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    Home » Breakfast

    Low Fat Granola Bars with Bananas, Cranberries & Pecans Recipe

    Published: Jan 4, 2012 · Modified: Sep 11, 2019 by Dara · This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. · 85 Comments

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    Ditch the store-bought snacks and make a batch of these low fat granola bars. Lower in sugar and fat, but with plenty of flavor.
    Ditch the store-bought snacks and make a batch of these low fat granola bars. Lower in sugar and fat, but with plenty of flavor. #granolabars #healthysnacks

    From all of your responses to Recipes for Good Healthy and Weight Loss in 2012, it sounds as though many of you are dedicated to either continuing healthy habits or creating some new ones. I alluded to a weight loss journey I have been on over the past several months and will be giving you tips and tricks that have worked for me. Let's start with what they call "the most important meal of the day". No, I'm not referring to that bowl of ice cream at 10pm when the kids are in bed and the sugary treats begin their siren call. I'm talking about breakfast. That is where these low fat granola bars, packed with bananas, dried cranberries and pecans, come into play.

    Both my husband and I are runners and we log enough miles in the week to get our hunger urges revving at full speed. In addition, my husband lifts free weights and I attend an aerobic/strength training class a couple of times per week. That's where this recipe comes in. The amazing woman who teaches the strength training class often provides us with her favorite healthy eating tips and the occasional recipe. I took this recipe, filled with fiber and natural sugars, and made a few tweaks based on my family's taste preferences. It works perfectly as pre-exercise fuel or to curb afternoon hunger cravings.

    These granola bars are soft and chewy rather than crispy and have a pleasing level of natural sweetness from the bananas, ground cinnamon and grated nutmeg. However, if you prefer granola bars with a touch more sweetness, consider adding a couple of tablespoons of maple syrup or honey. I snuck in some healthy omega-3 fats in the form of ground flax seeds, which are available in most grocery stores. Actually, we found our last batch of flax seed meal at Costco for a smokin' price.

    One of these bars, along with half an apple gives me enough fuel to carry me through my workouts. If you're looking for an alternative, try my Healthy Yogurt Parfaits with Blueberries & Granola.

    What are your favorite ways to fuel-up before your workouts? I'd love to hear your ideas.

    The recipe:
    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9- by 13-inch baking sheet with parchment paper, with about 1 inch of parchment paper overlapping the sides.

    Spread out the oats and chopped pecans on a baking sheet. Place in the oven until they are lightly toasted, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

    GranolaBars1

    In a medium bowl, mash the bananas with the back of a fork. Stir in applesauce until combined.

    GranolaBars2

    Transfer the oats and pecans to a large bowl and stir in dried cranberries, ground flax seed (flax meal), cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

    Stir the banana mixture into the oat mixture until well combined and starting to clump together. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and press down evenly.

    GranolaBars4

    Bake until the bars are golden brown and starting to separate from sides of the pan, about 30 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Use the parchment paper to lift the bars out of the pan. Let cool to room temperature, then cut into bars. Serve or store in an airtight container.

    GranolaBars5

    Other granola bars recipes:
    Family Fresh Cooking's Telluride Trail Bars
    Two Peas and Their Pod's Peanut Butter Granola Balls
    Brown Eyed Baker's Crunchy Good-for-You Granola Bars
    Shutterbean's Fully Loaded Granola Bars

    Low Fat Granola Bars with Bananas, Cranberries & Pecans

    FDitch the store-bought snacks and make a batch of these low fat granola bars. Lower in sugar and fat, but with plenty of flavor.
    4.7 from 10 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Breakfast
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: Healthy Breakfast
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Cook Time: 40 minutes
    Total Time: 55 minutes
    Servings: 18 Bars (Approximately)
    Calories: 120kcal
    Author: Dara Michalski | Cookin' Canuck

