This easy oatmeal bars recipe is quick and simple to make. It uses just four wholesome ingredients to create a tasty snack full of protein and fiber!
Whether I’m rushing out the door, looking for a snack before dinner, or just want a quick and easy breakfast to start my morning— these oatmeal bars always come through.
I came up with this recipe years ago as a way to create a wholesome treat, and it’s since become a weekly go-to and reader favorite recipe! Made with just 4 simple ingredients, they’re ridiculously easy to whip up — with no baking required.
Why You’ll Love These
This oatmeal bar recipe is made with just a handful of simple, wholesome ingredients that come together in minutes. Soft, chewy, and naturally sweet, they make a satisfying snack or quick breakfast that energizes you throughout the morning.
Plus, with oats, nut or seed butter, and a touch of honey or agave, they’re full of protein, fiber, and healthy fats. It’s one of the most versatile oatmeal recipes I have!
Featured 5-Star Review
“These bars are outstanding. Easy to make and store nicely! We love them! Thank you for this recipe, we love it.”
— Sherrie
Ingredient Spotlight: What You Need
These oatmeal bars have just 4 ingredients plus salt. (Salt is a given, right?) This makes them easy to whip up without any advanced planning, which is a huge win in my book. Here are a few notes on each component:
- Old-fashioned rolled oats: These are the same oats you’d use in my overnight oats, oatmeal muffins, or baked oatmeal. Steel-cut oats have the texture of rice, so they’re not a good substitute here.
- Peanut butter: Use creamy, no-sugar-added peanut butter. If all you have is sweetened, you can use less honey for the recipe. Use sunflower butter as a nut allergy substitute.
- Honey: Honey adds a warm, golden flavor and a nice sticky texture. If you’re vegan, agave syrup is best over maple syrup for a similar consistency.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon adds just the right hint of complexity.
Of course, you’ll need a little salt to round it out for the perfect flavor. Make sure to use kosher salt, since it flavors foods more gently than table salt.
Tips for Perfect No-Bake Bars
I love a good no-bake recipe, and not just because you get to skip the oven time. They’re almost impossible to mess up! Here are a few tips for how to make oatmeal bars that are perfect every time:
- Check the consistency. If your dough is too dry, add a little more honey or nut/seed butter. If it’s too sticky, stir in a small amount of extra oats — just don’t overdo it, or the bars will end up crumbly.
- Use a small glass to get them perfectly flat. Mix the ingredients in a large bowl, then throw them into a square baking pan or baking dish with parchment underneath. Pat them flat, then roll over the top with a small glass for the most uniform texture.
- Freeze before cutting! Freeze the pan for 15 minutes after you’ve spread them in your pan, which sets the bars. They will still be a little soft at this point.
- Let them set in the fridge. You can eat these immediately after cutting, but I prefer waiting until they’ve set. An hour should do it!
Love baked oatmeal bars, too? Try my banana baked oatmeal, toasted in coconut oil and easily sliceable for the perfect bites. While it’s not as quick-cooking as these oatmeal breakfast bars, it’s a good recipe to make ahead.
How to Store & Portion
One of the things I like about this recipe is playing with the size of the oat bars. You get more of them if you cut them smaller! Here are a few notes about cutting your bars:
- Make 32 rectangle-shaped bars for more servings and fewer calories and sugar per snack. The sugar in smaller, low-calorie oatmeal bars is only 1 teaspoon, and it’s still a super satisfying snack or treat. I prefer this size for its versatility.
- Make 16 square bars for breakfast. If you’re eating them as breakfast bars, you’ll probably want a larger bar to be more filling. Of course, you could also just eat 2 small bars!
Store these in an airtight container refrigerated for up to 2 weeks. If you’re stacking them, place parchment paper between the layers to prevent sticking. These oatmeal bars firm up in the cold, so leave them out at room temperature if you like a softer texture.
You can also store leftovers in the freezer — just wrap them tightly! To thaw, leave them out at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before eating.
Make It Vegan
I typically use maple syrup as my liquid sweetener of choice, which is naturally vegan. In this recipe, the texture of honey is integral to the structure of the bars. To make these vegan, try agave syrup instead. It’s a little thicker than maple syrup, so it works more like honey.
If you only have maple syrup, it’ll work in a pinch. The bars will firm up after some time in the fridge. (And if you’re looking for something warming, try my vegan oatmeal, too!)
Nutrition Notes
Old-fashioned rolled oats are naturally gluten-free oats that are high in cholesterol-lowering fiber and slow-digesting carbs for steady energy.
According to the USDA, 100 grams of raw rolled oats have:
- 13.5 grams of protein (about 20% of your daily need)
- 10.4 grams of fiber (about 30% of your daily need)
That’s why I love them as part of a healthy breakfast, especially in my classic oatmeal recipe that I eat every day!
More Oatmeal Recipes to Try
Dietary Notes
These 4-ingredient oatmeal bars are vegetarian, dairy-free, and gluten-free. For vegan and plant-based, substitute honey with agave syrup.
FAQs
You may be able to use quick oats in this recipe, but the texture will probably be different. Rolled oats give a chewier, heartier bar with more defined oat flakes. Quick oats, popular for rapid meal prep, may create a softer, denser bar that holds together more firmly.
To make your oatmeal bars chewier, try adding more nut or seed butter to your dry ingredients for extra stickiness. Pressing the mixture firmly into the prepared pan helps the bars hold together. The harder you pack the mixture, the more cohesive and chewy the bars will be.
Once you have your base down, you can customize your bars with mix-ins for flavor and texture. Just be careful not to go overboard! Too many add-ins can make the bars dry and keep them from sticking together. You’ll also want to avoid being too heavy-handed on the sweet mix-ins if you want to keep these bars on the healthier side.
Here are some ideas:
Mini dark chocolate chips
Dried fruit (raisins, dried cranberries, dried blueberries)
Flax seeds
Shredded coconut
Pumpkin pie spice
Vanilla extract
Nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans)
Sunflower or pumpkin seeds
Some recipes use chia seeds for the fiber boost, but note that chia can become jelly-like when mixed with wet ingredients. Try my oatmeal protein bars with dates for a protein boost or my peanut butter bars with a drizzle of dark chocolate for an indulgent treat.
Easy Oatmeal Bars
Pin Recipe
Print RecipeWholesome, chewy, and naturally sweet, these easy oatmeal bars are irresistibly tasty and perfect for busy mornings and snacks.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 16 large or 32 small
- Category: Snack
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: Breakfast
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter (no sugar added, or sunflower butter for nut free)
- ½ cup honey (or agave syrup* for vegan)
- 4 cups Old Fashioned rolled oats
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl until they form a sticky dough. If the mixture is dry and not sticky, add a bit more honey and/or peanut butter. (Different peanut butter brands perform differently here.)
- Add a sheet of parchment paper to an 8 x 8” or 9 x 9” pan. Place the ingredients in the pan and press them into an even layer. Use a small glass to roll over the top to get it smooth.
- Freeze the bars for 15 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the freezer and use the parchment to lift it out of the pan. Cut into 16 squares or 32 rectangles.
- You can eat right away, or refrigerate for about 1 hour for a more solid texture. Store refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
*Maple syrup is generally my sweetener of choice, but the flavor and texture of honey really make these bars. Since maple syrup is not as sticky as honey, for a vegan substitute, I recommend agave syrup for your oat mixture.
Varying your nut butters can change the texture of your bars. Almond butter has a grittier texture. The ingredients listed have been taste-tested for a fool-proof no-bake method! No baking powder, baking soda, or all-purpose flour required.
from A Couple Cooks https://ift.tt/QhpPjac
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