National Granola Bar Day Date in the current year: January 21, 2024

Granola is a popular breakfast and snack food similar to muesli. Both granola and muesli are a mixture of rolled oats and other ingredients such as nuts, seeds, grains, and dried fruits. The main difference between muesli and granola is that muesli is raw, whereas granola is made by adding honey or another sweetener to the muesli mix and then baking the mixture until crisp and golden brown.

Granola was invented in the mid-19th century by Dr. James Caleb Jason from Dansville, New York. He owned a health spa named the Jackson Sanitarium where he offered granola as a healthy breakfast. Public interest in granola faded by the early 20th century, and the food was forgotten for several decades. The revival of granola occurred in the 1960s. Nuts and fruits were added to the original mixture to make it healthier and more nutritious. The first major commercial granola brand, Heartland Natural Cereal, was introduced in 1972.

In addition to being a popular breakfast food, granola can be used to make granola bars, also known as muesli bars or cereal bars. A granola bar is a snack made by mixing granola with a binding ingredient (honey, corn or maple syrup, molasses, agave nectar, butter, nut butter), pressing the mixture into a bar shape, and then baking it. The so-called chewy granola bars are an exception; they are unbaked or very briefly baked.

Granola bars are always sold in individual packaging for two main reasons: first, they are sticky, and second, individually packaged bars are convenient to carry around and snack on. They are popular among backpackers, campers, hikers, and fitness enthusiasts because they are high in calories, nutritions, lightweight, and easy to store and consume. Granola bars also are a great snack option for packed lunches.

Granola bars are often marketed as healthy snacks, however, this isn’t always the case. Many granola bars are high in fat and sugar, which doesn’t make them much healthier than, for example, chocolate bars. So if you’re a fan of both granola bars and healthy food, you should look closely at ingredient lists to choose the healthiest option.

The origins of National Granola Bar Day are unclear, but do its history and creator really matter all that much? What matters is that you have a great excuse to munch on delicious granola bars all day long.

There are many ways to celebrate National Granola Bar Day. You can buy a bunch of different granola bars at your local grocery store or supermarket and try them all, make your own granola bars at home (don’t be shy to experiment with different ingredient combinations to figure out which ones you like the most), and share your favorite granola bar brands or recipes on social media with the hashtags #GranolaBarDay and#NationalGranolaBarDay to spread the word about the holiday.