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{This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill}
Making a childhood favorite today, homemade blueberry Nutri Grain bars.
As a kid, I loved Nutri Grain bars. I wasn’t really into sugary candies, potato chips, or other “kid” food, but I loved Nutri Grain bars. They were filled with fruity goodness and unlike like other snack bars, they were soft and had that fresh outta of the oven feel to them. Some days I would eat them as a quick breakfast, other days I’d snack on them after school.
As I got older, I slowly grew away from eating the Nutri Grain bars from the box, but that doesn’t mean I don’t get the cravings for one every now and again. <–don’t lie, you know you crave Oreos sometimes too…
In the first year of the blog I made these strawberry Nutri Grain bars (check them out for the strawberry goodness version, I’ve updated the recipe too) and had completely forgotten all about them.
Until now that is.
With everything happening with my Nonnie, it’s left me craving some childhood favorites. Sometimes when you feel kind of down all you really need to do to feel happy again is take yourself back to being a kid for a second.
I know it sounds silly, but trust me it works.
Thankfully, I have this amazing recipe, and my brothers, to bring out the kid out in me again and I could not be more grateful. And speaking of brothers, I just have to say what a life saver it’s been having Kai around (he’s staying at my parents house, which neighbors mine) to help with all the animals…hello to eight goats, thirteen chickens, and two cats. Could not be doing it all and keeping up with work (and life in general) without him. Family is truly the best and I love that mine is always there for each other for the ups and the downs.
Anyway, with back to school time right around the corner (little miss Asher goes back the 24th of August) my cravings for homemade Nutri Grain bars could not have come at a better time because these are perfect for an on the go breakfast or snack packed up for school!
And while you might think it would be hard to make something like these bars at home, it could not be more opposite.
These are actually incredibly quick and easy to make. Yeah!
Okay. Here’s how this recipe does down.
The dough is made up of two of my favorite Bob’s Red Mill ingredients, whole grain flour and old fashioned oats. If there are two baking ingredients I use most often, it’s probably these two.
The secret to the dough however? Greek yogurt. This is what keeps the bars from becoming crunchy, and instead leaves them incredibly soft and moist. I know it sounds a little weird, but trust me, after testing this recipe multiple times, it’s the Greek yogurt that is key!
For the filling, I made a simple homemade blueberry jam, because I had literally buckets of blueberries that were beginning to wrinkle, so jam it was! You can of course use store-bought jam too…and any flavor works!
These are delicious fresh out of the oven or packed up for snacks throughout the day. You can even freeze them and then thaw when you need something super quick!
And lastly? I just have to say that I made these again on Sunday solely for the purpose of wanting to bake up something comforting and it made my whole vibe just happier.
Bottom line? Bake up a childhood favorite, put a smile on…and maybe do something silly too. Sometimes we all just need to be carefree kids again…
Homemade Blueberry Nutri Grain Bars
Servings: 10 bars
Calories Per Serving: 285 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Bob's Red Mill Whole Wheat Flour
- 3/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Old Fashioned Oats
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, grated
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons plain greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 cup blueberry jam, homemade or store-bought
- buttermilk, for brushing
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix the flour, oatmeal, cinnamon, and salt together. Add the butter and toss to coat. Add the egg yolks, yogurt, honey, and vanilla and mix until combined, adding 1 tablespoon of cold water at a time until the dough comes together and forms a ball. 2. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Roll out into a 1/8-inch thickness. Cut the dough into about 4" x 4 1/2" squares. Place a heaping tablespoon of jam down the center of each square, leaving about 1/4 inch border. Brush the borders with buttermilk. Fold one side up and over the filling and then pinch the dough together at either end. Do the same for the other side and use your fingers to seal the dough together at the seams. Carefully roll the bar over and place the seam side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with remaining dough.3. Cover the bars and place the baking sheet in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Once chilled, brush the tops of the bars lightly with buttermilk and transfer to the oven, bake on the middle rack for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden brown on top, do not over bake.4. Allow to cool 5-10 minutes, then carefully transfer the bars to a glass container with a lid, layering them between pieces of parchment paper. This will trap in heat and moisture, and slightly steam the bars, ensuring they remain soft. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or in the fridge for longer. These can also be wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen, thaw for 1 hour.
