Hazelnut, Banana & Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

These bars are packed with health-boosting, delicious, natural ingredients. They’re chewy and gooey, thanks to the dehydrated banana, the dates, and the roasted hazelnut butter. However, they’ve still got that perfect crunch from the roasted hazelnuts, cacao nibs, and vegan chocolate chips. This recipe is also super quick to make. Give it a try!

Credit: Cocoon Cooks

Ingredients

Dry ingredients

• 2 cups organic rolled oats
• 3/4 cup hazelnuts
• 1/4 cup cacao nibs
• 1/2 cup dehydrated banana slices, cut into quarters

Wet ingredients

• 8 medjool dates, pitted
• 1/4 cup roasted hazelnut butter (or peanut butter)
• 1/4 cup rice malt syrup

Top with

• 2 tbsp vegan dark chocolate chips

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 300ºF | 150ºC.
2. Place the rolled oats and hazelnuts in separate trays and toast each tray in the oven for 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, soak the pitted medjool dates in a small bowl with warm water, for approximately 10 minutes.
4. Remove trays from the oven and allow the oats and hazelnuts to cool down. Gently rub the hazelnuts with your hands or a kitchen cloth to remove their skins.
5. In a mixing bowl, mix the toasted oats and hazelnuts with the rest of the dry ingredients.
6. Drain the medjool dates and squeeze them gently to remove any excess water. Then, put them in your food processor, along with the nut butter and rice malt syrup, and blend for a while, until you get a caramel-like smooth mixture.
7. Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly using a spatula or your own hands. It is supposed to be a thick and dense mixture.
8. Pour this mixture into a rectangular or square pan (we used a 10″ x 7″ brownie pan) and press it down firmly with your hands. Make sure it is tightly and evenly packed.
9. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top and press them gently into the granola mix.
10. Place the pan in the freezer for about half an hour to allow the granola mix to set.
11. Remove from the freezer and cut immediately into bars or squares. Store in an airtight container.