No-Bake Healthy Granola Bites
Packed with crunch and creaminess and lots of good-for-you things these homemade no-bake healthy granola bites are the perfect after school snack or lunch solution!
Um, yum. These little babies are an absolutely irresistible healthy, bite-sized snack.
Ever since these simple chewy granola bars entered my life, we’ve been on the homemade granola-snack train. But, like many of my life plans, summer kind of derailed any homemade granola making.
Summer has a way of just creating lots of happy chaos, asked for or not.
But with the onset of school quickly approaching, I am hereby recommitting to snacks.
Recommitting to healthy-ish snacks!
Recommitting to homemade, healthy-ish snacks! And these granola bites are a perfect way to start.
Packed with crunch and creaminess and lots of good-for-you things (think: flaxseed) and some extra treats (think: mini chocolate chips), we had a hard time leaving any of these for storing away in the freezer for when after school snack time rolls around or when I’m popping goodies in lunch boxes each morning.
No biggie though; they are so simple to throw together (no cooking or baking!) that I can easily order my 9-year old to make another batch pronto which he’ll gladly do since he announced yesterday that his life’s work will be complete when he gets to be on Cutthroat Kitchen (a fun, new show on The Food Network) and apparently making granola bites puts him on the fast track to chef-dom.
These are truly a divine solution to the snacking days (and lunch-packing) days ahead of us!
No-Bake Granola Bites
Ingredients
- 2 cups (200 g) quick oats
- 1 cup crispy rice cereal, like Rice Krispies
- 1 cup (255 g) creamy peanut butter
- 1 cup (96 g) ground flaxseed
- 1 cup (170 g) mini chocolate chips
- ⅔ cup (227 g) honey or agave nectar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients together in a large bowl, mixing gently so the crispy rice cereal doesn’t get crushed. Mix until well-combined.
- Using a cookie scoop (or roll small amounts in your hands), drop rounded tablespoonful-sized portions onto a parchment or wax paper lined cooking sheeet. I used my cookie scoop and then rolled the scooped portion out between my palms.
- Refrigerate for 1-2 hours. At this point you can serve them or combine the chilled granola bites in a large tupperware-type container or ziploc bags to freeze or refrigerate. They will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to a week or for a few months in the freezer.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted from a recipe Kira W. sent me (added coconut oil, took out coconut flakes and increased rice cereal, used agave nectar and honey in different batches, etc.) – thanks, Kira!
Absolutely delicious flavor, and very easy. I have high hopes of making these over and over again as snacks for my kids!
Do you think I could bake these so I wouldn’t have to refrigerate? Trying to find grab and go pantry stuff for kids. Kind of like the made good granola balls.
Certainly worth a try!
We have a severe nut allergy in our house – to just about every kind of nut. Is there something else I can use in place of the peanut butter? Note: We also have a sunflower allergy, so sunbutter will also not work for us.
Other than searching out other types of non traditional “butters” – I’m not sure what to suggest. Sorry I’m not more help!
How many calories are in 1 of these.. approximately? Thank you!
I’m not sure, but I’m adding nutrition facts to all my recipes and this one should be updated soon!
Would it be ok to leave the flax out, or replace it with something else?
Yes, you could leave it out.
I saw someone ask for a way to make them not sticky…try rolling them in cocoa powder, still a little messy but not sticky!
I love this recipe. I have made it a few times. The first time I made it with agave, I think the honey version is better. A couple of pointers: I make mine with old fashioned oats, because they are more nutritious and it works! Second, if you are looking for nutritional value, make sure to use the higher quality ingredients like avoiding the partially hydrogenated coconut oil and using a peanut butter without the hydrogenated oil/ the term “pb spread, etc. Third, add a pinch of salt! Last– if anyone uses agave over honey, agave was a bit runnier and slightly changed the texture. You really need to put in the fridge for ~15+ minutes before rolling into balls. It is easier this way. Overall, I feel like this is a healthy version of a cookie! My husband and I eat them for breakfast with coffee or as a pick me up after a work out. I also make these for my friends as a treat.
This was really helpful! I have pretty messy balls in the fridge right now, will refrigerate first before trying to roll next time. Great suggestion.
I made the recipe & loved them, I go for a walk, & get back & have my energy bites with coffee! You published it with ,how many carbs & etc. this is, but don’t see it here?
Love love love. Make them all the time. Great for on the go work day, kids lunch box treat, or to take on a hike. Throw in anything- it’s always good.
Thanks for the recipe suggestion. I’ve been looking for an alternative to the Minimalistbaker 5-ingredient granola bars. The dates in those are awesome for sweet, fiber and binding of the other ingredients, but just too time consuming to make (cleanup of food processor, etc).
I’m a fan of simple recipes, and with a treenut/peanut allergy, I always use soynut butter instead of peanut butter, and roasted soynuts instead of almonds.
Here is my version of this:
1 cup quick oats. Toast for 12 min at 350 deg.
