Superfood Energy Granola Bars {vegan} + GIVEAWAY!

Looking for a delicious snack to have on hand for when you need a little extra push to power through your day? Look no further! These homemade granola bars are easy to make and are packed with nutrients. Get the recipe for these superfood energy granola bars below!

This post was sponsored by Swanson Health Products and I received compensation for this post. All opinions are my own. You can read more about my policies, here.

I have a snacking problem. From about three in the afternoon on, I get a huge case of the munchies and I frequently find myself in the kitchen wondering what to eat next. Is it boredom? I don’t think so. I have plenty of work to do! Is it because I just love food so much? Possibly. Or maybe it’s because we tend to eat dinner pretty late and it’s quite a span of time between lunch and my next meal.

I love to make homemade versions of my favorite snacks whenever I can to save a few bucks and ensure I know exactly what’s going into my body. Hence, the reason behind these KIND bar-inspired almond apricot bites or this tart cherry and almond protein granola.

Whatever the reason for my snacking habit, it’s real, and I try to manage it as best as I can by choosing nutrient-dense foods that are going to fill me up and fuel me through the rest of the day!

So what exactly does “nutrient-dense” mean anyways?

To me, it means any food that provides a variety of nutrients, such as protein, fiber, healthy carbs, vitamins and minerals in one serving that leaves me feeling satisfied. Essentially, I’m getting the biggest bang for my health buck, here!

Superfoods fall into this nutrient-dense category and we are using not one, not two, but three superstar superfoods in these homemade granola bars! Sounds almost too good to be true, right? Believe it friends, because we’re packing in the good stuff by throwing goji berries, hemp seeds and chia seeds into the mix!

Swanson Health Products is always my online source for finding such superfoods. Why? Because they focus on quality products that promote a healthy lifestyle and are budget-friendly. I’ve found many products on their site that I can’t always find in the store, such as tart cherry concentrate for my Very Berry Cherry Smoothie or nutritional yeast for my kale chips with a cheesy cashew dipping sauce!

This amazing company was not only kind enough to send me products for recipe testing, but they’re also giving one of you a $50 gift certificate to help stock your kitchen with your own superfoods! Enter the giveaway at the bottom of this post for a chance to win because, who doesn’t love free stuff?!

Back to the superfood energy granola bars.

I need to put a little disclaimer on these bad boys before you dive right in. I made these bars twice because the first batch didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to. The key to success with these bars is to really press the mixture into the pan. You could use a rolling pin, your hand (make sure they are wet) or the flat edge of a food scraper like I did. Just make sure they are packed in there! This makes it much easier to cut when ready to serve and prevents them from falling apart so easily.

These homemade granola bars are inspired by Angela’s Glo Bars from Oh She Glows. If there’s one person I have an incredible amount of respect for (and secretly hope to be like one day) it’s her.

These bars are so good, you might be tempted to just sit there with the mixing bowl and a spoon. Hey, I don’t blame you! But make sure you leave a little (or really, a lot!) to turn the bowl of gooey goodness into delicious bars to be able to grab when the snack attack hits.

These bars will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to two weeks or in the freezer for up to a month!

Now, what are you waiting for! Roll up your sleeves, get mixing, and make yourself some homemade granola bars! Oh, and go ahead and enter the giveaway below 🙂

Superfood Energy Granola Bars

• Author: Carly at fitlivingeats.com
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 10 minutes
• Yield: 9 bars 1x

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Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups puffed cereal
• 1 1/2 cups oats
• 1/2 cup goji berries
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 1/4 cup coconut flakes
• 2 Tablespoons chia seeds
• 2 Tablespoons hemp seeds
• 1/2 cup brown rice syrup
• 1/4 cup almond butter
• 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

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Instructions

1. Combine all of the dry ingredients (puffed cereal, oats, almonds, goji berries, coconut flakes, chia seeds and hemp seeds) in a large mixing bowl.
2. In a small saucepan, heat the brown rice syrup, almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla and salt over low heat until thoroughly mixed.
3. Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour into the dry ingredient mixture. Stir until the dry ingredients are well coated with the wet mixture. This may take a few minutes and may seem too dry at first, but it will get there!
4. Line a square baking dish with parchment paper and pour the granola bar mixture onto the parchment paper. Push the mixture into the pan with a spatula, creating an even layer. To ensure the mixture is packed together, press it with a rolling pin or with your hands (make sure they are wet to prevent the mixture from sticking).
5. Place the bars in the freezer for at least 30 minutes or until very firm. To cut the granola bars, hold either side of the parchment paper to remove the mixture from the pan and use a pizza cutter to cut nine even squares. The bars may be a little messy as they sit out at room temperature, but that’s okay. They will firm back up in the refrigerator or freezer.
6. Bars can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to a month.

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It’s giveaway time!

Enter below for your chance to win a $50 gift certificate to Swanson Health. The winner will be announced on 6/6.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Snacking!

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