These soft and chewy banana bread granola bars are gluten-free, refined sugar-free, nut-free, and can easily be made vegan! And the best part? They taste just like a slice of banana bread!
One week into 2015 and I have yet to actually figure out what my New Year’s resolutions are going to be. I have a general idea of things I want to accomplish this year, but I haven’t quite gotten around to laying them out in a nice and neat “I will do this; I won’t do that” format… and truth be told, I’m not sure it’s going to happen.
I’ve never been huge on resolutions, and despite feeling a slightly stronger-than-normal inkling to set some this year, that enthusiasm seems to have whittled away as the excitement of the New Year faded.
Instead, I’m going the One Word route… which is basically where you pick one word to motivate you and be your driving force for the next 365 days. Sounds pretty doable, eh? I think so. And in case you’re wondering, my one word is — drumroll pleaseeeeee —
DO.
Do what? Anything. Do this, do that, do it… just do. See, I have this nasty habit of spending way too much time stuck in my head — thinking, analyzing, calculating — and not enough time translating those thoughts into actions. I think a lot of it comes down to the fact that I have a tendency to get overwhelmed extremely easily, and the more ideas or to-dos I have floating around in my head, the harder it is for me to do anything because I don’t even know where to begin. I just end up feeling paralyzed and not really getting anything done.
And if you’re wondering what on earth this all has to do with granola bars, sit tight… I’m getting there.
So it’s been about 2.5 weeks since I’ve shared a recipe here on Spoons, which is basically forever as far as blog time goes. Part of that was because I was taking a mini vacation from the kitchen over the holidays, but a bigger part of it was the fact that I was starting to feel pretty burnt out by the end of the year and honestly couldn’t find the motivation to get back to recipe testing.
The reason? Spending too much time in my head! I have a pretty long list of recipe ideas that I want to try, and therein lies the problem — there are too many of them and I never know which one I should start with. I know, right? But I spend so much time trying to figure out which recipe would be the best to post, on which day of the week, at which time of the year, etc, etc… that I end up taking all the enjoyment out of the process and not wanting to post anything. Hmph.
Heck, I wasn’t even going to post these bars today — they weren’t on the list! They were nothing more than the result of a spur-of-the-moment desire for a convenient snack to take with me to the mountains tomorrow. A spontaneous decision to toss all of my favourite ingredients into a bowl and see what happened.
And what happened was magic.
No planning. No pressure. Just a batch of delicious gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and nut-free granola bars that taste just like banana bread. They’re soft, chewy, naturally sweet, and oh-so-satisfying. I may just have to try this doing thing more often…
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Banana Bread Granola Bars
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 10–12 bars 1x
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats*
- 2 Tbsp. ground flax
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 cup very ripe mashed bananas
- ¼ cup honey**
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chopped dates, or add-ins of choice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and prepare an 8×8 baking pan by lining it with a sheet of aluminum foil, leaving a few inches of overhang on the sides to allow for easy removal. Grease the foil with cooking spray or oil and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, flax, cinnamon, and salt. Add mashed bananas, honey, and vanilla, mixing until fully combined. Fold in dates.
- Pour mixture into prepared baking pan. Using a greased spatula or your hands, spread the mixture evenly in the pan, pressing down firmly.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until top sets and edges begin to turn golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 10 minutes before cutting into bars with a sharp knife.
Notes
* Make sure to use certified gluten-free oats if you need these to be gluten-free.
** Feel free to sub with brown rice syrup if vegan.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
Looking for more healthy granola bar recipes? Try one of these!
Soft and Chewy Pumpkin Granola Bars
Soft and Chewy Protein Granola Bars
No-Bake Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter Granola Bars
These are right up my alley! I have SO MANY bananas and will only eat them if they are at least spotted. The browner the better! And who cares if you haven’t posted a recipe in a couple weeks? Better something delicious than something fake thrown together to please readers.
YESSSS I made some banana bread granola the other day and it was delicious. But I like granola bars more than granola so I will CERTAINLY give these a whirl. Thanks Amanda !
Just DO is an awesome goal! I’m a lot like you in that I take forever to make some decision when I need to just do it and figure the details out LATER 🙂 Good luck with that goal!
