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Grab and Go Breakfast Bars

I eat granola bars for breakfast almost every day. It’s my go to morning meal when I’m in a hurry or when I’m traveling and need an easy on-the-go treat. So when I teamed up with The Quaker Oats Company to share a recipe that makes my morning easier, I couldn’t wait to make these Cherry Almond Grab and Go Granola Bars for you guys.

Of course, we’re starting off with Quaker Standard Oats. They’re 100% whole grains and the star of these breakfast bars.

And I’m including other goodies, too. Sliced almonds, rice cereal, dried cherries, peanut butter, honey, chocolate chips, vanilla, and maple syrup.

And oh honey… these are going to be good!

Warm the peanut butter, honey, maple syrup and vanilla and mix together so you can easily pour it on the dry ingredients.

Oh my! Now mix all the ingredients together until everything is completely coated.

Once coated, transfer the granola mixture to an 8 X 8 inch dish lined with parchment paper and press all the ingredients down as flat as you can.

I used a 6-inch round cake pan to do the work for me so my hands didn’t have to get sticky.

Sprinkle a few mini chocolate chips on top and press down gently.

Now just bake the bars for about 20-25 minutes and then cool completely.

I let these cool for about an hour and a half on the counter and then I transferred them to the fridge for about an hour. They’re easier to work with when chilled.

Once cold, cut them into 12 equal bars while they were still in the dish.

I wanted to nibble on these right away, but I needed to wait so I could get them all dressed and ready for the week ahead.

With the bars still cold, wrap them in strips of parchment paper and tie each with string.

Then just slip them into treat bags and tape them shut.

Cherry Almond Grab and Go Breakfast Bars

Cherry Almond Grab and Go Breakfast Bars

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Additional Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1-1/2 cups Quaker Old Fashioned Oats
  • 3/4 cup slivered almonds
  • 2/3 cup rice cereal
  • 1 cup dried cherries
  • 1/4 cup miniature chocolate chips
  • 1/3 cup peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line an 8 X 8 inch baking dish with parchment paper overlapping on opposite sides so you you can easily lift bars from the dish when finished.
  2. Toast almonds. Spread them in an even layer on a large baking sheet and place in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Watch closely so they don’t burn. Remove from the oven and reduce temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
  3. Place oats and toasted almonds in a food processor and give it several pulses to break the shapes up into smaller pieces. This will make the ingredients press together more compactly in the baking dish.
  4. Place all the oats, almonds, rice cereal, dried cherries and chocolate chips in a large bowl and mix together until evenly distributed. Reserve about a tablespoon of the chips to sprinkle on top at the end.
  5. In a medium bowl, microwave the peanut butter, honey, syrup and vanilla for about 10-20 seconds so you can easily stir it together. Pour mixture over dry ingredients and stir until completely combined and all the dry ingredients are coated.
  6. Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish and press down as flat, even, and compact as possible. You can use a smaller baking dish to help or press using your hands coated with vegetable oil. Once the mixture is as flat as you can make it, sprinkle any reserved chocolate chips and gently press them on top.
  7. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove and cool completely for at least 1-1/2 hours. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill for another hour. Remove and cut into 12 equal bars using a thin serrated knife while still in the baking dish. Lift the bars from the dish holding the parchment paper.
  8. Makes 12 bars. Bars will be good for several days at room temperature or for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator.

Notes

To prepare them for the week ahead: Working with chilled bars, wrap each one in a strip of parchment paper and tie with a string. Place in a plastic treat bag to travel with. You can also dip the bottoms in a little melted chocolate or candy coating and let dry before packaging.

Adorable! Now you have individually wrapped and ready breakfast bars handy and a yummy way to brighten the beginning of your day. Just grab one and go.

Enjoy!

This post is in collaboration with The Quaker Oats Company #OffYouGo! For more tips to make mornings easier, visit: https://www.brit.co/tag/quaker/

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36 comments on “Grab and Go Breakfast Bars”

  1. I was looking for a healthy breakfast to take while i drive to work, your recipe is amazing and i’m going to make these great health bars very soon

  2. Yummy …Mouth watering breakfast….. :)

  3. Nice, its looks yummy! I mus to make these.

  4. how much protein are in these?