1 cup soynuts – crushed. (Good Sense salted-roasted is a good choice)
1/2 to 1 cup flax seed
1/3 to 1/2 cup 50% reduced sugar craisins
2 to 3 squares of 72% dark chocolate bar, broken in small bits (giardelli, etc)
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup soynut butter (Wowbutter creamy works great)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Start toasting the oats (Breville oven works great). Then mix the soynuts, flax, craisins and dark chocolate in a med-large bowl. Next, in a small pan on the stove, warm up the honey and soynut butter and mix together, adding the vanilla at the end. Oats are probably ready by this time, so add them (still warm) to the bowl and mix together. Then mix in the warm honey/soynut butter. The chocolate should melt with all the warmness. Roll into balls (ping pong size), makes about 18. Refrigerate for 15 min on wax paper cookie sheet, then transfer to quart zip bag to continue stay in refrigerator.
Tips:
Adjust flax and/or liquid ingredients as needed to get the right consistency for binding.
I have used 1/2 c quick and 1/2 c regular oats just fine.
A heavy rolling pin works good to crush the soynuts in a zip bag.
Chopping up the craisins would be best, but if that’s too much work, they can work whole.
Some soynut brands bother my nut allergy (because they are processed in a nut facility), but those listed above work for me (Wowbutter, Good Sense).
And chia seeds just don’t work for me in this. They don’t expand/swell until in your mouth and between your teeth – so flossing is needed after eating this snack.
I need to comment on these and thank you for the recipe we make them ALL the time!! The are the perfect sweet healthy treat! Sometimes you just need something small to tide you over waiting for dinner. They have also been a life saver for after school snacks and something quick to eat in the car in the way to sports practices. Half of my kids are old enough to make them on their own. So thank You!!
I love that your son’s life’s work will be
‘complete’ ! You must be a great mom, to raise such a funny, goal-oriented child.
I make the no-bake bites for church, – we keep them in the freezer, and they still don’t ‘last’ very long!
Thank you so much for adding the nutrition facts. I purchased your meal plans for the next year and I noticed it doesn’t tell me the serving size… It will say 17 carbs but I’m not sure if that includes one granola ball or two… Is there anyway of knowing? Thank you!
That’s odd, Jaime – it should have a serving size on there on the top right corner.
Do you have the nutrition facts for this recipe?! I would love to know the calories!
I don’t – sorry!
Wow, I’m 6 years late to this post. I’ve read everything as thoroughly as I can but was hoping to ask given the need to chill factory, how these hold up throughout the day? Like if I’m careful with the sticky vs dry ingredients, could these hold up in a Kid’s Lunchbox and bag pack say 5 hours without becoming a huge mess?
Yes! For sure, they make a great lunchbox addition.
Is there a peanut free version?? Or something I can substitute for peanut butter?
You could try another type of nut butter (or nut-free butter like sunbutter)
I just used your recipe but didn’t add the chocolate chips, instead I dunked them in white chocolate & call them “golf-nola balls.” I tucked away for a last burst of energy on the last nine.
If I dont/cant use flax seed. What do I use instead? Do I do another cup of oats?
Yes, you can just increase the oats.
Just wondering what the calories/fats/etc stats are on these per ball? Did see that written anywhere.
I don’t have that info – sorry! An online nutritional calculator may help though if you want to plug in the recipe.
These are so tasty. I think maybe a little to sweet. If I use less honey next time would I just add extra peanut butter? My 2yo doesn’t like that they make his hand sticky. I was thinking about rolling them in something. Suggestions would be appreciated.
I actually usually just half the amount of honey when I make them. I don’t even change any of the other ingredients. Our family loves them. I’ve also used agave instead of the honey, but it’s much more runny so I believe u halved the amount of agave/honey and I also added more oats.
These were delicious – even my fussy kids liked them free they eventually tried them.
How many balls do you usually get out of those recipe? I’m hoping to make it for a large crowd.
Oops *this recipe
About 30, but it depends on how big you make them.
I don’t know what I’d do without these little bites in my life! We snack on them every single day and they keep me from indulging in a less healthy sweet fix. I’ve been making these for years and thought I’d share how we’ve adapted the recipe to make them even easier to roll out. I do a few quick pulses in the blender with both the oats and the Rice Krispies. Having them broken down a bit makes these so much easier to roll out. When you make double and sometimes even triple batches of these to keep in the freezer this extra step really helps speed things along. For texture, I like to do half creamy and half crunchy peanut butter. So good!
These were SO GOOD!!! We ate them straight from the freezer!! We ran out of honey so we used half honey and half raw cane syrup. We added some chia too! When we mixed it up, it was extremely wet, so we added 1 extra cup of oats/Rice Krispies. Can’t wait to make them again! Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
Taste great! Have you thought about baking them for a few minutes to make them dried/crunchy? Do you think it would work?
I haven’t tried that, but definitely worth experimenting!
I llllllllllllllllooooooooooooooooooooooooooovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee this recipe!!! My mom loves it too, and she makes me make these delicious snacks almost every week since she gave me this recipe. Please keep making amazing snacks like this!*
These are delish! I usually make a double batch and keep them in the freezer. My ultrarunner husband, cross country/track running son, and weight-lifting daughter all love them.
Easy to make, swap ingredients (if you want, but I do this recipe straight up), and super yummy! The husband loves these & asks that I make him before his Tough Mudder run so that he has them for energy!