Quick Blueberry Jam
Servings: 1 cups of jam
Calories Per Serving: 668 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
- 1/3 cup honey
- juice of 1 lemon
- pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
- 1. Add the blueberries, honey, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt to a medium size pot set over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, once boiling use a potato masher or fork to break down and mash the blueberries. Continue to cook for 5-8 minutes or until the jam has reduced and thickened by half. Remove from the heat and let cool. Store in a glass jar in the fridge for up to two weeks.
With fruity Nutri Grain bars in hand. Obviously.
{This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Half Baked Harvest cooking!}
Do you blend up the oats beforehand or just put the whole oats in there?
Hey Bob,
I keep them whole:) I hope you give this recipe a try, let me know how it turns out! xTieghan
My grandson and I made strawberry ones! He loves nutragrain bars and I wanted something healthier for him. He loved them! He’s 3 we will be trying all kinds of flavors! Thank you!!
Hey Robin,
Fantastic!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
I am excited to try these. My daughter is dairy free. Do you think it would work to sub coconut yogurt for Greek yogurt? Thanks
Hey Caitlin,
Yes, I think coconut yogurt would work well for you. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
How much cocoa to make these chocolate crusted?
Hey Amanda, I would not recommend adding cocoa powder to these bars. I don’t think that would work well. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
I’m so glad I found this recipe…my kids loved them! So tasty, just like all of your recipes!
Love that!! Thank you Alane! xTieghan
So far so good! The only thing I was struggling with was the dough would rip very easily. I’m guessing that I didn’t put enough water in when mixed, as I was overly cautious of not adding too much water. Any other advice, let me know, but otherwise we’ve really enjoyed exploring your recipes. (I have 3 boys and I like having them involved in the kitchen).
Hi Julie! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! Thank you so much for trying it!! xTieghan
I have blueberry syrup in my fridge right now. I know it is not the same, but do you think I could use it instead of jam? or do you have a suggestion to make it thick like a jam?
Hi Jamie! Can you thicken the syrup on the stove top with fresh blueberries to make it more jammy? If so I would recommend doing that! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
I am always looking for homemade snacks for the kids. I made these last night and the kids and my husband liked them a lot. I doubled the recipe and made them larger than suggested so I can use for breakfast on the go and added chia seeds to the filling for a nutrition boost but the recipe was great and I will be saving and making again. Can wait to see what other recipes you have! Thanks!
Thank you so much Jessica! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Can you make these gluten free?
Hi Krystal! I have not tested it, but I would recommend trying a GF flour blend such as Bob’s red mill. Again, I have not tested this so not sure how it will turn out. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
I was googling nutri grain bar recipes, and this just so happened to be the first hit that came up in my search! I use your recipes all the time, so I was happy to see this recipe pop-up since I’m familiar with your blog and trust your recipes ?
I used your strawberry filling instead of blueberry, and they turned out FANTASTIC! I was trying to find a homemade recipe with minimal sugar because I was making these for my 10 month old daughter. The store bought ones have too much sugar and ingredients that are sometimes questionable. I needed to swap the honey for maple syrup since little ones under 1 are not supposed to eat honey, and my daughter absolutely loves them (and I also enjoy her leftovers ?).
Thanks for another great recipe xo
Hi Michelle! I am so glad these turned out amazing for you! Thank you so much! xTieghan
These look delicious! I am going to attempt to make them gluten-free, wish me luck!
Thank you so much Sandra! xTieghan
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Just made them! I was wondering if the dough could be helped with some sugar?
Hey Megan, of you feel they need more sweetness, try adding 1-2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much! xTieghan
I am in love with this recipe! Made these for my kids and they loved them. I used strawberry, but next will use blueberry. Thanks for the fantastic recipe!
I am so glad they liked these!! I hope you all like the blueberry just as much ?
I was wondering if you think it would negatively effect the recipe if I blended up the oats before usi g them in the recipe? J have crohn’s disease and diverticulitis and have to avoid certain foods because they really hurt my insides. Blending them up would make them easier to digest though.
Hi Allie,
I think that would probably be okay for you to do! Let me know how the recipe turns out:) xx