Super easy granola bites are your answer to a make-ahead snack the whole family will be into. These easy granola bites are packed with protein and whole grains. They’re also naturally sweet, which means they can serve as a breakfast, snack or dessert for summer travel (or any time of year). I make a batch of these easy granola bites during the week, keep them in an air-tight container in the fridge, and grab them as a travel snack when we head out the door for the weekend. Confession: I also like to keep them in the freezer and eat them straight from frozen for dessert. Is that weird?!
I like to make these granola bites with either chocolate chips (minis work especially well), craisins or dried wild blueberries. You can totally make them your own and add whatever add-ins you like: cocoa nibs, currants, raisins and coconut will all work well in these easy granola bites recipe. You can also vary the nut or seed butter. I often use almond butter, but when I make them for snack for school or camp I use sunflower seed butter to keep them nut-free. Just be sure to use a nut or seed butter that is unsweetened (you’d be surprised how many brands sneak added sugar into their nut butters!) Also some nut or seed butters are more liquid than others, so you may need to adjust the amount of dry ingredients slightly. Try adding more oats, a few tablespoons at a time, if the dough looks too runny to roll into balls. Also, it helps to wet your hands with water before rolling the balls, so they don’t stick to your hands. You may need to rewet your hands after rolling several balls.
These easy granola bites are sweet, but they’re naturally sweetened with maple syrup. While I prefer the flavor of maple syrup and the micro-nutrients that is provides, you can use honey in this recipe if you aren’t concerned about keeping these easy granola bites vegan. Agave will also work but I no longer use agave in my kitchen.
Above is a quick video showing how super easy it is to make these granola bites, and the full recipe is below. Let us know if you make them and leave a comment with the add-ins you use.
Special thanks to Sharon who shared a version of this recipe with me several years ago.
Easy Granola Bites
Vegan, gluten-free, packed with protein, whole grain oats and super simple to make. Your kids will love them! You'll love them! Make a batch and have them all week for on-the-go healthy snacks.
Ingredients
- Gluten-free old fashioned oats or oat flour - 1 cup
- Flaxseed meal - 1 cup
- Unsalted nut or seed butter - 16 oz. (about 2 cups)
- Maple syrup (or honey) - 1/2 cup
- Pure vanilla extract - 2 Tbs.
- Veganchocolate chips, craisins or currants - 1/2 cup
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Using a spring-loaded scoop, form into balls. Refrigerate with parchment paper between layers. Makes about 36 balls. Can be kept in the fridge for 2 week or in the freezer for up to a month.
I really loved making these with my daughter. It was so easy, and I had everything in my pantry and fridge – like you said! – so I could make it as soon as I saw the video (how often does that happen!?) I didn’t realize my peanut butter was slightly sweetened (Whole Foods brand) – I thought it was unsweetened. I really needed to use unsweetened peanut butter or less maple syrup. And I don’t know if it was the gooey-ness of the peanut butter or using quick oats, but I needed to use a little more oats, maybe 1/4-1/2 cup.
We had dried cranberries instead of craisins, and they were perfect. We made both versions, and our friend who tried the ones with chocolate chips said,”It tastes like a Reese’s!” They’re really yummy.
I also added a little cinnamon to the cranberry ones, and I’m going to make it that way from now on. It adds some nice flavor and cinnamon is an amazing super food with extra medicinal benefits (antioxidant, anti-diabetic, anti-fungal, and anti-microbial.)
My daughter loved making and eating them, so thank you, Ilana, for this great recipe!
Hi Jen – So glad you loved making these granola bites and that your daughter did too! Great to hear the substitutions you made. Using raisins and adding cinnamon sounds amazing – I’ll be trying that on my next batch!
Let’s just say, when these are gone- we are sad and must immediately prepare another batch. The kids love to help with this recipe.