Nut-free muesli bars

Add these nut-free muesli bars to your lunch box repertoire

Finding tasty snacks and easy lunch box recipe ideas for kids can be a full-time job. Something that suits everyone's varying tastes (which can change over time) and importantly, accommodates the nut-free requirement for schools. Due to the seriousness of nut allergies, most schools require all lunch box items to be nut-free to keep kids with allergies safe at school. 

While there are plenty of muesli bars without nuts available to buy, the benefit of making homemade versions is that you can accommodate any changes in taste preferences easily and you know exactly what is going into them.  

So, whether you are making these treats for someone with a nut allergy, to meet a requirement for a nut-free school or because they taste good, these homemade nut-free muesli bars are sure to meet your needs. For more lunch box inspiration, check out these easy back-to-school recipe ideas. 

This nut-free muesli bar recipe is all you need for tasty snacks

So, what makes a good muesli bar? A standard muesli bar is going to start with oats, sweeteners and then often nuts, seeds and dried fruits for flavour. In this case, we’re going nut-free, but if you don’t need to accommodate allergies, then you can play around with flavours and add them in if preferred or try these mixed berry oat bars.

This nut-free muesli bars recipe is chewy and packed with oats for fibre and goodness, as well as honey to sweeten and dried fruit for extra flavour. There’s also a sprinkling of seeds for crunch and coconut for its distinct nutty flavour. 

If you like your fruit to be extra juicy, you can pre-soak it in hot water before draining and mixing it with the remaining ingredients. This will soften the dried fruit, making it break down a little and spread flavour throughout the bars, as well as keeping the fruit plump and juicy. 

Now, if you’re looking to take this nut-free muesli bars recipe to the next level, why not add a yoghurt or dark chocolate drizzle? To make a yoghurt drizzle, you’ll need to add coconut oil and icing sugar to the yoghurt, so it thickens and sticks to the muesli bars. 

Weather too hot and you don’t want to turn the oven on? Try these no-bake chia muesli bars for an option that tastes as good and lets you keep your cool. 

Tips for sending your nut-free muesli bar to school

Another advantage to homemade muesli bars is, of course, the lack of packaging and preservatives. To do this at home you can wrap bars in strips of greaseproof or baking paper before placing them into lunch boxes. The handy homemade packaging also provides something to hold your muesli bars in while eating and prevents sticky fingers. 

Looking for more ideas? Check out these 10 recipes for easy lunch box fillers.