#2,786: No-Bake Granola Bars

OMG I am warning you, do NOT make these granola bars!  If you do, I'm telling you, you just might regret it because these are addicting!  I can whip up a batch of these pretty quickly, the hardest part is letting the mixture cool a little bit before you add the baking M and M's otherwise, they are going to melt.  It doesn't change the flavor at all, but it will change the appearance for sure.  I made these in an 8x8 pan and then cut it into 10 pieces.  The second time I made these (yep, there was a second time already!), I cut each of the 10 pieces in half and popped those babies in the freezer.  That slowed us down a little bit!  My kids love these as an after school snack, and as a dessert in their lunches.  Everyone in our house give these 2 thumbs up!

The original recipe called for Crispy M and M's, but I wasn't about to waste take my time chopping those up, so I just used baking mini ones instead.  

1 cup crispy rice cereal

½ cup old-fashioned oats

½ cup vanilla protein powder (I didn't have any so I ground up oats and used 1/2 c of those instead!)

¼ cup coarsely chopped M&M’s Crispy, plus additional for topping (I used baking mini ones...see note above)

3 tablespoons chia seeds

½ cup peanut butter softened

¼ cup honey

2 tablespoons coconut oil

Place all of the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Place remaining ingredients in a small bowl and heat in microwave for 20-30 seconds, or until softened. Stir, stir, stir until the ingredients are completely combined and smooth.

Pour peanut butter mixture over dry ingredients and stir until all of the dry ingredients are coated.

(I skipped this step and used a foil square cake pan.  I sprayed with a little non-stick spray and these popped right out) Line a square baking pan with wax paper or parchment paper and use the back of a large spoon or spatula to press the mixture into the pan. Really press the mixture down firmly so that the bars hold together properly. Decorate/top with additional M and M's if desired.  Refrigerate until firm (at least a couple of hours, or overnight). Cut into bars or squares.  Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator or freezer.