Oat Bars Recipe

Want a cozy, nutritious bowl of oatmeal, but as a portable breakfast or snack? These Oatmeal To-Go Bars are hearty, packed with protein and fiber, and quickly stirred together in one bowl. 

They are also really easy to customize for a nutritious toddler snack or a nut-free school option.

All the goodness of a bowl of oatmeal but in a hearty bar that you can take on the go. Easy to customize and stirred together in one bowl.

EQUIPMENT

• 1 8-inch baking pan

INGREDIENTS

  

• 1/2 cup applesauce or mashed banana
• 1/2 cup natural almond butter, peanut butter, or any nut/seed butter
• 1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
• 2/3 cup milk (any kind) I use unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats see note for using all rolled oats
• 1/4 cup ground flax meal
• 1/4 cup hemp seeds optional but adds protein
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 cup seeds and/or chopped nuts See note below for details
• 1/2 cup dried fruit chopped if needed

INSTRUCTIONS

 

• Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or grease with oil spray.
• In a large bowl whisk together the applesauce, almond butter, and maple syrup. Once combined, whisk in the milk.
• With a rubber spatula or large spoon, stir in the oats, quick oats, flax, hemp seeds, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Once combined, stir in any additional seeds, nuts, and dried fruit.
• Dump the batter into the prepared pan and spread into an even layer.
• Bake until golden brown around the edges, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Let cool for at least an hour then cut into bars. I usually cut them into 8 large rectangular bars, but you can also cut them into smaller squares if you’d like.
• Store bars in an airtight container at room temp for one day or in the fridge for 5 days. Individually wrap and freeze for up to 2 months. To defrost, leave in the fridge for a day or on the counter for an hour. Also good if you microwave until warm.

NOTES

If you don’t have quick oats, you can pulse a 1 1/4 cups of rolled oats in a food processor until they are broken up into smaller bits then measure and use in the recipe. Do not over process into a flour. 

For toddlers or young kids, make sure to finely chop or grind up and nuts or seeds you are using in the bars to avoid choking hazards.

For add-ins, I love using pumpkin seeds, walnuts, and sliced almonds, but you can really use anything you like. For dried fruit, I like raisins or dried cranberries. Chopped dried apricots, dates, or prunes are also great options.

You can also add chocolate chips if you’d like. (Makes the bars extra kid-friendly.)