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My Keto Granola Bars Make Breakfast So Much Easier
If you’ve ever checked the label on most store-bought granola bars, you know they’re basically candy bars in disguise. I wanted a better option, so I started making my own keto granola bars at home… and haven’t looked back. These sugar free granola bars have that perfect chewy-crunchy texture without oats. Here’s why you’ll love them:
- Sweet, nutty, & chewy – These started as a Kind bar copycat more than a regular granola bar, but after tweaking the binder, I ended up with something I like even more — a perfectly chewy center with crunchy bits throughout, and a sweet, toasty flavor from a variety of nuts and seeds.
- Better for you – Keto, low carb, grain-free, and gluten free, and made with real ingredients, these bars feel like a treat without the fillers. If you’ve tried my keto oatmeal, you’ll recognize the same pantry staples here.
- Quick & easy – No chopping, no baking! Just mix, press, and you’re good to go. And if you want to switch things up, I’ve got some fun variations below you can try!
I love grabbing one of these keto granola bars with a little container of keto yogurt in the morning for a low carb breakfast, or tossing it into my bag for a snack on the go. Make them with me — you won’t miss the store-bought ones at all!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my sugar free granola bars recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Nuts & Seeds – I used almonds, pecans, pumpkin seeds (or sunflower seeds), and hemp hearts. You can mix it up with any keto nuts, but I like roasted nuts for the best flavor. Just make sure everything’s chopped small so the bars hold together.
- Sugar-Free Chocolate Chips – These are my go-to chips for anything chocolate. No sugar, no weird ingredients — they taste just like the real thing.
- Besti Powdered Monk Fruit Allulose Blend – My sweetener blends right in with no grittiness and tastes just like sugar. You can swap it with another powdered keto sweetener, but many of them can make your bars gritty, even if they’re powdered.
- Shredded Coconut – I go for medium flakes and always make sure they’re unsweetened.
- Almond Butter – Use the natural, drippy kind with no added sugar. Any nut butter you like should work.
- Egg – Holds these keto granola bars together. I haven’t tested egg subs, but a flax egg should work if you need it.
- Vanilla Extract & Sea Salt
Free Printable: Low Carb & Keto Food List
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How To Make Keto Granola Bars
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Prep & chop. Preheat your oven and line a baking dish with parchment. Add the almonds to a food processor and pulse a few times, then add the pecans and pulse again — just until everything’s roughly chopped.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Transfer the chopped nuts to a big bowl. Stir in the pumpkin seeds, coconut, hemp hearts, sweetener, and a pinch of salt.
- Make the binder. In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond butter, egg, and vanilla. Pour it into the nut mixture and stir until everything is coated and sticky.
- Fold in chocolate. Fold in most of the chocolate chips — I save a little for the top — and mix it all together with a spatula.
- Assemble. Press the mixture firmly into your lined dish, then sprinkle the rest of the chocolate chips on top. Lay a second piece of parchment over it and press down again to really pack it in.
- Bake & slice. Bake until the edges are golden. Let the keto granola bars cool completely in the pan, then lift out and slice into bars.
My Recipe Tips
- Roasted nuts and seeds make the best keto granola bars. If yours are raw, just toss them in the oven for a few minutes before you start. And if they’re already salted, skip the salt in the recipe.
- Pulse, don’t blend. Pulsing in the food processor (instead of letting it run) chops everything more evenly without turning it into nut dust. You want a coarse chop — not whole, not floury — for the best texture and to keep the low carb granola bars from falling apart.
- Harder nuts go in before softer nuts, because they take longer to break down. For example, harder almonds go in before softer pecans. The same rule applies even if you use other nuts or seeds — keep hardness in mind.
- Dark pans can cause the edges to brown too fast. I used this glass baking dish so the bars bake more evenly without overbaking on the outside.
- The more firmly you press the mixture into the pan, the better the bars will hold together. I use a piece of parchment on top to really press it down without sticking.
- Cool completely before slicing. I know it’s tempting, but your keto granola bars will fall apart if they’re still warm. You can speed things up by popping the pan in the fridge for a bit. Totally worth the wait!
- Cut straight down, don’t seesaw your knife. I find a big chef’s knife straight down works best for clean cuts.
Keto Granola Bars
By
Learn how to make keto granola bars that are sweet, chewy, and crunchy at the same time! This easy low carb granola bars recipe takes just 30 minutes.
Instructions
[ See step photos See my tips ]Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Line an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) baking dish with parchment paper.
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Place almonds into a food processor. Pulse intermittently just a few times, then add pecans. Pulse intermittently a few more times, until nuts are chopped into 1/4 inch pieces. Do not overmix.
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Transfer the nuts into a large bowl. Stir in pumpkin seeds, coconut, hemp seeds, Besti, and salt.
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In a small bowl, whisk together the almond butter, egg, and vanilla. Stir the mixture into the large bowl with the nuts.
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Use a spatula to fold in most of the chocolate chips and press them into the mixture. (Reserve about 2 tablespoons for the tops of the bars later.)
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Press the mixture firmly into the lined baking dish. Press remaining chocolate chips into the top. Place a piece of parchment paper flush on the top and press again firmly to compact very tightly.
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Bake for 15-18 minutes, until the edges turn darker golden brown.
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Cool completely in the pan. Once cooled, lift the parchment paper out of the pan and slice into bars.
Did you make it? Leave a review or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 bar, about 4″x1.5″
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you nail the texture, keep your bars perfectly sturdy, and make sure every bite turns out delicious and satisfying!
- Variations: Variations: Don’t miss my recipe variations below to help you mix up the flavors and keep your bars from getting boring.
- Store: Keep in the pantry for a week or two, or in the fridge for a few weeks—just layer with parchment so they don’t stick.
