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These Sourdough Granola bars are soft and chewy, full of flavor, and are so easy to make. They make a great snack for your kids that you can feel good about since they are made with simple ingredients.
This copy-cat Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars recipe is a great alternative to the store-bought version. Not only are these Sourdough Granola Bars made with wholesome ingredients, they taste even better than the store-bought bars! With minimal prep time and a quick and easy recipe, this is a great sourdough discard snack recipe the whole family will love.
Table of Contents
- Sourdough snacks for kids
- Reasons you will love these homemade granola bars
- Tips for Success
- Tools to make sourdough granola bars
- Optional add-ins for Sourdough Granola Bars
- Ingredients for Sourdough Granola Bars
- How to make Sourdough Granola Bars
- How to store Sourdough Granola bars
- Sourdough Granola Bars Recipe
Sourdough snacks for kids
I love stocking my pantry with snacks for my kids made with my sourdough starter. Some of our favorites are cheez-its, goldfish, animal crackers, and now these chewy granola bars. This sourdough discard granola bar recipe makes a great after-school snack or addition to a packed school lunch. These bars are chewy and delicious, and won’t crumble like many of the homemade granola bars.
Reasons you will love these homemade granola bars
- Made with simple ingredients like oats, honey, peanut butter, and sourdough discard.
- They don’t crumble or fall apart.
- Great for kids and school lunches.
- Knock off version of the Chewy granola bars without all the extra ingredients.
Tips for Success
- Press the granola mixture into the 9×9 pan with a piece of parchment paper before baking. This will help the bars stay together.
- Do not skip putting the bars in the fridge for an hour before cutting into them. The cooler temperatures will set the bars and ensure they stay together when cut.
- Wrap individually in beeswax or seran wrap for an easy grab-and-go snack option.
- Use rolled oats not quick oats. Quick oats are too thin and do not keep their texture as they cook.
- You can substitute peanut butter for almond butter or another nut butter if preferred.
Tools to make sourdough granola bars
The only tool you’ll need is a 9×9 pan. and some parchment paper. I don’t recommend skipping the parchment paper as it is very helpful in getting the bars out of the pan after baking.
Optional add-ins for Sourdough Granola Bars
I love using mini chocolate chips in this recipe, but you can leave them out if you’d like, or you can even substitute them for your favorite add-ins! You can use cinnamon, pumpkin seeds, nuts such as walnuts or almonds, or dried fruit such as golden raisins, cranberries, or apricots.
Ingredients for Sourdough Granola Bars
- Melted butter- Salted or unsalted butter works great or substitute for coconut oil for a dairy-free option.
- Peanut butter – You can substitute for any nut butter you prefer such as almond butter but be sure to use a creamy version not crunchy.
- Honey – This helps not only sweeten the bars but helps them stay together. You can swap honey for maple syrup if you’d like.
- Sourdough discard- Discard is the portion of your sourdough starter that you remove before feeding. It is no longer active and bubbly and is not ideal for leavening bread, but makes a great addition to recipes like this one!
- Vanilla extract – This enhances the flavors in the bars.
- Brown sugar – The brown sugar not only adds flavor but also helps the granola bars stay together.
- Rolled oats – Be sure to use rolled oats, not quick oats or steel-cut oats.
- Salt – Any type of salt you have on hand will work.
- Mini chocolate chips – This is optional, you can omit or replace it with an ingredient like dried fruit or nuts.
How to make Sourdough Granola Bars
Preheat the oven to 325F.
First, melt the peanut butter and butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Then, mix in the honey, discard, and vanilla extract in a medium bowl. Add in brown sugar, rolled oats, and salt and stir to combine. Fold in chocolate chips.
Line a 9×9″ square baking pan with parchment paper. Dump the mixture into the prepared pan. Using a piece of parchment paper press the mix into the pan to form an even layer.
Bake for 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly browning and then remove them from the pan and let them cool. Grab the ends of the parchment paper to easily lift them out.
Once they have cooled, cover them and place them in the fridge for at least an hour or more. This makes it easier to cut and so they do not fall apart. Cut them into 12 equal bars.
Wrap them individually in beeswax or plastic wrap so you can easily grab them for a quick grab-and-go snack.
