Trail Mix Bars

Take your favorite on the road snack up a notch in these simple, no bake Trail Mix Bars. Easily varied to whatever nuts and seeds you have on hand, date sweetened and the perfect fuel to keep you going!

Who doesn't love a good trail mix? Nuts, seeds, dried fruit, chocolate chunks and easily made to anyone's liking. A little sweet, a little salty and everything in between.

So tossing all these goodies into a nice little bar makes for a great, nourishing snack. These Trail Mix Bars are easily varied to your favorite flavors and packed with good fuel to keep you revving.

Simple, no bake and easily use up whatever is sitting around in the pantry--there are so so many options to add into these bars that you could literally make them every single week and never have the same flavor.

If you haven't dabbled with medjool dates, get ready for this one. I love dates, they add a nice sweetness to recipes. In this recipe, they also act as a binding agent to really hold them together.

Grab your oats, some nuts, seeds and goodies and get ready for some good snacking!

Ingredients you will need:

• Any mixture of nuts and seeds and dried fruit is great in these trail mix bars. Chocolate chips, M&Ms, dried cranberries, dried blueberries, and more. Endless options!
• I have made these with rolled oats and quick cooking oats. Both work ok, but I actually prefer the quick oats. Use gluten free if needed.

How to make this recipe:

• Unless your medjool dates are really soft, soak them in warm water for about 15 minutes before processing them into a paste. Remove from the pits from the dates and add them to a food processor. Process until a smooth paste forms. It typically forms into a ball. You will want this to be easily moldable. It should be pretty moist but not wet or liquid. Like I said, it's a paste like texture, but it should not be thick or dry. (steps 1 and 2)
• Transfer the date paste to a bowl with the oats, maple, peanut butter, vanilla and sea salt. Mix to fully combine. If the mixture seems too thick or dry, add in some extra maple syrup or an extra tablespoon of peanut butter. (steps 3 and 4)

• Add in all of the nuts/seeds/dried fruit/trail mix ingredients and stir to combine. (steps 5 and 6)
• Transfer the mixture to a parchment lined 8 inch square pan and press firmly. FIRMLY. You don't want these to crumble apart, so press, press, press! Chill for about 30 minutes before serving. (steps 7 and 8)

Notes:

• I prefer natural creamy peanut butter that is nice and drippy for these no bake trail mix bars. It stirs much more easily than a typical Jif peanut butter does.
• I keep the cinnamon optional. Sometimes I add it, other times I don't. It typically depends on what I am adding in and if it makes sense with those flavors.

Fun flavor variations:

• Blueberry Muffin: dried blueberries, almond butter, sliced almonds or pecans and an extra teaspoon of cinnamon. MMMMM.
• Almond Joy: sliced almonds, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and almond butter
• Cherry Chocolate: dried cherries, dark chocolate chips, chopped cashews
• Chunky Monkey: chocolate chips, chopped peanuts, chocolate chips, dried bananas
• Tropical: dried mango, dried pineapple, coconut, chocolate chips, macadamia nuts

What is your favorite combo??

Try these other No Bake recipes:

• Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars
• No Bake Piña Colada Bites
• Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bites
• Coconut Lemon Bars
• Homemade Perfect Bars
• Mango Coconut Cashew Bars

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