Made with Lucky Charms cereal, quick cooking oats, and white chocolate chips, these no-bake Lucky Charms Granola Bars are a fun special treat for your loved ones at St. Patrick's Day and year round!
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I constantly say I'm not a big St. Patrick's Day person, yet here I am pushing another St. Patrick's Day recipe your way. To be fair, this is really just a Lucky Charms recipe and is totally appropriate at any time of year.
But I'm sure Lucky Charms sales increase majorly in March and maybe even parents who don't normally allow sugary cereal let their kids indulge at this time of year. I know my consumption certainly increases!
While I don't eat sugary cereal for breakfast, I sometimes like to indulge in it as a snack or for dessert and Lucky Charms is almost always my choice (a close second goes to Cinnamon Toast Crunch).
It's absolutely delicious right out of a bowl with a splash of milk, but also makes for a great ingredient in so many recipes. I could probably start a whole new blog with my Lucky Charms recipe creations.
But first, I had to incorporate the cereal into some delicious, albeit incredibly sweet, granola bars.
❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
Some granola bars are super healthy. These Lucky Charms granola bars are not those. They're more like special treats that come well-deserved in the middle of a busy week. Especially at St. Patrick's Day, but also in the middle of July.
Could they be Lucky Charms breakfast bars? Well, sure. But they'll be a super sweet breakfast and I might recommend leaving the white chocolate chips out.
Then again... you do deserve an extra special treat on St. Patrick's Day!
Not only are they easy to make, but they'll be loved by both kids and adults alike!
🗒 Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make these Lucky Charms granola bars (be sure to check out the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):
- Lucky Charms cereal
- Quick cooking oats
- White chocolate chips (optional)
- Sprinkles (optional)
- Butter
- Light brown sugar
- Honey
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
👩🍳 How to make Lucky Charms granola bars
The granola bars are no-bake and incredibly easy to make. To start, mix the dry ingredients together. I used Lucky Charms cereal, quick cooking oats, and white chocolate chips, along with some pretty sprinkles for good measure.
If you don't like white chocolate or don't want a super sweet bar, you can definitely leave those chips out. You can also feel free to leave the sprinkles out; I just like them for appearance sake.
Let's be real; I add sprinkles to anything I can.
Then, in a saucepan, melt butter, brown sugar, and vanilla together, let it come to a boil and simmer for a couple minutes, and pour the mixture into the bowl with the cereal.
Spread into a lightly greased 8x8 baking pan, pressing down to form an even layer. And let chill in the fridge for at least an hour before slicing.
And then you can slice into bars and enjoy!
To slice my Lucky Charms bars, I made five vertical slices across and then one horizontal slice down the middle to divide each bar into two. This made the perfect size granola bars for me.
Like I mentioned, these Lucky Charms granola bars are sweet! Between the marshmallows in the cereal, brown sugar, and white chocolate chips, they pack a punch of sugar that is sure to make anyone with a sweet tooth fall in love.
They are definitely a little too sweet for me to eat for breakfast, but I'm also not the biggest white chocolate lover. Chris absolutely loved them and didn't think they were too sweet at all (he's a big white chocolate fan) and totally wanted them to be breakfast bars.
But that's why I'm making the white chocolate chips optional and letting you decide based on the intensity of your sweet tooth.
And I mean, at least you're getting some fiber with those oats and the non-marshmallow part of the Lucky Charms (what are those called anyway?? And furthermore, what the heck are those shapes?? Apparently, they're Christian symbols?? Who knew!).
These Lucky Charms granola bars are almost as fun to look at as they are to eat. I just love all the magically delicious colors!
⏲️ How to store
When you store these granola bars in an airtight container at room temperature, they should keep fresh for at least a week.
If you're layering them in the container, be sure to place layers of parchment or wax paper between the bars.
If you want to make a big batch of the bars to keep for an extended period, you can even freeze them. I recommend wrapping each bar individually in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and then placing them in a freezer-safe airtight container big Ziplock bag.
They should keep for about 3 months in the freezer. Be sure to thaw at room temperature or in the fridge before enjoying.