  5. I tried these yesterday with dried cranberries. They’re a little bit too sweet for my taste (maybe because the cranberries were slightly sugared) but still pretty delicious. Silly me forgot to press start on the timer though. Because of that I think the oven time fell short and I’m really bad at estimating the time passed so some of them broke into smaller pieces. No problem though – some are breakfast bites now. :)
    Thanks for the recipe, made my morning easy today.

  6. wow so easy and so good! I didnt have reg. oats, instead I used steel cut oats – and they were still delicious!! Also subbed cranberries for cherries and used reg. size choc. chips. My husband and my very picky son both really really loved them, which is such a thrill. THANK YOU for sharing this recipe it will become one of my go-tos!

  7. The pictures show sliced almond.
    The recipe says slivered almonds.
    Which type should I use? Or doesn’t it matter?

  8. I have some vanilla protein powder that I would love to add to these. I’m guessing that I might need more liquid though? What would you suggest–yogurt? egg white? Thanks for a wonderful recipe!

  9. Thanks Donna!

    Jennifer and dxehmnbrd – I need to count them up

    Kritika – Absolutely, try dried cranberries or other fave fruit

    Conny – YAYAYAYAY!!!

    Sara – did you try chopping up the sliced almonds and oats a little with a food processor? And refrigerate before cutting? I found it helpful to cut the bars when chilled and still in the dish.

    Cake Crazy – I think it was Halloween Cupcakes

    Evie Campbell – thanks!!! they were fun to wrap

  10. Healthy and tasty bars, great! The wraps are very cute too

  11. These are amazing! I am always wondering what to have for breakfast and now I have the solution. You just grab and go – so easy!

  12. This is brilliant :) In the markets these bars are so expensive, I don`t get the point because are easy to make and the products in them are not so expensive. Thank you so much, this will save me an amount of money. Happy Holidays

  13. Those look great! My mom and I would love those! I know this question doesn’t have anything to do with these bars, but what was your first post ever?

  14. I made these and they didn’t hold together. It was more like clumps of granola than a bar. It was so tasty I’d try it again. Any suggestions on getting it to stick together?

  15. I’m so bad at granola bars. But I’m willing to give these a shot, since you always know what you’re doing!

  16. yummy. I like this.

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  17. I DIT IT! WOW! I used cranberries, they’re sooo yummie & even my mother-in-law is flashed ;) thx so much for sharing! #highfive

  18. Can we replace dried cherries in this..??

  19. Do you have a carb count per bar?

  20. Kalpana – you could also probably substitute an egg, 1/4 c plain yogurt & ~ 1/2 tsp baking soda for the peanut butter & then bake as usual. This is based on a breakfast “cookie” I make.

    This recipe sounds yummy. I may try this recipe however I’ll probably substitute craisins for the cherries as I love the craisin/chocolate combination.

  21. As someone is always on the go, I don’t know why I haven’t tried to make granola bars yet. I actually have a tub of quaker oats that has been just sitting there from when I tried to eat breakfast in the morning.

  22. Thanks so much guys!

    Kalpana – try them with almond butter.

    Cupcake Julie and Ankita – These are more chewy than crunchy.

    Thanks Laura – It was fun packaging them up pretty

  23. What a hearty and yummy breakfast! Cute packaging too!

  24. OH dead here goes my normal food program… You always find a way to spoil me…

  25. Mmm these look absolutely delicious! I always need to eat my granola bar in the morning but I really should start adding some fruit to give them a little more of a healthy boost. I’m also too lazy to bake them! But I gotta give that a try!

  26. They look awesome! Are they soft and chewy or hard like the store bought ones?

  27. I need an on the go snack. These are perfect!!

  28. I want to make these! Are they soft or crunchy???

  29. Im not a fan of peanutbutter. What can i substitute to make this bar? Thanks

  30. As someone who indulged a bit too much at Thanksgiving, I need to watch what I eat.

    How many calories/bar?

  31. What a nice nutritious snack :D looks exactly like the expensive bars I see, but probably tastier and less expensive

  32. These are the prettiest granola bars I’ve ever seen.

  33. I’ve been wanting to make homemade granola bars. I can’t wait to try these. Thanks!

  34. Thank you for sharing these! They look yummy and I see these in my future … very soon!

  35. It looks delicious! Perfect combination:-)

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