And, these bars were a great place to start. They look delicious!
I have ripe bananas but they are all frozen. Do you think if I let it thaw it would work?
Cannot wait to try these.
Thawed frozen bananas will definitely work, Christine!
I just love your recipes. Don’t know how you cone up with this stuff but keep it coming cause I have a huge list of recipes I am still dying to try. It amazes me how you just seem to pick the right ingredients to make something g so good! I have so many resolutions but my main one is to not sweat the small stuff 🙂
Aww thanks, Daisy! I just make stuff that I’d love to eat myself, so I guess we must have similar tastes 🙂
I wish I could keep bananas in my house long enough to bake with them. I feel like no matter how many I buy they always disappear!
Right?!? I know -exactly- what you mean! And it’s even worse now that the weather is so cold and my bananas never seem to want to ripen fast enough. Nothing worse than eating greenish bananas 😡
I’m going to have to try this! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
watch out larabar, these might take the cake! actually yes they DO —> see what i did there? Word.. One.. YOU. 2015
Oh lady! I love these! Right up my alley, and so perfect for our overripe bananas! I think you should join me this year in an anti goal year, no pressure, no stress, but just let things happen 🙂
I’m thinking that I just might have to 😀
Amanda, these look delicious! These will be a great thing to make during this nursing semester. I love dates in baked banana goodies
Nice word. I DO want to try these, Amanda. 🙂
I see what you did just there. Well played 😉
2015 is your year to be a “Woman of Action.” I like this just DO plan. This year, you should definitely DO a pedicure, DO a trip to Cleveland and DO bring some of these bars.
Inspiration is a wonderful thing.
So if I’m understanding you correctly… I should get my toes done before hopping on a plane to Cleveland? I kind of feel like that defeats the whole purpose of a girls’ night complete with mani/pedis 😛
Oh no, you can definitely DO a pedicure in Cleveland. In fact, I might know a place.
Pedis, Chipotle, a fire, a SITC marathon, a little Oscar. Sounds quite nice right?!
No resolutions over heeyah! I actually don’t believe in them as I think they turn the concept of a “fun new year” into a stressful “to-do” list that is more about attaining somewhat unrealistic goals rather than enjoying whatever the new year brings you. Your’s is more acceptable though as it is so open and unspecific.
And these granola bars….perfect example to back up my “whatever the new year brings you” point; these bars just happened, and BOOM: culinary goodness!
What?! No chocolate? I’m not interested…
(joking. obvs)
It was originally going to be chocolate, but then dates happened. Sorry I’m not sorry 😛
Oh my goodness these sound heavenly. In the spirit of being pregnant, I might have to add some chocolate chips. But yummm yum yum.
I was actually originally planning on making them with chocolate chips, but decided to go with dates at the last minute. You can -never- go wrong with chocolate, though!
These sound delicious! I love the banana bread granola from Nature Box, so this will be a great make at home option!
I’m glad you decided to share these (even if they weren’t on the list) because they look incredible! I actually had something similar from a bakery that I was going to try and recreate but it was more like a cookie. Either way, these look delicious! Pinned! 🙂
“Granola bars that taste just like banana bread”???? WOA – girl, these sound fabulous! Honey and dates as sweeteners are such a tasty alternative to refined sugar! Hope you have a blast “doing” what you love in the mountains! P.S. I love your motivating word idea! xxs
Okay. Yup. I was *this close* to throwing out a couple of bananas that passed the smoothie stage of ripeness. I may in fact be able to use them to make this recipe!! Love me some banana bread.
Keep DOING. It’s working for you so far!! 😉
SO jealous! I can barely even get my bananas to ripen because of how cold it’s been here lately. Is it summer yet?!
These looks delicious, and I love that it’s made up of “easy” ingredients 🙂
These look so yummy and ridiculously easy, even I can’t mess them up!
I love this! “Do” is the perfect resolution!!! And I love this recipe! These bars look so good, and for some reason they remind me of rice crispies, and I love those a little too much!
Oh I hear ya on that one, girl. There’s something inexplicably irresistible about rice crispies…
I love the one word idea. I’ve never done it before – but I’m doing it this year! My word is opportunity. Kind of the same reasoning as yours… I see some opportunity, but I don’t ever take advantage of it. So my focus this year will be not only to seek more opportunity, but to take it.
