No Bake Apple Bars an incredibly delicious, healthy homemade snack made with dried apples, whole grain cereal, raisins, oats, peanut butter and honey! Perfect no-bake snack for after school eats!
3cupsWhole Grain Total cerealor any healthy cereal you have on hand
¼cuphoney
¼cupgolden raisinsAlternatives to use dried cherries or craisins would taste great too.
⅓cuppeanut butter
¼cupapple butteror any fruit butter OR just increase the peanut butter by ¼ cup
½tspground cinnamon
½cupold-fashioned or quick-cooking oats
¼cupdry-roasted sunflower seeds
Instructions
Start by lining the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square pan with foil, then spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle ½ cup of the dried, chopped, apples over bottom of pan, set it aside.
Next, place the cereal in a zip locked plastic bag and coarsely crush it with a rolling pin or meat mallet. Set the bag of cereal aside for later use.
After that, in a large saucepan, combine and heat ½ cup of the dried apples, the honey and raisins to boiling over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Then, reduce the heat to medium, cook uncovered for about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until hot and bubbly; remove from the heat.
Stir the peanut butter into the cooked mixture until it has completely melted. Then add in the apple butter and cinnamon, stir to combine. Also, stir in the oats and sunflower seeds until well mixed. Lastly, add in the bag of crushed cereal and stir well to combine.
Once all the ingredients are well combined, pour the mixture over the top of the apples in the prepared pan. Then, grab a small plastic baggie and put it over your hand & spray this bag with non-stick cooking spray. Continue to press the mixture very firmly (or bars will crumble) and evenly onto the apples in pan. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of dried apples and the pecans; press lightly into the bars.
Put the dish in the fridge and refrigerate for about 2 hours or until set. When you are ready to serve, cut the bars into 12 squares, serve and enjoy!
Notes
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. Will stay fresh for up to 7 days. Bars can be frozen for up to 2 months.