    Ingredients

    • 3 ½ cup oats
    • ¾ cup roughly chopped pecans
    • 3 large ripe bananas
    • ⅔ cup unsweetened applesauce
    • ¾ cup dried cranberries
    • ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
    • 2 tablespoons ground flax seed or flax meal
    • ½ teaspoon salt
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    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
    • Line a 9- by 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper, with about 1 inch of parchment paper overlapping the sides.
    • Spread out the oats and chopped pecans on a baking sheet. Place in the oven until they are lightly toasted, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.
    • In a medium bowl, mash the bananas with the back of a fork. Stir in applesauce until combined.
    • Transfer the oats and pecans to a large bowl and stir in dried cranberries, ground flax seed (flax meal), cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
    • Stir the banana mixture into the oat mixture until well combined and starting to clump together. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and press down evenly.
    • Bake until the bars are golden brown and starting to separate from sides of the pan, about 30 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
    • Use the parchment paper to lift the bars out of the pan. Let cool to room temperature, then cut into bars.
    • Serve or store in an airtight container.

    Notes

    WW (Old Points) 3 / WW (Points+) 4

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1Bar | Calories: 120kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 66mg | Potassium: 94mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 0.9mg
    Tried this recipe?If you make this recipe, I'd love to see it on Instagram! Just use the hashtag #COOKINCANUCK and I'll be sure to find it.

    Disclosure: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

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    243Shares
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      Reader Interactions

      Comments

      1. Claire

        May 14, 2019 at 10:43 am

        Would you recommend instant or original oats?

        Reply
        • Dara

          May 16, 2019 at 9:11 am

          Hi Claire, I recommend old-fashioned (original) oats.

          Reply
      2. Kimberley

        March 24, 2015 at 10:35 am

        Loved making a healthy snack or breakfast for my family. It was a little costly to buy all the ingredients, but in the long run I now have all the ingredients and can make more. Will make this a couple times over. Thanks for sharing!

        Reply
      3. Laur

        March 09, 2014 at 4:16 pm

        We love these!! I brought them in to work and each person who tries it, wants the recipe! Simple and delicious! Thank you so much for sharing!

        Reply
      4. kate

        December 19, 2013 at 8:08 pm

        wow - sorry i didn't see your answer forever!!
        i plan to use almond butter - onlyt made these all of last winter and none of them turned out right (i ate em though) need help with the moist/dry ratio i think.
        😉
        thanks.

        Reply
      5. kate

        November 20, 2013 at 7:43 pm

        hi.......loved this recipe except for the bananas ;(.. what else would make a binder? i've experimented much but can't get the bars to stick together.....either flaky or rocklike......
        thanks 😉

        Reply
        • Dara (Cookin' Canuck)

          November 21, 2013 at 4:12 pm

          Hmm, since the bananas are such a big part of this recipe, it's hard to put in a one-to-one alternative. Perhaps you could try peanut butter, but you'd have to play around with the ratios.

          Reply
      6. web hosting

        May 16, 2013 at 6:53 am

        I've been surfing online more than 3 hours these days, yet I by no means discovered any interesting post like yours. It's fairly really worth sufficient for me. In my opinion, if all internet owners and bloggers made good content material while you did, the internet will probably be much more helpful than ever before.

        Reply
      7. Denise Leonard

        May 14, 2013 at 3:33 am

        Hi there, these sound great! I was wondering can I actually add protein powder to these and also thinking of using Almond Meal instead of Flaxseed (as have Almond Meal already) - is that okay do you think?

        Also is it possible to freeze these?

        Thanks 🙂

        Reply
      8. Lovisa

        April 09, 2013 at 12:24 am

        can I substitute the bananas for something else? I'm allergic 🙁

        Reply
      9. jenndpan

        March 24, 2013 at 7:33 pm

        Our family made the switch to a clean eating diet and have struggled finding great and satisfying snacks for the kids and hubby. I just made these and they are delicious!! I love the natural sweetness from the banana. I made them just as instructed, except I added 1 tbs of honey. Great chewy texture and very satisfying!

        Reply
        • Dara (Cookin' Canuck)

          March 27, 2013 at 7:36 am

          I'm so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for letting me know.

          Reply
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      Hi there! Welcome to Cookin' Canuck.

      I'm Dara, a Canadian living in the U.S. and sharing my favorite healthy recipes. My cooking motto is that healthy eating never needs to be boring!

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