Cherry Chocolate Almond Granola Bars
These cherry chocolate almond granola bars are the perfect meal prep item through the week. Studded with dried bing cherries, semi-sweet chocolate and toasted almonds, these homemade granola bars are hard to resist.
Enjoy these bars for breakfast or as a quick and delicious mid-day snack. What’s great, is that you can customize them too. My sister is a teacher, and she always makes some version of these bars to have on hand through the week. In fact, she’s the inspiration behind these bars. Feel free to add or modify any of the ingredients to fit your liking.
Ingredients Needed for Cherry Chocolate Almond Granola Bars
Whole Grain Rolled Oats – You will need whole grain rolled oats for this recipe. Place the oats on a baking tray and lightly toast them in the oven. Toasting the oats first gives them an extra layer of flavor.
Inclusions – For this recipe, add chopped semi-sweet chocolate, dried and chopped bing cherries, and sliced almonds. Be sure to add the almonds to the baking tray with the oats so that they can get a little toasty first.
Peanut Butter – You will need peanut butter for this recipe. I used natural Skippy. The natural peanut butter seems to work better because it is thinner than regular.
Honey – For this recipe, you will need honey. You cannot substitute maple syrup because it is not sticky enough to hold the bars together.
Salt – Add a touch of salt to the honey and peanut butter mixture. This will enhance all the flavors inside the bars.
Vanilla – Add a touch of vanilla to this recipe. It adds a warming flavor that’s hard to resist.
How to Make Cherry Chocolate Almond Bars
Preheat the oven to 350.
Line an 8×8 metal baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
Add the oats and sliced almonds to a baking tray.
Lightly toast in the oats and almonds in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
Next, add peanut butter, honey, salt, and vanilla to a small mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.
Add the oats and almonds to the peanut butter mixture.
Finely chop the dried bing cherries and semi-sweet chocolate bar then add it to the bowl.
Mix until everything is well combined.
Add the mixture to the prepared baking dish.
Using the back of a metal or plastic measuring cup press the granola mixture down until it is evenly spread across the pan.
Cover with a layer of parchment paper and refrigerate for 45 minutes to and hour before slicing.
Option to freeze these bars as well.
Storage
Store these bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer. If you decide to freeze, let the bars sit at room temperature for 20-25 minutes before enjoying.
Cherry Chocolate Almond Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups whole grain rolled oats, lightly toasted
- ½ cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted
- 1 cup natural peanut butter
- ½ cup honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup semi-sweet chocolate bar, chopped into small pieces or chocolate chips
- ⅓ cup dried bing cherries, chopped small
Equipment
- 1 baking tray
- 1 8×8 baking dish lined with parchment
- 1 measuring cup or spatula to press the bars
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- Line an 8×8 metal baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Add the oats and sliced almonds to a baking tray.
- Lightly toast in the oats and almonds in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Next, add peanut butter, honey, salt, and vanilla to a small mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.
- Add the oats and almonds to the peanut butter mixture.
- Finely chop the dried bing cherries and semi-sweet chocolate bar then add it to the bowl.
- Mix until everything is well combined.
- Add the mixture to the prepared baking dish.
- Using the back of a metal or plastic measuring cup press the granola mixture down until it is evenly spread across the pan.
- Cover with a layer of parchment paper and refrigerate for 45 minutes to an hour before slicing.
- Option to freeze these bars as well.
One Comment on “Cherry Chocolate Almond Granola Bars”
I made these and loved them! I only had steel cut oats on hand so that’s what I used and they still turned out great. It’s the perfect balance of flavors with the peanut butter, cherries, chocolate, and that little bit of salt. I will definitely make again!