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Enjoy one of your favorite fall treats in the form of these healthy granola bars! Caramel apple granola bars are an easy-to-make snack made with no added sugar and lots of nutritious and natural ingredients.
RECIPE VIDEO TUTORIAL
How to make caramel apple granola bars
- Combine the dates and water in a food processor.
- Blend until you form a smooth paste.
- Transfer the date paste to a small saucepan. Add coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon.
- Cook stirring frequently until the mixture is dark brown.
- Meanwhile, spread oats, chopped almonds, and flaxseeds on a sheet pan and bake until golden brown, stirring occasionally.
- Stir the oat mixture into the date mixture and stir in the chopped dried apples.
- Press into a square baking dish very firmly.
- Chill in the fridge until solid and cut into bars.
Tips for making the granola bars
- Use 9×9 baking pan for thinner granola bars. I prefer the 8×8 size, but it works just fine with the larger pan.
- Store the cut granola bars with parchment paper between the layers. You can also wrap them individually in parchment or wax paper for easy grab-and-go snacks.
- Chop the dates into smaller chunks before adding to the food processor. This will help the food processor blend everything quicker, especially if your food processor is not very strong
- Use date paste if you can find to avoid the step of making the date paste in the blender. It’s easy to make the paste with just dates and water, but using date paste will be faster.
- Play with the spices. To keep it simple, I only use cinnamon, but you can certainly also add nutmeg, ginger, cloves or even cardamom.
Frequently asked questions
These healthy granola bars will keep for up to two weeks, stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Separate the layers with parchment so that they don’t stick together. Make a batch on Sunday and use them in lunchboxes or as an easy to grab snack throughout the week.
Yes, these bars are gluten-free and vegan friendly. If you have an intolerance for gluten, be sure to use GF certified oats.
You can use medjool or deglet noor dates for these bars. I like to buy ones that are already pitted as this cuts down on the prep time quite considerably! Dates add a natural sweetness to each bite as well as being a good source of fiber and antioxidants.
More bars recipes:
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
- Pecan Date Bars
- Healthy Rice Krispie Treats
- Vegan Protein Bars
- Easy Pumpkin Bars
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola Bars
- Honey Nut Cereal Bars
- Oats and Honey Granola Bars
- or Homemade Granola
If you’ve tried this feel good Caramel Apple Granola Bars recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
Caramel Apple Granola Bars
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups pitted dates
- ½ cup water
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup almonds coarsely chopped
- ¼ cup whole flaxseeds
- 4 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ½ cup dried apples chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread oats, chopped almonds, and flaxseeds in an even layer and bake until light brown, stirring regularly, about 10-15 minutes.
- Grease an 8” x 8” pan, line it with parchment paper and then grease the parchment paper.
- Combine dates and water in a food processor and blend until combined into a paste, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Transfer the date paste to a large heavy bottomed saucepan along with the coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon. Cook on medium heat until the paste turns darker brown, about 5-7 minutes.
- Fold the toasted oats mixture into date mixture. Add in chopped dried apples and stir until apples are evenly distributed.
- Scrape into prepared baking pan and spread out. Use a piece of parchment paper to press down to level out the edges.
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Once solid, lift from the pan using the parchment paper, and use a very sharp knife to cut into 12 pieces.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Can I use apple butter replacing the dates, water and maple syrup?
Hmm, I think it might work as a replacement for water and maple syrup but the dates help hold everything together so you may have some crumbly bars. Let me know how it turns out if you end up trying it!
Dried apples? Are those freeze dried apples or dehydrated ones? Thanks!
I used dehydrated ones, but both kids will work. Hope you enjoy!
How to make dried apples??
I buy dried apples to make it easier!
can i replace the dates with dried cranberries?
Yes, I think that should work, but I’ve never tried making a paste out of cranberries like I’ve done with dates.
tried it and it worked very well! this recipe is great
Awesome!!
Tried this today. Turned out amazing!!
So glad to hear it. Thank you!
Followed this recipe. 5 Superstars!
Made 1/2 portion to fit it into the mould…so good! Amazing. Tagged you on Instagram showing the mould.