This vegan red lentil granola bar recipe is packed with protein, fiber, and flavor! These make a satisfying on-the-go snack or breakfast, and you can’t taste the lentils, I promise. They’re vegan, too!
I know what you’re thinking – lentils in a granola bar?! But stick with me here – I promise you can’t taste them. Official fANNEtastic food taste testers (aka my mom and Matt) have confirmed this statement. :)
Turns out lentils are really good in granola bars – they add satisfying protein (and fiber) without affecting the flavor! These came out nice and moist, too. I whipped up a batch of these a few weeks ago and loved having them on hand for my travel to Oregon – they made a really satisfying plane snack and breakfast!
Besides the lentils, other nutritional all-stars in this recipe include almond butter, walnuts, and ground flaxseed (love that healthy fat), whole wheat/spelt flour and oats (fiber-tastic), and dried tart cherries (antioxidants FTW). The only sweetener is a little pure maple syrup – and some cinnamon to add flavor. Eat up!
You can use dry lentils and boil them quickly before mixing with the rest of the ingredients, or, to speed up this easy recipe even more, just use a standard size can of pre-cooked lentils. Either way works! Just mix all the ingredients together, throw into a pan, and bake. Easy!
I recommend slicing the bars into various sizes (so you can grab a bigger or smaller one depending on hunger), wrapping individually in foil, and storing in the fridge so they last longer. Let me know how you like them! Here’s the recipe.
Red Lentil Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry red lentils (or one 15 oz can of red lentils, drained + rinsed)
- 2/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 2/3 cup smooth almond butter
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt (cut in half if using canned salted lentils)
- 1 cup whole wheat or spelt flour
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
- 1 cup rolled oats (optional)
- 2/3 cup chopped walnuts
- 2/3 cup chopped dried tart cherries
Instructions
- Combine the red lentils and 2 cups water in a medium pot over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes, until the lentils are just tender. Allow to cool slightly.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Mix cooked lentils with all remaining ingredients until evenly incorporated.
- Pat the mixture evenly into a greased and foil-lined 9x13" baking dish.
- Bake for about 25-35 minutes, until the center is very firm to the touch and the edges are lightly browned. Allow to cool slightly, then cut into bars.
Happy on-the-go eating, my friends!
Have you ever tried adding lentils to baked goods? Feel free to share recipe links! I bet they would be good in brownies, too… I know black beans are!
These look fabulous! I haven’t made them in ages, but white bean “blondies” and black bean brownies are my favorite, so this looks perfect. Matt and I love lentils. :) Your graphic with the different fonts is really cute too!
Let me know how you like them! :)
I tried one as my mid-morning snack, and they are really good! I tried to stay true to your recipe while using what we had on hand as well. I used green instead of red lentils, raisins, and pumpkin + sunflower seeds. I cut them into 12 bars, so they’re dense but nice and filling. :) Thanks for the recipe!
Great! Glad you enjoyed them :)
Suggestions for a gluten free substitution for the whole wheat or spelt flour?
A gluten free all-purpose flour would be your best bet I think!
Red lentils are such a great creamy base!
THIS IS BRILLIANT. I’ve had chickpeas in baked goods, but have never thought to try red lentils! Love this idea!
I love chickpeas in baked goods too — these vegan + gluten free granola bars have chickpea flour in them – and so do these GF chocolate quinoa bars!
ohh i actually love baking with red lentils! i love them in all forms haha. i normally make them with a pinch of salt, roasted cumin and cumin seeds and eat it like that, but the texture is perfect for baking. bars will be next! :)
These bars look so good. Would coconut or almond flour work as well?
I’m not sure – try it and let me know! :)
Great idea! Love this!
Can’t wait to try these! I too like blackbean brownies and am a fan of my chickpea thumbprint biscuits. Thanks heaps!!
Chickpea thumbprint biscuits sound so good!
If you’re interested in trying them, this is the recipe I base them on: http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-14728/vegan-gluten-free-thumbprint-cookies.html :)
Great, thanks!
hi! has anybody tried these with peanut butter ? Almond butter costs *so much money* where I live.
I’m sure peanut butter would work just fine!
Would this work with sprouted lentils?
I don’t see why not!
Could I use honey instead of maple syrup?
Sure!
Thanks for the recipe I think I will make a batch and eat some when I am not in the mood to make breakfast which happens at least once a week. I will try it with peanut butter and honey instead and let you know. Right now our Aldis store is closed for remodeling until November 8th and hurting my pocketbook now. So I try to come up with really cheap meals now. Beans will definitely work for bars and main meals right now!
Beans are definitely great affordable protein! Let me know how you like the bars :)
I wasn’t sure how these were going to turn out–even more so after the mixture tasted a bit bland after I mixed them up today. But they meld together so wonderfully in the end, I love them! And so does my three year old! (Plus I love that she thinks they’re ‘cake’, lol). The only thing I did differently was add more cinnamon, plus some ground ginger and allspice and nutmeg. Oh, and I added a quarter cup water to help blend it together, since it’s so dense I was having trouble mixing it thoroughly. Alas, I don’t have a decent mixer for my kitchen yet.
These are a keeper, I will be making them again! The macros are perfect, also, for those counting calories and what-not. I got 16 bars from my pan, and Myfitnesspal recipe calculator put them at 233 calories, 7g protein, 32g carbs, 10g fat, 4g fiber each. Not too shabby on potassium, either, which, along with the fiber, also makes these good for blood pressure watchers.
I’m so glad you and your little one enjoyed the bars!