Seriously Addictive No-Bake Seedy Granola Bars
If I could eat only one thing for the rest of my life, I would choose these seriously addictive no-bake seedy granola bars.
I can honestly make a batch of these bars and eat almost half of it throughout the day. One for a morning snack, one with lunch, one as an afternoon snack and one or two in the evening… Half of the batch, gone. Oups. I could also make a batch and eat 2 or 3 bars before I even add on the chocolate. Like I said, they’re addictive! Probably not a good thing for someone with a sugar addiction. They may not have any added sugar, but that doesn’t stop them from being addictive.
It doesn’t help that I’ve had a hard time with the photography for this post. I think I made them 5 times for the sole purpose of photography. That doesn’t count the other 5+ times I made them just because I was craving them. I honestly shot them over 5 times before getting a few shots that I could live with. And even now, I’m not really fully satisfied. Yes, I am picky, but on my defense, I wanted the bars to look as good as they taste! I came to the conclusion that this will never happen. I believe they fall under the category of “tastes better than it looks”. It’s unfortunate.
If my rambling doesn’t convince you that these bars are worth trying, then know that they even got Shaun’s friends’ approval. Last weekend, Shaun went for a hike with some friends and brought some along for everyone. I had some very good feedback!
Life is a bit crazy currently. We have so much going on and so many changes in our lives. I won’t get into it right now, but I promise I’ll update you all soon. I have some exciting news and also some exciting blog posts coming up in the next few weeks. I have something new coming up to the blog next week (a new blog series), so keep your eyes peeled!
With our current crazy schedule though, I’m turning to easy recipes more than ever.
These granola bars are definitely easy enough to be in my life right now. They’re done in under 15 minutes, from start to finish. Just dump all the ingredients in the food processor, process them for less than a minute and press the mixture to the bottom of a glass dish. Drizzle with melted chocolate and pop it in the freezer until the chocolate has hardened. I honestly like to store them in the freezer. They can be eaten straight from the freezer as the dates keep them chewy. It’s my favorite! And no, that doesn’t stop me from eating 2 or 3 in a row… Nothing can stop me.
These seedy granola bars are inspired by the Monster Bars on the Oh She Glows app. I first made them last spring and I’ve been hooked ever since. These have been adjusted to my style and liking, but the concept is the same. They’re refined sugar-free, require no baking and they’re nut-free! Making them perfect for a quick, back-to-school snack. I hope you’ll like them as much as we do!
Also, if you missed it, I shared some pictures from our road trip to Gaspésie last week. 🙂
Seriously Addictive No-Bake Seedy Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup Medjool dates, pitted
- 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
- 3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/4 cup hemp seeds
- 1/4 cup ground flax seeds or chia seeds
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds, raw
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 1/4 cup water, as needed
- Unsweetened or dark chocolate for drizzling (optional)
Instructions
- Line a square 9" glass dish with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, process the dates a few seconds to chop them up.
- Add all the remaining ingredients, except the chocolate and water. Process until you get a crumbly mixture. Add the water and continue to process until the mixture sticks together when pressed. It may form a ball in the food processor.
- Transfer to the prepared glass dish. Press evenly to the bottom of the dish.
- Drizzle with melted unsweetened or dark chocolate.
- Place in the refrigerator or freezer until the chocolate hardens. Cut into 8 bars. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
If you try this recipe, make sure to tag your photo #unsweetenedcaroline on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Don’t forget to also tag me @unsweetened.caroline on Instagram so I can see your creations!
14 Comments
Grand-maman Jeannine
They look very very good .
Unsweetened Caroline
Merci! 🙂
Eco Natural Soap
Going to have to make these asap!
Unsweetened Caroline
Hope you like them! 🙂
Anna Marie
Looks delicious! Could I omit the coconut (sensitivity) and add both chia and flax?
Unsweetened Caroline
Thank you Anna! I have made them without coconut before and it works well. I would recommend reducing the amount of water (starting with maybe 2 tablespoons and increasing if needed). You could also add a bit of ground flax or chia instead, but I wouldn’t start with 3/4 cup. I would start with 1/4 cup and again increase as needed to get the right consistency. They should stick together well without being too sticky. Hope this helps!
Catherine
Seriously addictive is right!!!
Unsweetened Caroline
Haha I think so too!!
holly bridges
could honey be subbed for part of the water? am wondering if it would help the granola bars stay together better.
Unsweetened Caroline
Hi Holly, yes you could try that! Did you have issues with the bars crumbling? I personally don’t experience this with this recipe, unless my dates are dry. Did you use sticky Medjool dates and all the water indicated?
Eileen
Thank you SO much for this recipe Caroline! I tried making healthy bars in the past and they didn’t work out for me. I happened to see this recipe on your blog and decided to give it a try. It is SO delicious! I forgot to add the cinnamon and vanilla and it still turned out delicious, just like a granola bar. I only used four dates (for me this was about one short of a cup, so for 8 bars with 4 dates worked out to only about 10g of sugar per bar–dates are 100% my preferred sweetener of choice for pretty much everything, but everything in moderation!) and did not use chocolate (recovering chocoholic). I didn’t have any sunflower seeds so I just used extra hemp and flax seeds. I sprinkled a bit of flour onto a small stainless steel tray and they cut perfectly and came out perfectly. So easy, so delicious, perfect snack for kids as well. Thank you so much again!!
Nourished by Caroline
Hi Eileen, thank you so much for your sweet comment! I’m so happy to hear that you love them. It’s one of my favorites too! Thank you for giving your feedback and making note of those few little substitutions. It will help others for sure. 🙂 Enjoy!
Seychelle Yohanna
Hi Caroline. I am allergic to dates! Is there anything I can subsitute them with?
Nourished by Caroline
Hi! I haven’t tried alternatives for this recipe, but my suggestion would be to try a liquid sweetener that would help the bars stick together, such as maple syrup. You could start with 1/3 cup and add more if needed to make it stick and to taste. I would also skip the water in this case as you’ll be adding liquid. Again, I haven’t tried it and can’t guarantee it will work, but it’s worth a try! Let me know if you try it. Also, I have these energy bites that are date-free if you want to try: https://www.nourishedbycaroline.ca/chocolate-chip-peanut-butter-energy-bites/