Chocolate, Coconut, and Pecan Granola Bars
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
Description
These homemade granola bars are not only much healthier than the ones you can buy at a store, they taste way better too!
Ingredients
- Coconut oil, to grease the pan
- 1 (13 2/3 fl oz/403 ml) can full-fat coconut milk
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp butterscotch flavor (see note below)
- 2 cups (200 g) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup (60 g) toasted and cooled (unsalted) pecans, chopped (or any nuts you like)
- 2 tbsp golden ground flaxseed
- 1/3 tsp fine salt
- 1/2 cup (100 g) mini semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Line an 8 by 8-inch dish with parchment paper and grease the inside with coconut oil; set aside.
- Combine the coconut milk and maple syrup in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down so it doesn’t boil over, and boil until reduced to about 1 cup, about 20 minutes, whisking frequently. (The cooking process is all about evaporating off the extra liquid. Because of this, it could take longer depending on the weather; I made mine on a cold, dry day, but I expect it could take a bit longer on a hot, humid day.) Cool completely to room temperature (this is very important so that your chocolate chips don’t melt). Stir in the vanilla extract and butterscotch flavor.
- Combine the oats, nuts, ground flaxseed, salt, and chocolate chips in a large bowl, and then stir in the coconut/maple syrup mixture.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and spread it out evenly with a spatula. Cover the top with parchment paper; firmly and evenly press down across the top to compact the mixture.
- Cover and refrigerate until fully chilled, at least 2 hours, before cutting into bars.
- Once cut into bars, wrap them individually and store refrigerated up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Butterscotch Flavor: I use Frontier Natural Butterscotch Flavor.
- If you can’t find this, you can use a different flavor or extract; caramel would also work well here, or just omit it and increase the vanilla extract to 2 teaspoons.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Category: Snack
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 200
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the coconut milk and maple syrup need to boil and reduce for about 20 minutes?
The instructions explain that the cooking process is entirely about evaporating off the extra liquid in the 13.5 oz can of full-fat coconut milk until it reduces to about 1 cup. This concentrated mixture acts as the binder that holds the oats, pecans, flaxseed, and chocolate chips together. The notes add that the process could take longer on a hot, humid day because the air is already saturated with moisture.
Why must the coconut milk mixture cool completely before mixing in the chocolate chips?
The instructions specifically flag this as “very important” — if the reduced coconut milk is still warm when you stir in the 1/2 cup of mini semisweet chocolate chips, the residual heat will melt them and you will lose the chocolate chip texture entirely.
What is butterscotch flavor, and what can I use instead?
The recipe uses 1 tsp of Frontier Natural Butterscotch Flavor, a concentrated extract. The notes say if you cannot find it, caramel extract is a good swap, or you can omit it and simply increase the vanilla extract from 1 tsp to 2 tsp. 
