These Sunbutter chocolate covered raisin granola bars are going to be your new favorite granola bar recipe!! I have been enjoying sunflower seed butter more and more over the past couple years; in fact; I almost always have an open jar in my fridge now along with peanut butter (and many other nut butters…). If you’ve never tried Sunbutter before, it is absolutely worth it to buy for making this recipe (of course, you can always sub peanut butter or another nut butter in it’s place). It is absolutely DELICIOUS and pairs perfectly with the dark chocolate covered raisins (don’t worry, if raisins aren’t your thing I list other ideas in the post. ?).

These granola bars couldn’t be easier to make; they are no-bake and all you have to do is mix up the few simple ingredients in one bowl, press into a pan, and refrigerate (or freeze) until firm. The best thing is these sunbutter chocolate covered raisin granola bars are made with just FIVE main ingredients too (plus vanilla extract and salt). This is a great recipe to make on the weekend to have yummy snacks on hand throughout the week! I have also eaten them with vanilla ice cream for dessert. ?

I created this recipe a while ago, and I am so excited to finally be sharing it with you on the blog today! ? This recipe is adapted from my peach pistachio granola bars. Does anyone remember that recipe?! It was over two years ago since I’ve first posted it; crazy how fast time goes by.

Ingredients and Substitution Ideas

Oats

I have only tested this recipe using rolled/old-fashioned oats. You can likely use quick oats instead though, or a combinate of both old-fashioned (whole) oats and quick oats. Oats are naturally gluten-free and whole grain, and filled with fiber!

Sunflower Seed Butter

As I mentioned, over the past year or so I’ve really come to absolutely LOVE sunflower seed butter. It’s such a nice change of pace from peanut butter. The most popular brand is Sunbutter, but there are also many great store brands out there (I recently discovered Trader Joe’s carries it). The sunflower seed butter, along with the honey, is used to bind the ingredients and keep these bars together. Not to mention it adds DELICIOUS flavor and healthy fats and protein! Seriously, if you’ve never tried sunflower seed butter before, I am so excited for you to try it for yourself. If you want a peanut butter flavor, you can absolutely sub peanut butter instead, or try these peanut butter chocolate chip granola bars.

Honey

I personally love the taste of honey with nut butters! Honey is used to naturally sweeten and bind the granola bars. You can try substituting agave or pure maple syrup in place of the honey, but in the past I have found these to not be thick/sticky enough to properly hold granola bars together.

Sunflower Seeds

I HIGHLY recommend using roasted and salted sunflower seeds for the ultimate flavor! I typically buy these at either Aldi or Trader Joe’s. You could sub any chopped nut here, noting the flavor will change.

Chocolate Covered Raisins

I really, really enjoyed the flavor of chocolate covered raisins with the sunflower seed butter. SO GOOD. I used dark chocolate covered raisins; feel free to use milk chocolate raisins! Another idea is using ¼ cup chocolate chips (I prefer mini) and ¼ cup raisins if you can’t find or don’t have chocolate covered raisins on hand. OR if you really don’t like raisins, you could use all chocolate chips. Obviously, you can tweak this to your personal taste preferences! ?

Vanilla Extract and Salt

These barely count as ingredients, but important for flavor factor!

Chocolate Topping

Now, you can absolutely just use either chocolate chips or a chocolate bar and melt to drizzle chocolate on top. OR you can make this super simple 3-ingredient chocolate sauce made of coconut oil, cocoa powder, and pure maple syrup. Just simply melt coconut oil in the microwave (or on stovetop if that’s your thing), add the cocoa powder and pure maple syrup and drizzle over the bars!

Serving Suggestions

Obviously, these Sunbutter chocolate covered raisin granola bars are delicious on their own. BUT I’ve been known to crumble one up and eat with Greek yogurt and fruit for breakfast, or with vanilla ice cream for dessert. SO good! These granola bars will last 2 weeks in the fridge, and several months in the freezer. I hope you give this recipe a try soon; I’d love to hear what you think! ?