move them to the refrigerator and store there.
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Serving size: 1 bar
- Calories: 187
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated fat: 3g
- Carbohydrates: 26g
- Sugar: 12g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 4g
- Sodium: 21mg
- Cholesterol: 11mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
These are awesome and I know the ingredients – compared to the store bought version! Great to pack in my kids backpack for school snacks.
Love these! So easy and yummy and customizable!
What can I use instead of brown sugar?
Hi Cathey, You could use regular granulated sugar. More honey might be too strong.
We love these Granola bars! I will never be able to bring myself to buy store bought again. I made a tray and took them on a road trip to the mountains to snack on in the car. I also add shredded coconut on top and chia seeds. I also made the honey granola bars and these one day and had some friends over and we did a taste test… The kids all preferred the chocolate chip ones and the grown ups leaned toward the honey ones. I love to put the honey granola in a yogurt parfait.
These are great! I didn’t have the flax/wheat germ, so I used a substitute. I also put the choc chips in with the dry ingredients, so they melted throughout the entire granola bar making them very chocolate flavored. My kids love them! This is way better than buying! Question: Do you think you can substitute out the rice crispy cereal for something more homemade, like toasted quinoa? I would like to eliminate the store bought cereal for something healthier, and not processed. What are my options without losing the crisp/crunch?
Toasted quinoa is a good option. Can’t think of anything else homemade that would work. If you try it, please report back and let us know!
Followed the recipe to a tee.
Unbelievable, moist, fresh, great taste.
Whole family and friends love
Healthy snack for all
I made the chewy Chocolate chip granola bars with my seven year old tonight. Such a healthy snack. She wouldn’t eat sliced almonds any other way. I also love the fact there are flax seeds in there. Great recipe and look forward to trying more!
Wow – these are so incredibly sweet! Is there anyway to tone down the honey flavor? I used 1/4c brown sugar like other suggested. But so much better than other recipes I have tried. These are chewy and airy.
On a side note – thank you so much for sharing your recipes. Every one of your recipes has been amazing!! I tell everyone I know about your site!
Thanks for your note, Amy. Glad you are enjoying the recipes 🙂 Unfortunately, you need all the honey and sugar to “glue” the bars together; if you reduce it too much, I’m afraid they will fall apart.
These are now a staple in our house. I took the advice of others to decrease the sugar and use 1/3 cup sunflower seed butter instead of the brown sugar, and add just 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. I also use sunflower seeds instead of the almonds. This makes them nut-friendly for school! I have tried in vain to just do the chocolate chips after but they turn out a mess, so I mix them in, let it melt, and no one complains!
These turned out fantastic or would have, I should say. I substituted melted Earth Balance for the melted butter (dairy allergy in the family) & it gave the bars an almost fishy after taste…gross. What can I use in place of butter? I read some people used coconut oil. Are there any other dairy free alternatives I could use? I’m giving the recipe 5 stars anyway because if not for my own mistake, these granola bars would have been perfect!
Yes, I think coconut oil would work 🙂
I also recommend using soy-free Earth Balance to avoid the fishy taste. There is flax oil in the original Earth Balance that sometimes tastes fishy to me after it’s been heated and cooled. Not a problem with the soy-free version!
I always use half butter, half coconut oil in this recipe and it works great!