Growing up, Honey Nut Cheerios were a pantry and breakfast table staple.
I recently bought an economy-sized box that was on sale and needed to make something with them or else we were going to be eating them until Christmas.
These fast, easy, bars cost just a fraction of storebought bars to make, they’re healthier, and they’ve got fun, bright colors.
In the past I’ve used Golden Grahams, Special K, Chex, Rice Krispies and many others in recipes, but never the classic O’s until these.
I have many other microwave and no-bake granola bar recipes. See the Related Recipes below. These Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (no-bake, vegan, GF) are my favorites for something that has the texture of a Quaker Chewy Granola Bar and are a cinch to make, while still staying in the healthy realm.
I wanted these to be a snack bar or breakfast bar, on the healthier side, while branching out from recipes I’ve already made or tried.
Normally I use corn syrup in my microwave bars because it’s cheap, and it makes an excellent glue to bind ingredients. Very little can escape it’s tacky grip.
However, for these I used honey to play up the honey flavor from the cereal. I will be honest, honey does not make as good of a glue as corn syrup. If I were to remake them, I’d use corn syrup.
At room temperature, the bars do get soft and loose, and you’ll need to store them in the fridge.
I stirred in raisins for extra texture, flavor, fiber, chewiness, and oomph. I know some people don’t like raisins, so feel free to omit them or use dried cranberries, apricots, or another dried fruit.
The recipe is very flexible and you could also stir in honey-roasted peanuts, sliced almonds, or a handful of your favorite trail mix.
I topped them with chocolate-covered sunflower seeds. If you have a Trader Joe’s in your area, don’t buy them unless you have really good self-control. They’re crunchy, chocolaty, and one step away from eating chocolate candy-coated sprinkles. So good.
They give a fun, bright pop of color to otherwise boring brown bars, and since I knew I was putting these in my 6 year old’s lunch box, I wanted them to be cheery. If you can’t find them in your area, no biggie. Just use another small seed, nut, or omit.
Between the honey, cereal, raisins, and chocolate-covered seeds, the are were on the sweet side. A sprinkling of Kosher salt cuts that and plays up the salty-and-sweet aspect.
I wish the Cheerios I ate as a kid were this fun to look at.
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No-Bake Honey Nut Cheerios Snack Bars
Ingredients
- ¼ cup creamy unsalted butter, half of one stick
- ¼ cup honey, light-colored corn syrup may be substituted and will keep the bars firmer at room temp than using honey
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups Honey Nut Cheerios
- 1 cup raisins, optional (1 cup honey-roasted peanuts, 1 cup chopped almonds, or 1 cup trail mix may be substituted)
- about 1/2 cup chocolate-covered sunflower seeds, optional (I used Trader Joe’s)
- pinch sea salt or Kosher salt for sprinkling, optional
Instructions
- Line an 8-inch square pan with aluminum foil leaving overhang, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine butter, honey, brown sugar, and heat on high power for 1 minute to melt.
- Stop to stir. Mixture will be on the granular side, this is okay.
- Return bowl to microwave and heat for 1 more minute on high power. Stop to stir
- Return bowl to microwave and heat for 1 more minute on high power. Stop to stir. On this third and final burst, mixture will become quite bubbly and foamy; use caution when removing from micro because this is boiling hot caramel and can cause burns.
- Stir in the vanilla using caution because mixture could bubble up.
- Stir in the cereal.
- Stir in the optional raisins (or nuts).
- Turn mixture out into prepared pan, packing it down firmly with a spatula and smoothing the top.
- Optionally, sprinkle evenly with sunflower seeds and salt (the salt cuts some of the sweetness and I recommend it).
- Cover pan with a sheet of foil (to prevent fridge smells), and place pan in fridge to set up for at least 2 to 3 hours, or overnight, or until bars are completely set before lifting out with foil overhang, slicing, and serving.
- Bars will keep airtight in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 6 months. I recommend storing them in the fridge rather than room temp because they soften and get loose.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Are you a Cheerios or cereal fun?
Ooooh these take me back to childhood snacks in such a good way. Thanks for the nostalgia Averie!
I’m glad. They did the same for me too!
Oh.my.gosh. I LOVE honey nut cheerios and have been wanting to put them in some sort of cereal bar for forever! I love your addition of sunflower seeds (they make it so fun!) and how easy this is. This is my dream cereal bar (and I’ve made some of your peanut butter chocolate rice krispy ones and they were incredible) Thanks Averie! Cannot wait to try!
Ok if you make these, I would strongly recommend corn syrup if you’re used to my other bars b/c otherwise these will seem super soft to you. Glad you’re loving the others and thanks for trying them!
Look great! Do you know the calorie count?
