Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola Bars

This weekend was busy with my birthday. A major milestoner you might say. You can see how I handled it by clicking here.

Every Monday and Friday we go on a hike somewhere. Since we live so close to the canyon, it’s fun to take the kids and I on a different trail every week. And our dog LOVES coming along and playing in the river.

One of the things we always bring with us is a kid friendly snack. And these granola bars are perfect. I found it in the Family Fun Cookbook. I altered the recipe a little bit since there were ingredients my kids wouldn’t like. But now they’ve got a kid friendly snack that we can bring along with us. And in my personal opinion, chocolate ALWAYS makes everything better. 🙂

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup natural creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp honey

2 cups granola (any flavor–we used honey almond)

1 cup old fashioned oatmeal

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups Rice Krispy cereal (there are several natural/organic brands too! Try brands like Mom’s Best or Cascadian Farms)

1 cup mini chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease a 9×13 inch pan with cooking spray or oil.

Combine peanut butter and honey in a saucepan over low heat and cook until peanut butter and honey melts. Stir occasionally while cooking.

Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine granola, oatmeal and sunflower seeds. Slowly mix in the peanut butter and honey and stir until incorporated well. Mix in the eggs, and continue stirring until eggs are incorporated. Add rice krispies and chocolate chips and continue stirring until mixture is well combined.

Press granola mixture into the 9×13 inch pan evenly. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until granola is lightly browned on the edges. Remove from oven, and cool granola completely before cutting. Cut into approximately 20 squares, wrap individually in tin foil or plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container up to two weeks.