Since beginning this blog, I’ve created many flavors of Homemade Larabars.
But when, out of curiosity one day, I googled homemade Luna bars, I was surprised to find zero relevant results. Really? No one had made these yet? It was definitely time to change that.
I don’t usually buy Luna bars, but every now and then I find myself craving either one of their chocolate-dipped coconut or nutz over chocolate bars. The following recipe more-closely resembles the latter:
Homemade Luna Bars
Inspired by Homemade Rice Crispy Treats.
- 3 cups rice crispies (I used brown rice crispies. For a less-crispy bar, you can sub 2 cups of the crispies for 1/2 cup oat flour.)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt (I used salted pb, too)
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons nut butter of choice (for lower-cal option, see below link)
- 1/2 cup sticky sweetener, such as agave or brown rice syrup (I used agave)
- 2-3 tablespoons protein powder (you can omit)
- melted chocolate chips or Sugar-Free Chocolate Sauce
Mix your pb, sweetener, extract, and salt. Melt (either in the microwave or stove), then pour over the cereal and powder, and stir very well, making sure to coat all the crispies. Smush and smash the crispies. (Get mad; it’s fun!) Line a pan with wax paper and spread the mixture evenly into the pan. Place a sheet of wax paper on top of the mixture, then press down as firmly as you can. Really press it down! Spread the chocolate on top, and freeze for at least a half hour before slicing.
Click for lower-sugar and Lower-Calorie Options.
I didn’t bother to figure out the nutritional info for these, as it will vary depending on what protein powder and chocolate sauce you use. But they are probably pretty comparable, calorie-wise, to packaged Luna bars. (The bars in the photos were made with the no-sugar chocolate sauce.)
Do you like energy bars?
My favorites are probably my Hot Fudge Brownie Larabars.
But I don’t always have time to make homemade bars. So if I’m in a hurry and need a quick and portable snack, I’ll often grab a cookie dough Larabar or a chocolate-chip Z bar, or a chocolate Jocalat bar… I’m picky about my energy bars; I only like the ones that have chocolate!
Love Lara Bars if I don’t have time to do the homemade ones! Also – Raw Revolution Raspberry & Chocolate is great too:)
Clif Mojo bars, Z bars and Luna bars all rock my socks off! My favorite of each is peanut butter pretzel, honey graham, and chocolate peppermint, respectively! I always have some stashed in my car, gym bag, and desk at work 🙂
Do you think maple syrup would work as a sub for the agave/brown rice sugar? Or would the flavor be too strange a combination with the nut butter? Also- what pan size did you use for these? So excited to try this out!!!
Unfortunately, I don’t think it’d be thick enough. (I could be wrong, though, as I’ve never actually tried it.
I made these in an 8×8 pan.
I love Luna bars…what a fabulous idea..do you know how these nutrition stats compare to the actual bars? Have a great day!
You could also maybe sub out 1/3-1/2 of the krispees for sliced/slivered/chopped nuts, could you not? That would maybe increase the nutrition a bit, but still have the crunch flavor 🙂
Ohh man these are scrumpdillyumptious! I could have eaten a ton of them. I’m not vegan, so I used Honey, I love Honey to death…such a great treat, and nutrient filled too! Keep up the fantastic work Katie, I am new to your blog, but have found so many treasures! Thank you 😀
I’m so excited you tried them!!
Clif bars are great tasting and have some good vitamins/ingredients. I would like to see them make the packaging fit the bar though. The bar has gotten smaller over the years, but the package has stayed the same size. Just kind of annoying. It makes me feel like the company wants the customer to believe the bar in larger. Also, several other companies are lowering the sugar content without compromising taste. I believe Clif could do this as well.
I love Pure bars because they also only have a few ingredients like Larabars but they actually have some protein and I like the flavors better! I only like a couple Luna bar flavors too, the toasted nuts and cranberry one and the berry almond, but I think they discontinued that one! I don’t know if you could recreate that one though because it was infused with a bunch of berries but maybe it wouldn’t be that hard 😀
Ok so this is one of my favorite recipes ..I’ve made it both ways. With full peanut butter and one with banana butter(it doesn’t quite stay together as well) I could eat the whole batch lol. Thx for the recipe!!
KATIE!!!! Luna Bars?! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!
These look so delicious! If you’re a fan of peanut butter, please check out my recipe for peanut butter rice crispy treats with fleur de sel… http://bit.ly/peanutbuttertreats
Thanks!
Katie, how do you suggest we store these once they’re made and sliced up? Fridge or just in an airtight container at room temp? How long do they last (in your estimation)? They are very tasty! Also, I wasn’t sure how much melted chocolate is needed, can you give an amount? We ballparked it but I was curious as to your measurements. Thanks!
Hmmm, I think you should probably keep them fridged or frozen if you use the PMS chocolate, because coconut butter melts at room temp. But if you just used melted chocolate chips for the tops (without coconut oil), I think they’d be fine at room temp. I kept mine frozen and just thawed as needed, which made them last at least a few weeks. As for the chocolate amount, I didn’t really measure either. It’s actually a chore for me to remember I have to measure recipes out if I’m planning to blog them… I like to just throw things together on a whim! 🙂
oh my goodness…how we LOVE these! I just made them and they smelled so good, my husband and I had a hard time waiting for them to finish setting up in the freezer!
These will definitely be on or regular rotation of “snacky” foods to have on hand. 🙂
I actually got some crazy-weird shaped Luna bars because I couldn’t stop picking at them before I had a chance to freeze them and cut into bars ;).
How many bars do these make? I want to make them for the basketball team-12 high school girls. Will I need to double the recipe or anything?
I’m trying to remember… I *think* it makes an 8×8. I’ve made so many recipes in the past few weeks that I’m having trouble remembering :(. I’m so sorry I can’t be more helpful!
hI! love your site!
I tried this recipe using:
-MaraNatha Dark Chocolate Almond Spread
-PlantFusion Vanilla Bean Protein Powder + Chocolate GreenSuperFood Powder
-Honey
-Cocoa Crispies
-Vanilla Extract
-Dark Chocolate Chips
Sooo good! thank you for all your creativity!! :))
I’m a first time reader and I’m SO happy I found your site. I can’t eat a lot of dairy and I’m always desperately searching for baking recipes I can actually eat! I”m a big snacker too so Luna bars are a daily staple. I can’t wait to try these!
Aww I’m so glad you found my site!! 🙂