🎉 Variations on recipe
I think these bars are pretty fabulous as is, but there are lots of alterations you can make to Lucky Charms granola bars to suit them to your own tastes.
Here are some ideas:
- Leave the white chocolate out to make these Lucky Charms granola bars more breakfast friendly.
- If you don't like white chocolate, consider milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips.
- You can leave out the sprinkles if you want; I just think they add a fun look.
- To make them even more indulgent, dip the bars into melted white chocolate or semisweet chocolate.
- Mix in chopped nuts like almonds, pecans, or walnuts for added crunch and nutrition.
- Incorporate dried fruits like cranberries, raisins, or chopped apricots into the bars for a chewy texture and a tart contrast to the sweetness.
- Add additional mini marshmallows or marshmallow fluff to the bars.
- Mix a peanut butter swirl into the bars
These granola bars are perfect for any little leprechauns you have in your life, though like I mentioned, they make big leprechauns happy, too (also, maybe don't call your loved ones "leprechauns" because that's kind of creepy).
I sent most of the batch off to work with Chris so I wouldn't be on a permanent sugar high, but now I kind of regret it as a Lucky Charms bar would go perfectly with my afternoon coffee.
If you're looking for a sweet and festive St. Patrick's Day treat, be sure to make these Lucky Charms granola bars! They're the perfect ending to a corned beef dinner. Or just a long, difficult day.
🌈 More Lucky Charms recipes
Like I mentioned, I have lots of other Lucky Charms recipe favorites and am sharing the best below. Don't worry; I'm always dreaming up new ideas, too!
For another fun breakfast idea, try this tasty Lucky Charms oatmeal!
I also happen to this this Lucky Charms Cheesecake Cheese Ball looks pretty darn fabulous!
Are you as Lucky Charms obsessed as I am?
📖 Recipe
Lucky Charms Granola Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups Lucky Charms cereal
- 2 cups quick cooking oats
- ½ cup white chocolate chips (optional)
- ¼ cup sprinkles (optional)
- 5 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup, plus 1 Tbsp light brown sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Line an 8x8 baking pan with foil and lightly grease with cooking spray or butter.
- In a large bowl, mix together Lucky Charms, quick cooking oats, white chocolate chips (if using), and sprinkles (if using).
- In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stir together butter, brown sugar, honey, vanilla extract, and salt. Let mixture come to a boil, then lower heat and let simmer for about 2 minutes.
- Pour liquid mixture over dry ingredients and toss well to coat.
- Pour mixture into the prepared pan and using fingers, press down into an even layer.
- Place pan in refrigerator for at least one hour to allow granola bars to cool and harden. Once chilled, remove from pan, place on cutting board, and cut into 10 bars (I make 5 cuts across and then one in the middle to divide into 10).
Tara says
These are so perfect for St. Patrick's Day! You can never go wrong with Lucky Charms...
Rae says
I haven't had Lucky Charms in AGES, these granola bars would definitely brighten up someone's day. Perfect for St. Paddy's Day!
Valentina says
These bars totally match your logo! 😀 What a fun treat -- I love the little rainbows, and everyone loves Lucky Charms.
Alisa Infanti says
These are sooo cute! I love that little rainbow on the side cut out. I am going to share this with my mom friends who still have little ones. These would be perfect for a birthday party or play date treat!
Kelly Anthony says
These lucky charms granola bars are so fun and will make a fun afternoon with my girls. They will love helping me make these for their friends.
Linda says
These granola bars bring sunshine and lots of smiles. Love the layers and how fun it is to make.
Robyn says
Just made these, delicious!! Very easy! They look great too! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Beth says
These look delicious as do the rest of your lucky charm treats! Might be making these this weekend with your lucky charms crazed nephews!
Amber Arnold says
Can I do this without the oats?
Sues says
Hi Amber- I haven't tried this, but I would think you could if you increase the amount of cereal you use a bit (or decrease the amount of butter/honey/sugar). You could also replace the oats with quinoa flakes or puffed rice!