Scrumdiddlyumptious Granola Bars

Granola bars are an excellent on the go snack. Unfortunately, they tend to be expensive and packed full of junk we don't need. My solution: make homemade granola bars!

Now, I do need to preface this recipe by saying that they did not pack well into bars. They crumbled when I tried to cut them. I think it was because I did not pack them firmly enough before baking. So, my next post about granola bars will be about my second attempt to get them into actual bars! Even though they crumbled, they are absolutely delicious! I made a huge batch and they are already almost gone. The possibilities are endless - you could add dried fruit, coconut, cinnamon, etc. Here I present to you: Scrumdiddlyumptious peanut butter chocolate chip granola bars!

INGREDIENTS

2 cups crispy rice cereal

2.5 cups quick cooking plain oatmeal

1/3 cup honey

1/4 cup natural no sugar added peanut butter

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 tablespoons miniature dark chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees F.

2. Combine the oatmeal and crispy rice in a large bowl. 

3. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, honey, and peanut butter. Heat over medium-low heat until it becomes a smooth mixture. Stir in the vanilla.

4. Add the liquid mixture to the oatmeal and crispy rice. Gently stir until well mixed. 

5. Grease or spray a 9x13 inch pan. Add granola bar mixture. Press down into pan with wax paper firmly (I think this is where I messed up - I didn't press down well enough). Lift up wax paper, and add the chocolate chips. Press down firmly again to make sure the chocolate chips are pressed in. 

6. Bake at 200 degrees for 25 minutes. Here you have two options: A) shut the oven off, leave the granola bars in the warm oven for 2 hours. Then slice and store. OR B) remove from oven, transfer to fridge for about 30 minutes. Once they are hardened, cut and store. 

I store these in the fridge in a tupperware container to ensure freshness :)