How to store Sourdough Granola bars
It’s best to store them wrapped in beeswax or seran wrap, or in an airtight container or ziplock bag. If kept on the counter they will last several days, or they will last up to 10 days in the fridge. If you want to freeze them, you can wrap them individually and then add them to a freezer bag. They will stay fresh in the freezer for a couple of months. To thaw, just remove them from the fridge and let them thaw on the counter or in the fridge.
Sourdough Granola Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
- 57 grams butter, melted, 1/4 cup
- 65 grams peanut butter, 1/4 cup
- 120 grams honey, 1/2 cup
- 120 grams sourdough discard, 1/2 cup
- 5 grams vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon
- 55 grams brown sugar, 1/4 cup
- 360 grams rolled oats, 4 cups
- 3 grams salt, 1/2 teaspoon
- 163 grams mini chocolate chips (optional), 1 cup
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325℉
- Melt peanut butter and butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Mix in the honey, discard, and vanilla extract in a large bowl.57 grams butter, melted, 65 grams peanut butter, 120 grams honey, 120 grams sourdough discard, 5 grams vanilla extract
- Then mix in brown sugar, rolled oats, and salt. Fold in chocolate chips. 55 grams brown sugar, 360 grams rolled oats, 3 grams salt, 163 grams mini chocolate chips (optional)
- Line a 9×9" pan with parchment paper. Dump the mixture into the pan. Using a piece of parchment paper, firmly press the mix into the pan to create an even layer. Pressing the mixture into the pan is important for getting the bars to stay together so don't skip this. Go over it once or twice with the parchment paper.
- Bake for 25 minutes at 325℉.
- After it has baked let cool. Once it has cooled, cover and place in the fridge for at least an hour, ideally two.
- Cut into 12 equal bars. Wrap individually with plastic wrap or beeswax or store in an airtight container.
Notes
- Don't skip placing these in the fridge for an hour. It will make the bars stick together and make it much easier to cut.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe is quite possibly the yummiest thing I’ve ever baked! I used a pan slightly smaller than suggested, and my bars were REALLY thick. I’ll use a larger pan next time to spread out the granola into thinner bars. Delicious!!
So glad you liked them!
My family loves these granola bars! I only put half the amount of chocolate chips because the full amount manes it just taste like chocolate chips. Other than that, they’re great! They barely last a day 😅
Glad you liked them! We do like a lot of chocolate around here haha 🙂
Just made these for my grandsons.
Oh my goodness! Deliciousness. And full of good things. Next time will add some almonds or other nut, but it’s a keeper for sure!
So happy to hear you liked them!
I don’t have a 9 x 9 pan. What else have you used successfully?
You could do an 8×8 or 10×10 or if you don’t have either you could just put it in a 9×13 but not use the whole space.
I absolutely love this recipe! I modified slightly by using white chocolate chips and adding dried cranberries. The recipe is so versatile and quick to make.
I was curious if there is a way to make them crunchy instead of chewy. Would I just add more cook time? Decrease the wet ingredients?
Hmm you might be able to cook longer but they will start getting crumbly as well.
When I was weighing everything out for the recipe, on my scale 360g of oats was only 3 cups not 4. Do I trust the weight or the measurement listed? Because they did not match for me.
Always go with grams that will be the most accurate.
Love this recipe! I make these at least every other week if not more. I do omit the extra added sugar because I find they are plenty sweet enough with just the honey and chocolate chips.
Thanks for sharing Abby! So glad you like them.
I omitted the brown sugar and decreased honey a bit but added puréed raisins and figs and my toddler loves! It’s the best granola I’ve ever had honestly.
Thanks so much for the review. Did the bars hold together well with the decreased honey?
Hoping to make them dairy free- can I substitute coconut oil for the butter?
I have the same question!
Yes you can sub coconut oil!
I haven’t used the recipe yet, but I don’t have a microwave so is there a way to melt the butter and peanut butter on a stovetop?
I always melt mine in a small pot on the stove. I melt the butter about 50% of the way, then add the peanut butter butter. Just keep stirring or watch very closely so they don’t burn. It’s how I melt or warm most things for my cooking/baking!