Copycat Kudos Granola Bars

Copycat Kudos Granola Bars

If you loved Kudos granola bars, you’re going to love this homemade copycat recipe! Kudos bars are a tasty treat that chocolate lovers of all ages will love.

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Remember Kudos bars? That colorful kid’s candy bar disguised as a healthy granola snack that we ate by the boxful back in the 90’s and early aughts? Kudos bars came in a variety of flavors like M&Ms, Snickers, and plain ol’ chocolate chip. They basically tasted like if a Rice Krispie treat and a candy bar had a baby, with a little bit of oats mixed in. Kudos bars were so, so good, and I was so sad to find out that they were discontinued. But, this is why copycat recipes exist, and this Kudos copycat recipe is just as good as the original!

Of all the Kudos bars flavors, M&M and chocolate chip were always my favorite, so I decided to make a copycat chocolate chip AND M&M version of Kudos bars. I 100% support throwing you in whatever your favorite candy is! Snickers were also a popular Kudos candy flavor, so try that out too if you’re in the mood. I used sugar free chocolate in this recipe, and next time (yes, there will be a next time) I think it would be fun to try out a vegan candy bar mix-in.

This recipe is super, super easy to make and requires no baking at all! Honestly the hardest part will be waiting for your finished bars to cool completely in the fridge so they don’t fall apart as you eat them. But honestly… if you don’t wait for the full time, who could blame you?

This Kudos bars recipe has everything that we love in a nostalgic, ‘healthy’ treat: cereal, oats, chocolate, and sugar. I’m sold, and you should be too if you remember these delicious granola bars. Or, if you’ve never had a Kudos bar before, this is a good introduction to one of the greatest kids snacks of all time. Sadly, Kudos may be discontinued but they live on forever in our hearts!

This copycat Kudos bar recipe is, unfortunately, not vegan and, unfortunately, not gluten-free. One of the hallmark ingredients of Kudos bars were Rice Krispie treats, so this recipe is a no-go if you’re vegan or gluten-intolerant. Perhaps you could make them with another type of cereal. I haven’t tried that out just yet, but I definitely will!

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Copycat Kudos Granola Bars

Prep time: 5 MinInactive time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 5 M

If you loved Kudos granola bars, you’re going to love this homemade copycat recipe! Kudos bars are a tasty treat that chocolate lovers of all ages will love.

Ingredients

• 1 c Rice Krispies cereal
• 1/2 c oats
• 2 tbsp packed brown sugar
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tbsp light corn syrup
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 c mini chocolate chips, divided
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1 package M&Ms (optional)

Instructions

1. Line a loaf pan and a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set both aside.
2. Combine the cereal and oats together in a large bowl.
3. In a small sauce pan over medium heat, stir together the brown sugar, butter, maple syrup, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a simmer, and continue to stir for 2 minutes, until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
4. Pour the caramel over the cereal-oat mixture. Mix together, then add in 1/4 c of the mini chocolate chips. Don’t stir them in too much or they’ll start to melt.
5. Press the mixture into the loaf pan. Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips and M&Ms, if using.
6. Cool in the fridge for about 1 hour. Once cooled, slice into bars.
7. Melt the remaining 1c of chocolate chips and coconut oil together in the microwave, pausing to stir every 15s. Stir until smooth and melted.
8. Working one at a time, dip the bottoms of each granola bar into the chocolate, then place onto a wax-lined baking sheet. Once all of the bars have been dipped, drizzle any remaining melted chocolate on top of each bar.
9. Refrigerate until chocolate has set, about 1 hour. Bars can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week.

Notes

Adapted From: AbaJillian Recipes

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