Love your “resolution word” and your thoughts behind it! I actually have the same problem with creating recipes and have realized that, the more ideas I think of, the less I’m actually going to do one at all. Spontaneous and delicious recipes=the best. And these have got me drooling 😉
You are the queen of amazing recipes! Every time I see a friend of mine pin one of your recipes, I want to all caps comment about how delicious your bars and muffins are 🙂 Please keep doing what you’re doing!
Sweetest.comment.ever. Thanks, Kate! <3
I would make these if only my bananas would get ripe already!
Oh I’m so with you about your choice of word- just do! It’s funny how some of the best things are a result of spontaneity rather than overthinking. Heck my recent trip to Dubai was a spur of the minute decision- I’ve never booked a trip so last minute and with such little thought but it ended up being a great call…cheers to many more similar instances :)! I haven’t really set any concrete resolutions this year but I aim to create as much as value as possible this year, be it with my career, health, relationships with other and my life overall!
Have a great weekend in the mountains and eat a bar (or 3) for me- they look divine!
Creating value… that’s such a gorgeous way to phrase it. And I have no doubt that you’ll knock that resolution out of the park 🙂
I get stuck in my head alot too. I was going to post on my blog today but got stuck in my head last night about what post was best, was the timing right, etc. so instead of posting something, I got nothing. I love your word for the year. What a great idea! And the bars look delicious!
You’re definitely not alone on that one, Sarah. I can’t even tell you how many time I’ve just decided not to post because I got way too caught up in the details.
I love any treats with bananas and these look delicious! I think it’s easy to get a little burned out by the end of the year. Recipe testing is not an easy process. Glad you took a little break. Enjoy your weekend and stay warm!
I COMPLETELY understand the feeling of getting overwhelmed easily, and having so many ideas but not sure exactly where to begin etc. Seriously- everything you just posted- totally relate. I love this recipe though because it’s so simple, not too many ingredients, and something my kids would totally love as well- thanks for posting!
Oh yum! Love this combo of flavrs and how simple irbid to make. You are the queen!! Good luck with those resolutions!
Thanks, Sam! <3
Wow this is great! Looks so delicious I will try to make them this weekend. I Thanks for sharing.
Such a great attitude to have! The phrase that keeps popping into my head when I think of this year is ‘I can’ – all too often I feel I’m not capable of doing things or that I don’t have the time, when really I can do anything I darn want to! I’ve been saying it just before I go to sleep each night (yup, one of those people it seems) and it appears to be helping 🙂
I really love this, Pip! “I can” is such a strong thing to remind ourselves of — I think I might just have to add that to my pre-bed routine too 🙂
This year, I just set attainable goals for myself. One, for example, was to organize my closets! This one is half-way checked off my list. I just love having concrete things to check-off.
Thank you for this recipe! So often recipes for bars like this have so many odd ingredients or 5 kinds of nuts that are so expensive. This one is simple and easy. Awesome!
Funny story…I hated bananas till I started running. Weird I know..it’s like my body made me like them because I needed them. who knows.
Again, thanks for this recipe. I am hanging on to it for later!
I wasn’t a big fan of bananas when I was younger either! It wasn’t until somewhere in my 20’s that I really starting loving them.
I substituted real maple syrup for the honey to make them maples banana granola bars…..
These look awesome! I’ve been craving banana bread lately but I want something easily transportable for work snacks…best of both worlds right here.
Love your idea for your motivating word of 2015 – pretty perfect!
These looks great! My kids love the “banana bread” Lara bar flavor and I’m sure they’d love these. Great idea for a portable snack.
These look awesome Amanda! I love banana bread so having it in a portable granola bar form would be perfect 🙂
Mmm! I love banana bread but know how terrible my recipe is. I actually have some ripe bananas that would be perfect for these! I can’t wait to make them 🙂 Still haven’t tried dates, ha.
You should make that one of your resolutions 😛
Well if this is a result of your one-word resolution, then keep it up! I’m a sucker for banana bread. And granola. So banana bread granola bars are an obvious hit with me! Thanks!
Totally agree Danielle!