Addicting Crunchy Grain-free Granola Bars (vegan)

These Crunchy Grain-free Granola Bars are the ultimate sweet and salty satisfying snack. They’re made with just 4 ingredients and these are gluten-free and vegan and absolutely incredible!

I LOVE all things chocolate and nuts. They are an elite combo and something I eat again and again. Especially these crunchy grain-free granola bars.

I always find myself grabbing a handful of nuts and chocolate chips together and snacking on it like a quick trail mix of sorts. But I also am a snack bar girlie so I wanted to make something that combines two of my favorite foods into one delicious snack.

These crunchy granola bars are too good. Typically granola bars are chewy and have a base oats. But not these. I love that these granola bars are grain-free, have an epic crunch to them and they satisfy my sweet tooth and also fuel me at the same time.

You only need 4 ingredients to make them. A mix of nuts, seeds, maple syrup and some chocolate. You can store these in the freezer for up to 2 months, which I love because it makes them a great freezer stash kind of recipe. If you are looking to prep some foods to keep on hand, add these bars to the list.

I also love how these are portable too. Pack them in your lunch for work if you want. You will often find me shoving these in my mouth on my way to pick up Ezra from school. They hit the spot every single time when I want something desserty. But these are lower in sugar and pretty healthy so they’re great to have really any time of the day.

I cannot wait to hear what you think of these. Let me know if you try them too!

What ingredients you need to make make these crunchy granola bars:

• Almonds – I like to use raw almonds but you can use roasted if you prefer
• Cashews – love using raw cashews in these! Or you can use roasted or salted cashews
• Slivered almonds – you could use another nut her too like peanuts or pistachios but I love the different texture these add
• Pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds – you could do one or the other too. I like to do a mix of both
• Maple syrup  – you could use honey too if you want
• Dark chocolate chips – or use semi-sweet or milk chocolate if you prefer
• Optional: flakey sea salt for garnish

How to make these grain-free granola bars: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line and grease a loaf pan with parchment paper
2. In a large bowl mix together the nuts, seeds and maple syrup
3. Add mixture to loaf pan and press down so everything is set in the loaf pan
4. Bake in oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is golden
5. Allow the bars to cool completely (this is key)
6. Then melt the chocolate and drizzle on top, spreading it across
7. Garnish with flakey sea salt and then add to freezer to set
8. Slice into bars and enjoy

FAQs and tips on how to make these crunchy grain-free granola bars:

• Can I use other types of nuts and seeds in this recipe? Yes! I suggest subbing similar sized ones so the ratios aren’t off though. So don’t sub chia seeds for pumpkin seeds being that the size is so different.
• My bars fell apart, what happened? Make sure you let them cool before adding the chocolate and letting it all set. If you remove the bars from the loaf pan right from baking, they will fall apart. You can add to freezer to speed up time if you want.
• Do I have to use chocolate on top? Nope! If you don’t love chocolate or want these to be less sweet, just skip the chocolate. Still let the bars cool completely though so they don’t fall apart.
• Are these bars dessert or a snack? Either! I love having them in the afternoon for when I want something sweet but I also have them after dinner for a dessert as well.

A few other delicious and healthy snack recipes to try:

Fruit Bark Clusters (vegan)

5-ingredient Blueberry Magic Cookies

5-ingredient Brownie Batter Bark (gluten-free)

Copycat Trader Joe’s Snacky Clusters

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