Easy Homemade Granola Bars

I love trying to make snacks and meals from scratch.  Not all the time of course, but I kinda enjoy the challenge, and it makes you feel good (when it's successful, at least..).  ;)

I used to love the Quaker Oatmeal Chewy Granola Bars.  I thought they were SO good.  Well, no longer, my friends.  This recipe at The Suburban Jungle is definitely tastier (and cheaper!).

Out of respect for her blog, I'm not posting the recipe here.  I don't think it's very fair to copy everything to my own blog when I could just send the traffic her way, considering she made the recipe.  ;)

So, go ahead and check out the recipe... I'll wait here.

I'll tell you what I do differently.

• I double the base recipe, just because I want to make more at one time.  
• Then, I add about a cup of chocolate chips.  I've tried Dark Chocolate Chips, because I figured it was a little healthier...they have antioxidants!!  ;)  
• I haven't tried any of the other optional items, but when I haven't had any rice krispies, I've just used all oats, which isn't bad, but not as good.  
• I've also substituted Rice Krispies with whatever cereal I have on hand, such as Honey Bunches of Oats or Chex.  Those were both yummy.  

So, the recipe seems to be pretty flexible.

Plus, you don't have to bake it!  How awesome is that??  Love this recipe!!

Sometimes I cut them up into pieces, individually wrap them with saran wrap, and place them in a ziploc bag. That way, you can just grab one on the go.  Unfortunately, this hasn't happened lately.  (I should probably mention that I did it that way before I had a little one to keep up with!)  We usually end up just eating them out of the pan, which is delicious, although a little dangerous because of how accessible it is.  ;)

Hope y'all enjoy!

I party here!