- Freeze: Freeze in a single layer first, then transfer to a bag for up to 3 months.
- Note on nutrition info: For a larger serving size, you can cut into 8 bars instead of 12, and multiply all nutrition info by 1.5 times.
📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Keto Cheat Sheet System and Keto Ebook Bundle!
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Keto Granola Bars
Recipe Variations
Want to switch up your sugar free granola bars? Here are a few other flavors I’ve made:
- White chocolate cranberry – I swap in sugar-free white chocolate chips and toss in dried cranberries. A little orange zest makes it extra special!
- Peanut butter chocolate chip – Use peanut butter instead of almond butter.
- Mint chocolate – Add a splash of peppermint extract to the wet ingredients. Cool, minty, and chocolaty!
- White chocolate macadamia – Swap almonds for macadamias and use sugar-free white chocolate chips. These keto granola bars give me total bakery cookie vibes!
- Honey nut – I drizzle in a bit of my sugar-free honey with the almond butter. It adds a warm sweetness that works with any nut combo.
More Grab & Go Breakfast Recipes
If you like light and easy breakfast foods you can grab and go, you’ll love these make-ahead dishes too:
251 Comments
Danielle
0These bars were AMAZING, even better than the original. Mine did not firm up and stay together, any thoughts on what I can do differently? Maybe I didn’t heat the syrup mixture long enough? Regardless, they were wonderful and I’ll be making them again!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Danielle, I updated the recipe a bit to help with this!
Mimi
0Can I use the Sukrin Gold Syrup which I already have in place of the Sukrin Clear?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Mimi, Yes, you can!
Mimi
0The flavor with Sukrin Gold rocks! However, they are slowly falling apart but they aren’t too gooey. I have them in the fridge now to harden them. What did I do wrong?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Mimi, I updated the recipe to improve their sturdiness. Check the recipe card above!
Laura J Gay
0I read comments on the Sukrin syrup that it spikes blood sugar and is NOT for those who are low carb or Keto.
Rene Vargas
0Did you find a replacement?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Laura, I have tested this on myself and found this not to be the case. Everyone is different so you can test to know for sure.
DAwN
0What is serving size. How many grams
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Dawn! One bar would equal one serving. I hope you like them and thanks for stopping by!
Coco
0Can I use more vanilla extract if I don’t have vanilla beans?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Coco, that should work just fine. I would recommend using 2 tsp. vanilla extract instead of the vanilla beans.
Ann
0What can I use instead of the Sukrin Fiber Syrup? Sukrin contains malt which is an instant migraine for my husband.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Ann, The clear Sukrin Fiber Syrup contains no malt. Only the Gold version has that.
diana
0Sorry, I see it now, under Sukrin Melis. Popping into the kitchen to make these right now!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hope you love them!
Nanabella
0These are easy and delicious… thank you for a great recipe…❤️
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you! I’m glad you like them!
Judi Baskett
0Not good for low carb or keto diets. Spikes blood sugars drastically because of the Sukrin Fiber syrup. That is not a low carb ingredient.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Judi, Sukrin Fiber syrup has 3g net carbs per 2 tbsp serving, so can work for some people as part of a low carb or keto diet. There is 1/4 cup of the syrup in the entire recipe (12 bars), so less than a teaspoon of the syrup per bar. Some people do find that some of the fiber in fiber syrup can spike blood sugar somewhat (though not as much as sugar), whereas for others it works fine. You know your body best.
Rebecca
0I made these this weekend for an up coming business trip and I am in love. I added a few SF chocolate chips after the mixture had cooled and substituted chia seeds for the hemp hearts. I also added a tablespoon of coconut butter because I was afraid they might fall apart. They are perfect, they hold together great and taste wonderful. Thank you – this may save me on my trip.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Rebecca! Those sound like delicious additions I’ll have to try next time.
McDonna
0Any thoughts on what can be substituted for the Sukrin syrup? I want to get some at some point but this is not in the immediate future. Would still love to make these bars – especially if they’re so close to my formerly-beloved Kind Bars! Thanks!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi McDonna, Unfortunately I don’t know of another sugar-free substitute. The Sukrin syrup is very unique in its properties and in this recipe is crucial as a binder. Traditional granola bars use rice syrup, so that would probably work, but would not be sugar-free and I’m not sure if the amount needed would be exactly the same.
Monika
0Can you replace Sukrin with yacon syrup? I don’t have Sukrin.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Monika, I haven’t tried yacon syrup before. I looked it up and it does contain up to 50% fructooligosaccharides, which are similar to the main ingredient in the Sukrin syrup, so it might work. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Monika
0What about the Lakankto maple syrup (that’s not actually maple syrup but erythritol and monk fruit)?
Shannon
0Hi! I don’t see cooking temp for the oven, or how long to bake them for.
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Shannon, There is no need to bake this recipe. The syrup/almond butter mixture will hold the bars together once the ingredients are combined, pressed into the pan, and cooled.
Sharon
0Monika: Have you tried the Lakankto Maple syrup in this recipe yet? If so how did it turn out?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Monika, That might work, but haven’t tried it. Let me know how it goes if you do!
Azu
0I love bars, and these looks so yummy and easy to make. Definitely I will try them out.
Sarah
0These look absolutely amazing! I would love to make homemade granola bars for my kids!
Kim | Low Carb Maven
0What a great looking recipe and pretty bars. I love using the Sukrin Fiber Syrups in bar applications. How fun that your daughter helped. My kids are older and not interested anymore! lol.
STACEY CRAWFORD
0These bars look great! Will check into Sukrin syrup. Never used that before.
Georgina
0I love cooking with my son too! These bars look delish!
Katrin Nuernberger
0These bars look like they belong in my lunchbox! It’s always such a great feeling to experiment with ingredients and manage to get it just right in the end. Well done for persevering!