I made these yesterday but substituted the peanut butter with half almond butter and half nutella (We have a peanut allergy in the family). I also added just regular chia seeds and sunflower seeds. Delicious! I would make these again!
yum Annie! Same at our house, but hadn’t thought to sub with half nutella!!!
Highly addictive, maybe not so good for the waistline. I did put the Chia Seeds in and it worked out great!
Hey Mel!! Do you have any idea how many calories are in each ball? Trying to get a rough estimate.
I don’t, Deb, sorry! I know there are some free nutritional calculators online but I don’t calculate that info for each recipe (sorry!).
We make our own maple syrup in the winter which I use when I make granola. Have you tried using maple syrup instead of honey for these delicious-sounding balls?
Yes, and it works great!
I was just gonna ask this! 🙂 woohoo!!
I made these today and divided the batch into 3. Then I did 1/3 cup choc chips in 1/3 of the mix, caramel chips in 1/3, and butterscotch chips in 1/3. My kids loved the butterscotch, I loved the caramel, and the choc chip ones are good, but we loved the other 2 so much I don’t think I’ll do the choc chip ones again. They are kind of getting forgotten. But overall they are all yummy!!!
I finally got around to making these and must say that we LOVE them! I won’t even tell you how many I sampled while I was making them…. Seriously, I am not sure I can keep these in my house – they are so addicting. Thanks again for another great recipe!
I have made these too many times to count. Every time I take these somewhere I get asked for the recipe. Delicious and healthy snack.
We loved these. Just FYI for those counting calories, although these are nutritious, we got 36 of these from a single recipe, and they are 130 calories each. It’d be pretty easy to consume a hefty amount of calories mindlessly snacking on these.
I made these and added a little salt and a few big shakes of cinnamon (from the Costco size bottle). The cinnamon made them over the top yummy!!
**So it as actually half PB and half Nutella
I just made these and ran out of peanut butter. I used Nutella instead. Wow! They taste great! I know that definitely cuts down on the healthy factor, but I’m thinking my kids will love them. Thanks!
Seriously- these are goo-ood! My whole family loves them, and that’s saying a lot since they are leery of “healthier” food.
Mel, just had to tell you how much I loooove these. They are a great pick me up snack mid-afternoon. The tad of chocolate and and the rest is enough to keep me from eating my whole pantry full of chocolate. 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe!
Hi Mel, I have made these and love them! If I want to make them a tad less sweet next time what should I change without compromising too much? Thanks!
You could definitely try cutting down the sweetener to 1/2 cup. It might mean you need to use just a tad bit dry ingredients so they still stick together so keep your eye on that.
My boys love these! My oldest isn’t a fan of chocolate in any form (so sad!) so I’ve thrown in heath toffee bits instead and it’s a hit!
I have absolutely loved your blog! It is always my go to for snacks or when I have no idea what to make for dinner. These have become a household, neighborhood, and even my children’s soccer teams favorite treat! Thanks so much for sharing!
I found these much easier to roll after chilling the dough slightly. They are good, but I think next time we’ll tweak a bit : sub some ground up dried fruit so we can reduce the pb and honey. I think they’re a good jumping off point for us to find our own perfect snack ball.
Have you tried using maple syrup as a sweetner instead? I know its thinner so I might test it out with less. Any thoughts?
Thanks!
I haven’t – but I definitely think it is worth a try.
Have you made them with corn flakes in stead of rice krispies?
amy – I haven’t tried that…sounds like a good experiment.
These are delicious! I was searching for a healthier dessert option to have on hand and made these. Love them!! I even forgot the vanilla and coconut oil in my haste and they are still wonderful! Look forward to adding these to lunch boxes for snack 🙂
For the mothers sending these to school whit there kids just place a damp paper towel in a plastic bag it will do te job. No sticky hands.
We love these! I add a TB or two of cocoa powder instead of the chocolate chips and they are our favorite new snack! Another family favorite from MKC 🙂
Hey Mel! Just made these today for the first time. They are delicious. However, they do seem to be quite sweet. I’m wondering if you use an all natural, no sugar added peanut butter. I used “natural” peanut butter, but it still has sugar added. Yours also looked a lot more textured than mine, which came out more smooth and a little “stickier” looking than yours. I followed the recipe exactly, so perhaps the peanut butter again? Just curious, because I know all natural peanut butter, like Adam’s brand, tends to be a little more dry.
Tracey – I just use Jif natural creamy. You could definitely cut down on the sweetness by adapting the other ingredients since it probably will depend on the sugar in the peanut butter. Good luck!
We make these all the time and love them! In an effort to cut out processed food, I sub the rice krispies for 1 cup of mixed nuts. We usually do sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and cashews or pecans. I chop the bigger nuts a bunch to help the balls stay together. We’ve used all variations of natural nut butters. Almond butter helps them stick together the best. I also cut down the honey to 1/2 cup. I’ve also made them without the coconut oil, but only once. I could really tell a difference and thought they were lacking something great. I make half a batch with chocolate chips and half without. My kids eat both versions like candy. Thanks again for another wonderful recipe!