No but plug in the data yourself into an online calculator and come back and share the results with others here in the comments if you’d like!
How cute!!! These would be great for Easter because of the colors!
You’re right! Or like Mother’s Day or something in the spring. Didn’t think about that but you’re right!
They look so colorful and delicious and they remind me of my childhood!
M.
They remind me of mine, too!
AHHH!!! Those seeds are so cute! These like healthy LCMs (cereal bar we have in Aus) Those seeds must taste delicious!
I always wondered why people did not think of cheerios in a snack bars sooner, SO much more flavourful than rice bubbles and who can resist those little os?
SO much more flavourful than rice bubbles <---never heard them called bubbles. Love that! And yes, so true. Way more flavorful. They're a little 'bulkier' than the rice bubbles so the binder/glue is more of a consideration and I'd probably use corn syrup next time but the honey was adequate. And yes the seeds are SO GOOD. Dangerously good. One step away from eating sprinkles and I love them.
All the colors in these are so pretty! Even though the honey isn’t the best glue, I bet it tastes great!
It does taste great. You cannot beat the flavor despite it not glueing as well as corn syrup does but I guess it’s all a trade off :)
The colors on these are so fun! I love those sunflower seeds! I actually bought a huge box of cheerios a month ago with granola bars in mind, but they have yet to be made. This makes me really want to revisit my idea! These are perfect for healthy snacking, but they are still sweet enough to fill the sweets craving too! Love that! Awesome recipe, Averie! Pinned!
They turned out to be really sweet actually. The sugar, honey, honey nut cheerios (plain would be just fine!), raisins, plenty of sweetness :) And the seeds, love them. Not surprised you do as well!
And I bought that big box with these in mind and for years I’ve wanted to make crispy treats with marshmallows and cheerios but went with these instead. Thanks for pinning!
Oh love the idea of the honey to compliment the honey in the cereal. Jason has this thing for cheerios (honey nut or plain). I bet I’d score cereal bar points with these :-) I’m thinking my niece and nephew would love them too.
If he’s a Cheerios fan already, he will love them! Honey is a great flavor complement despite it being not a great glue/binder, but it tastes great. And your niece and nephew would definitely call you auntie of the year :)
LOVE how colorful these are with the chocolate covered sunflower seeds! And I mean, come on, how can you go wrong with honey nut cheerios… You just can’t :)
the seeds just rock – you have to try them if you haven’t already!
These are making me so nostalgic! Honey Nut Cheerios were one of my favorites (those and the frosted O’s of course), and I love the bright sunflower seeds. I want a pan for my “grown up” snack time :)
I made them for my daughter but ended up eating more than I thought I would for grown up snacktime :)
These would be the perfect mid-morning mid-afternoon snack! I cannot wait to try these!
LMK if you do!
Love me some honey nut cheerios. Takes me right back to childhood!
I used to buy the variety packs of cereal for my stepdaughter when she was your daughter’s age–Cheerios were usually in there. These bars are so bright and colorful with the candy coated sunflower seeds. I have seen tubes of them at a couple of different dept. stores and at a specialty cake/candy making supply store. I have resisted buying them because I know they would probably go down easier than M&M’s!
They do go down way easier than M&Ms. Paula they are SO GOOD. Knowing you, you would love them. They’re a blessing and a curse. Buy at your own risk :) 2 tbsp is on par with the stats of 2 tbsp of nut butter and they go down 10x faster than nut butter…
I’m a cereal nut. I love it partly because there are sooooo many types. And I don’t have a crunchy over soggy preference-the ideal bowl has a little of each:)
My ideal bowl has a little of each too! Must have a bit of sog, actually. It’s so good that way! Unless I am eating it dry by the handful.
Those sunflower seeds are brightening up my feedly! Seriously cheery snack bars! Lately, in the evenings before bed, I like to eat a mug full of Honey Nut Cheerios – no milk. (They make for great munching – I’m basically a toddler.) I suppose these snack bars would be a a more elegant evening treat. And I probably wouldn’t find Cheerios all over the place in the morning…
I am glad your feedly has been brightened! :)
And you’re up and you’re a bedtime eater/snacker. Oh that’s why we get along so well. ME TOO! Cereal is great, just behind popcorn sprayed down with coconut oil which is what I am about to make now :)
We get up VERY early in these here parts! Baker + Construction Worker = No Sleep {and lots of snacking}!
Oh wow, see I am usually just going to bed for a few hours about 4am-ish. Then I get up with my daughter at 730a for school for her and the day starts all over!
I used margarine instead of butter and they are too runny and won’t hold their shape, how can i fix this, please.
Margarine is made with water so yes, it’s not a substitute for butter in many recipes, and this is one of them. I don’t know how to fix it. Add more cereal?