The snack bar may contain different components depending on when it is going to be consumed. The ingredients of a bar made for breakfast would typically differ from a bar made for post workout consumption. That doesn’t mean you can’t eat your snack bar anytime of the day; it just helps you supplement your diet with what is nutritionally required when you only have time for a meal replacement.  For a breakfast bar, you should aim to include protein, carbohydrates, fruit or veggies and some good fat into it. The bar should be large enough that when eaten with a glass of milk, you feel satiated. One and a half to 2.5 oz. (42 to 70 g) is a good starting point for the size of the bar. For a post workout bar, you should aim to have protein and carbohydrates. The bar should contain 12 to 18 g of protein and 50 to 75 g of carbohydrate per serving. For a general snack bar, you should aim for a bar that will satiate you until the next meal without filling you with empty calories. A breakfast bar or a post workout bar will work just fine as a snack. Whole grains and protein will help satiate you and won’t leave you feeling sluggish. It is important to keep the amount of fat down and the sugars to a minimum to avoid getting sleepy or crashing. The snack bar can be made into a soft, chewy bar that is more dense (consistency of a brownie), it can be very grainy and hard (consistency of granola cereal bar), or it can be grainy and chewy (chewy cereal bar).  For a soft, chewy bar you should use whole grain flours. Some good flours to choose from are whole wheat, whole white wheat, multi-grain, oat flour, and rye flour. These work well with savory as well as sweet bars and will add in extra fiber and vitamins. The whole grain flours also help manage blood glucose levels because the whole grains are less starchy and digest slower, keeping glucose levels in the blood steady. Since whole grain flours absorb more water (not just immediately, but also after they have been baked), it’s important to add more water to your recipe than you would use when cooking with refined white flour. These flours also contain more oils and will develop a rancid “cardboard” flavor sooner than refined flours. To help avoid this ‘off’ flavor, use fresh flour (check dates on the flour before purchasing), and keep it in an airtight container after opening. It may be helpful to buy small bags of flour to keep it from sitting in the cabinet too long. You can also add oats, cooked quinoa, cooked rice, wheat bran and other grains to the mixture to vary the texture and add more nutrition. For grainy bars, you should also use whole grains. However instead of flours, use the actual grains themselves. Ingredients like quinoa and rice will need to be cooked before use, while oats, flax and hemp can be used toasted or plain (quick cook oats work best when using oats). If you are making the bar crunchy, then dry out the quinoa in an oven before using. If you are using rice, then buy puffed rice cereal for a crispy cereal bar because it is cheap and easier than puffing rice at home. Seeds and nuts are also a great option to improve nutrition and taste, and they work in both savory and sweet bar recipes. Some seeds and nuts to try are almonds, sunflower seeds, walnuts and pumpkin seeds, which will add protein and good fat to the bar. The binder is an ingredient that acts like a glue to hold everything together.  Soft chewy bars do not need a binder because they are dense and the flour holds everything together. For grainy bars, you will need a binder to hold all the ingredients together. Try ingredients like beans, soy flour, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, honey, milk chocolate, agave nectar, peanut butter, or almond butter. Try to use ingredients that serve more than one purpose; for instance, peanut butter is source of fat and protein and will hold your bar together. When using beans, cook, drain and mash them up before use and mix with something sticky, like honey or almond butter. All these ingredients are nutrient dense because they serve a function in the bar and have macro and micronutrients in them. Not all bars need a sweetener in them but if you do decide to add one, keep in mind that it can also act as a binder. It is best to use liquid sweeteners to make the bars, but this is not a requirement. Granulated sugar or brown sugar can be used, but it will need to be melted first and will work best if mixed with butter to keep it from solidifying too quickly. The butter will also help it mix evenly with the other ingredients in your bar. You can use an artificial sweetener in your recipe as long as it is very soluble in water; Sucralose works well in this low-moisture application because it dissolves easily in water. Inclusions are ingredients added for taste and health purposes. Inclusions work best when used in pieces. All the pieces should be roughly the same size for even distribution.  Soy nuts are great for adding protein and crunch. Soy is one of the few plant-based proteins that is a complete protein; it contains all the essential amino acids the human body needs. Having said that, any nut is a good source of protein, even if it is not a complete protein, because nuts contain many amino acids the body uses for refueling and muscle repair. Adding an inclusion for protein may not be necessary because most of the whole grains or binders used will contain a fair amount of protein already. For instance, quinoa, flax and hemp are complete proteins. Also, combinations of ingredients will achieve greater protein content. Conversely, beans and rice are not complete proteins on their own, but together they create a complete protein. Other inclusions that work well are Edamame, chocolate nibs, dried fruit pieces, raisins, nuts and seeds, low-moisture vegetables, and yogurt bits. These all serve a health purpose and add good flavor. Cranberries are good for both men and women because they help prevent the adherence of bacteria throughout the urinary tract. Dark chocolate is a mood enhancer and full of antioxidants, which adds additional value to your bars. When making your bars, don’t put too many inclusions into them or the bars will not hold together properly. Cinnamon is a classic flavor and it has the highest antioxidant content of all the spices. This makes it good for you and good for the shelf life of your bars. When using cinnamon in a soft chewy bar, use it sparingly because it will affect how well the bar stays together. Other spices to try are soy powder or sauce, Worcestershire powder or sauce, cardamom, nutmeg, or clove. Remember that a little spice will go a long way, so be careful when adding spices. Spices are optional and can be omitted from your chosen recipe.
Decide when the snack bar will be eaten. Choose your grains. Choose your binder. Choose your sweetener. Choose your inclusions. Choose your spices.