When you’re eating gluten free, snacks and quick meals can be hard to come by. This recipe makes 15 bars that you can wrap up and take with you so you don’t need to worry about being hungry at snack time! It’s also incredibly versatile so be creative and add your own favorite ingredients to make a tray of chewy take-a-long bars that taste great and are stuffed full of good things.

We originally posted this recipe a year ago but since it has been getting quite a few hits on pinterest lately, we thought we’d repost it for our new readers and followers!

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geoff’s favorite oatmeal cookies

gf and me’s fruit filled oatmeal muffins

or our

double coconut delight squares

What you’ll need:

2 cups gluten free rolled oats

Note: Not everyone who has celiac disease can tolerate oats, even when the oats are gluten free. If you have questions, talk to your physician or dietitian.

TIP: The oats could easily be replaced with two cups of oat-free gf cereal such as crispy rice

1 cup coconut

¼ cup ground flax seed

¼ cup butter or margarine

½ cup sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoons corn syrup

TIP: Click here for our earlier posting of this recipe to see some of the inventive ways our readers made these granola bars even healthier by using substitutions for the condensed milk and corn syrup.

1 cup GF cereal (corn flakes slightly crushed, crispy rice, etc.)

1 ½ cups of “goodies” in various combinations (e.g. raisins, nuts, sunflower seeds, dried fruit, dried cranberries, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, coconut flakes – whatever you can imagine)

Optional: added flavour boosters such as 1 tablespoon orange or lemon zest, a bit of maple syrup, pinch of cinnamon, or 1 teaspoon vanilla.

The version in the photograph used crispy rice, raisins, mixed nuts, chocolate chips and maple syrup.

What you’ll do:

Heat oven to 325 degrees and line 9 x 13 pan with parchment (or grease the pan).

In small sauce pan, melt the margarine, add condensed milk, corn syrup and flavour booster if using.

In large bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Slowly pour the syrup over the dry ingredients while stirring. Combine well.

Press into pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

Cool for five minutes and then score into 15 pieces with a knife. Cut on score marks when completely cool.

Photo Credit gfandme 2013