Powdered peanut butter and quinoa flakes combine with chocolate chips in these lightly sweetened, no-bake PB2 Quinoa Granola Bars. Gluten-free and vegan, these bars make an excellent snack!
This is a granola bar that I came up for a snack at work. I needed something to fill me up, something with protein and fiber, but not too high in sugar and fat. These PB2 Quinoa Granola Bars fit that bill and they are gluten-free and vegan to boot!
If you haven’t heard of it yet, PB2 is a powdered peanut butter that you reconstitute with water (Affiliate link: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.) It’s awesome because they have removed 85% of the fat and calories from peanut butter, yet retained the protein. It’s basically a protein powder. To my knowledge, Monash has not tested powdered peanut butter, but both peanuts and peanut butter are low-FODMAP. So it could be inferred that powdered peanut butter is low-FODMAP as well. If you’re not sure, ask your dietitian or doctor.
I make these bars with quinoa flakes, but you could also use gluten-free quick oats if you like. Or you could use a mixture of the two. It makes just a small batch of bars, which is perfect for me since I don’t eat them that fast. Just press into a small loaf pan, chill and cut into bars. You don’t even have to bake them!
Try these other granola recipes from my collection:
- French Vanilla Almond Granola
- Maple Toasted Muesli
- Curry Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Spicy Hot Granola
PB2 Quinoa Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup PB2 Powder (see note)
- 1/3 cup water
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup quinoa flakes (or gluten-free quick oats)
- 1/3 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
- 2 tablespoons Enjoy Life Dairy-Free Mini Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- Mix the PB2 powder and water together until creamy. Stir in the maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon. Add the quinoa flakes or oats, coconut and chocolate chips. Stir until well-combined, using your hands if you need to. The mixture will be a little dry, but should ultimately sick together.
- Line a 4″x 8″ loaf pan with parchment paper. Press mixture evenly into pan. Chill in the refrigerator a couple of hours. Remove from pan and cut across into bars. Store in the fridge.
Notes
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please see my Affiliate Disclosure page for more information.
These are great. Everyone loved them – including the teenagers!
Awesome!
Hi Dianne, my name is Victoria. What kind of maple syrup do you use, and is it grade a or grade b? Thanks!
I usually use grade A pure maple syrup, but it would work with grade B as well. The brand I've been using recently is Archer Farms Grade A Dark Amber from Target.
Hi! Thanks for responding. I made the bars before sending my question. They didn't come out like how they look in your pictures. I used gluten free oats because I didn't have quinoa flakes. I also used natural peanut butter that didn't have much oil left in the jar and one tablespoon of grade A maple syrup and two tablespoons of honey because I ran out of the maple syrup. What do you think went wrong?
Were they too wet or too dry? If they were too dry, I would either add more honey/maple syrup or even some water to moisten it up. If they were too wet, then add more oats.
They were to wet. Some stuck together in little pieces or bars while others looked just like granola. I still ate it though and it was good. Do you think that it could be the peanut butter too? Is it the peanut butter that holds them together or the honey/maple syrup?
Too*
It probably is the peanut butter. If you keep your peanut butter in the fridge like I do, then get it up to room temp first. If you have a hard time stirring it with the syrup, then you can add a little water.
Oh okay, yes that must have been the problem then, because I do keep it in the fridge too. Thanks for the advice 🙂 I'm going to try this recipe again today!
Hi Diane, these look delicious! I am fairly new to low fodmap food, the quinoa flakes, are the breakfast food type right?
Yes, quinoa flakes are usually found in the cereal aisle by the oats at natural foods stores and co-ops.
Hi, I like this recipe.. but one question. ? Dont I need to cook oats?
Nope, the oats do not need to be cooked.
I would like to try this recipe! Is there an alternative substitute to the coconut or can we try this without it? Thanks in advance!
Has anyone tried this with cooked quinoa? Could you do it with cooked quinoa? Maybe if you baked it?
I think it would be fine to use without the coconut.
Sorry, I haven't tried this with cooked quinoa, so I don't know if it would work.
what is the calorie count
These are delicious. I was wondering the calorie intake of these using oats, RF coconut flakes, and no chocolate chips. I am on this special diet and need more calories. I eat several of these a day and would like to know if its adding enough.
Hi! I just made a batch with cooked quinoa b/c that's all I had on hand. Its delish! But its moist and sticky, which I don't mind, you just have to keep it in a good container.
BTW I love this brand of choco chips, you can really taste a superior quality in them!
Calorie count? I want to make them today, they look delicious!
Just made these last night and my 3.5 yr old and I had one for breakfast. They are SO GOOD. I will definitely be making these again. I ended up using quick oats, but I'm going to look for quinoa flakes the next time I'm out. I also added chia seeds, which I add to everything. Thanks for a GREAT, SUPER EASY recipe that is as (I would even say more so) delicious as it looks! Now, off to explore your site for more delicious recipes!
Made these today with modifications based on what I had in the house, and they were so good! (I used honey instead of maple syrup, actual peanut butter, coconut oil, and half cooked quinoa/half oats). They didn't stick very well, but that's probably due to my modifications, they held together enough to eat though so; they were so yummy! I made a dark chocolate/coconut drizzle to go on top as well.
Glad they worked for you with your modifications. Thanks for the comment!
Thank you Dianna for this awesome recipe… all your recipes, i have just started a low fodmap diet and your blog has helped me stick to it, whilst making awesome tasty dishes and treats xx
Glad you are enjoying the recipes. Thanks for the comment!
Have you tried it without cooking the quinoa? I also would like to make it with quinoa, not flakes, and I dont mind sticky. Just curious…
Awesome!
Have you tried to freeze them? I would like to make a big batch and freeze some. Thanks
I have frozen them and it works well.
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Would it be possible to add an egg, and then bake these for more of a crispy texture?
I don’t know, I’ve never tried that, but it’s probably worth a try!