This is such an easy and tasty recipe that is perfect for lunch boxes.
I guess they aren’t really ‘muesli’ bars as they don’t contain oats! But you can certainly use oats instead of quinoa if you like.
Quinoa (pronounced KeenWah) is incredibly nutritious – it’s very high in protein. Combined with all the seeds and eggs, these bars will have you fuelled up and ready to go!
HOT TIP: You can use any combination of dried fruits,nuts and seeds – as long as the mixture you add to the eggs equals 5 cups.
Gluten-Free, Nut-Free Muesli Bars
Vital Stats: gluten free, grain free, dairy free, nut free, refined sugar free
Okay, so this is what you need:
1/2 cup organic quinoa, dry
1 cup dried apple
1 cup organic sultanas
1/2 cup dried organic figs
1/2 cup organic sunflower seeds
1/2 cup organic pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1/2 cup organic shredded coconut
1/4 cup organic chia seeds
1/4 cup organic sesame seeds
3 organic, free range eggs
2 tablespoons organic maple syrup or honey (optional)
2 teaspoons organic ceylon cinnamon
2 teaspoons organic vanilla extract
Hot tip: choose organic dried fruit where you can, as it doesn’t contain preservatives.
Okay, so this is how you do it:
Preheat the oven to 160° celsius. Line a slice tray with a non-toxic baking paper.
Rinse the quinoa really well (I soak for a bit and then rinse). This is really important as quinoa has a bitter saponins that coat it and need to be removed.
Cook the quinoa in a saucepan with 1 cup of filtered water. It will take about ten minutes. You will know it’s cooked because it becomes translucent.
HOT TIP: Make extra quinoa and store it in the fridge or freezer. It’s fantastic added to a salad or used instead of rice.
Cool the quinoa right down (you don’t want scrambled eggs)!
Chop the apple and figs. You can use the food processor or thermomix to do this.
Mix all the ingredients together well. I like to get my hands in and give it a good massage!
Press it firmly down into the slice tin and bake for 25-30 minutes or until cooked.
I cover the slice halfway through the cooking time with some baking paper so it doesn’t burn on top.
Cool on a wire rack before slicing with a bread knife into bars.
These freeze really well, so make a double batch and you will always have some on hand!
Makes about 12 large bars.
Want more?
Check out my 10 Healthy Muesli Bar recipes.
Great recipe thanks! Any egg alternatives? Egg gives my son eczema.
You could try it with some chia or flax egg? I don’t do a lot of egg free cooking sorry. 🙂
I wish I didn’t have to either! Yes good idea thanks.
Try it with mashed banana instead.
I have all the ingredients in my cupboard now except I have quinoa flakes, do you think it would work if I substituted? Does it expend? Would I need to use more?
I think you would need more liquid because the flakes will soak it all up 🙂
All good I just found I actually had it in the cupboard, so will give it a go like the recipe. Thank you.
These sound amazing! And look pretty good too, deffo giving them a whirl 🙂
Let me know what you guys think 🙂
Yum! Always love a good muesli recipe, I’m definitely going to try this one out on the kids and hubby – they’re not natural-born quinoa eaters, but I reckon they’d go for this… Thanks!
I found the maple syrup just hides the distinctive quinoa taste! 🙂
Has anyone tried these? Please share how these turned out if anyone have tried eggless version
I have not used quinoa before and I like to test out different things. Not because I need to but because there are often lots of hidden flavours and it mixes it up. I will get this a go, and also see if the kids like it.
HI Peter, let me know what you think! The quinoa is such a great product – the high protein really is filling!
These sound amazing!!
Do you have ideas on what I could substitute for the quinoa?
Just oats would be okay 🙂
Hi, if I use oats instead of quinoa would you soak them or cook them too or just use raw. Thanks
I would just use raw Vicky 🙂
I am about to try this recipe using Chia meal instead of eggs, its 1 tbs to 3 tbs of water for each egg substitution.
Let me know how you go 🙂
It was pretty good actually! I imagine it is about 25% more crumbly than the example you have photographed but I am pleased with the result. I didn’t have figs or apples so I didn’t follow the recipe exactly but I kept to the five cups as you recommended. Thanks for another great recipe 🙂
Thanks for the feedback Tessa – I guess it does depend on how soft and squishy the fruit is too! Figs tend to go like a paste so that might have held it together better ! 🙂
Have yours turned up crunchy or chewy? I made some changes to the ingredients, mostly added nuts and they are quite chewy. I prefer musli bars to be crunchy so I wonder if longer baking would achieve that. I baked mine on 160 C (not fan forced) for 30 mins
the eggs make it more like a slice I guess – the really crunchy muesli bars use a lot of honey and butter to go crunchy 🙂
Thank you, my kids liked it. I will probably try it with oats next time for something different but the mixture was so yummy I couldn’t stop eating it ever before baked. (Without the raw eggs)
I didn’t have any dried apples or figs and my daughter is egg-intolerant. I subbed dates for the figs and made applesauce which I mixed with chia seeds (3x tbsp applesauce to 1tbsp chia for each egg) to sub for the eggs. Worked out very nicely. Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
thanks for the variations Michele – great to know the egg sub works!! x
Another great recipe. I love your blueberry breakfast slice so will be giving this a go 🙂
Let me know what you think FPM! 🙂
Thanks for the egg variations. These are on my to-do list for today. Yum!
Yum Sonia! i bet these are so satisfying too so you’d only need small pieces. Handy to take to the park or outings.
Thanks for joining our “Sunday Brunch @ Mums” xx
These look so good!
I have got to try these for the school lunch box! they sound like they’d keep you going!
they sure do!!
Such a great idea – my daughter is wheat intolerant so these are perfect for us! Also I love that you can freeze them! Popping over from brunch at Mums!
HI Shelley! I hope you like them. Thanks for stopping by!
hi! just wondering what consistency we are going for after 25 mins in the oven? mine was very soft at that point…ended up leaving for an hour…however i did soak the seeds before hand so may have added some water volume….cooling on the rack now…not sure how they will go!! thanks!
yes, I think the soaking will have changed the texture and affected the cooking time – they are supposed to be quite firm 🙂
Going to have to try this, thank you for the recipe! I’m having to try going GF because my body breaks out something terrible with acne (some as big as a thumbnail!). I am always on the lookout for great GF recipes that don’t have 1000 hard-to-get and/or incredibly expensive ingredients. Thanks so much again for the great recipes! 🙂
I know the feeling Bea – I get bad skin from eating wheat, so I keep away from it!
Just wondering what colour quinoa I should use? I have red quinoa in my cupboard…
It can be all different colours! Red quinoa is fine! 🙂
hi i need to take out the sesamee seeds would doubeling the quantity of chai seeds work ok ?
A little boy in my sons class has a very bad allergy to nuts and sesamee seeds.
Hi Tammie, any seed would work fine 🙂
I have some cooked quinoa but not sure how to convert that to what it would have been dry. Also, have you tried it with Chia eggs instead of egg?
Hi Benita! It usually doubles, so I would say around about 1 cup of cooked. Sorry haven’t tried it with the chia egg but I can’t why it wouldn’t work as the eggs are to bind not to rise. 🙂