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4-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Bars

4-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Bars are so quick and easy to make and are a lovely snack, breakfast, or healthy dessert! Put them on repeat to enjoy throughout the week.

Stack of oatmeal bars sitting on parchment paper with oatmeal bars to the side

After growing completely obsessed with my 3-Ingredient Oatmeal Cookies, I felt I just had to revisit the recipe and turn it into bars.

The way I see it, these easy 4-ingredient banana oat bars are the perfect healthy snack on the go or breakfast.

Or if you’re like me and you love a sweet treat but try to minimize your intake of excess sugar, these healthy bars can double as dessert!

The texture on these oatmeal breakfast bars is soft and chewy. You could compare it to a thinner version of Banana Baked Oatmeal

If you’re looking for a granola bar texture, make my 5-Ingredient Healthy Granola Bars.

Let’s discuss the simple ingredients involved in these tasty oatmeal bars!

Healthy breakfast bars on a sheet of parchment paper

Ingredients for Banana Oatmeal Bars:

Ripe Bananas: The sweetener of these banana oatmeal bars! Be sure you use very ripe bananas that have plenty of brown spots for the best result. The riper the banana, the sweeter it will be, which will ensure these cookie bars turn out nice and tasty.

Almond Butter or Peanut Butter: Unsweetened almond butter or peanut butter is the glue that holds these bars together, eliminating the need for eggs or a leavening agent. It also adds delicious rich flavor! 

Rolled Oats: Rolled oats give that amazing unparalleled oaty flavor to the banana oatmeal bars with that lovely texture. I use gluten-free sprouted oats, but you can use regular oats if you aren’t concerned about the gluten content. While you can use quick oats, I find old fashioned rolled oats have the best texture.

If you want to try a grain-free version of these bars, you can swap the oats for any mixed nuts you enjoy, just like I did in my 3-Ingredient Nutty Banana Cookies

Chocolate Chips: Providing those scintillating pockets of delicious chocolatey goodness, chocolate chips make these bars so inviting! 

To keep the recipe vegan, use dairy-free vegan chocolate chips.

For a lower sugar treat, omit the chocolate chips altogether, or use sugar-free chocolate chips. 

Optional Additions:

You can add 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract, and up to ⅔ cup chopped nuts (such as pecans or walnuts). 

If you love dried fruit, feel free to swap the chocolate chips for raisins or dried cranberries.

Let’s bake these healthy breakfast bars!

Slices of Oatmeal Bars on a sheet of parchment paper, ready to eat.

How to Make Banana Oatmeal Bars:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 9” x 9” baking pan with parchment paper (you can also use an 8” x 8” cake pan as well).

Mash the bananas in a bowl until most of the chunks are out and they’re nice and creamy.

Mashed banana in a mixing bowl

Stir in the almond butter until it is well-combined with the banana and a thick creamy substance results.

Mashed banana and almond butter mixed together in a mixing bowl

Mix in the rolled oats and chocolate chips and stir until everything is well-combined.

All of the ingredients for the breakfast oatmeal bars in a mixing bowl

Transfer the bar mixture to the prepared baking pan and smooth it into an even layer.

Oatmeal bar mixture in a parchment lined baking pan ready to go into the oven

Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 18 to 25 minutes, or until the edges of the bars are golden-brown and the bars appear set up.

Allow the oatmeal chocolate chip bars to cool completely before slicing and serving.

Finished oatmeal bars in a baking sheet fresh out of the oven

Because the bars are dairy-free, you can cover them in plastic wrap and store them on the counter for up to 2 days.

Store any leftover bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Freeze any remaining bars in a zip lock bag for up to 3 months.

More Banana-Sweetened Recipes:

And that’s it! Your gateway to a versatile healthy oatmeal bars recipe that is easy to customize and fun to make!

Healthy breakfast bars on a sheet of parchment paper
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4.38 from 373 votes

4-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Bars

Easy, healthy oatmeal bars made with 4 simple ingredients that are vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and delicious for snack, breakfast, or dessert! Customize these bars to your heart's delight!
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Servings: 16 Servings
Calories: 139kcal
Author: Julia

Ingredients

Optional Additions:

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 9” x 9” baking pan with parchment paper (you can also use an 8” x 8” cake pan as well).
  • Mash the bananas in a bowl until most of the chunks are out and they’re nice and creamy.
    Mashed banana in a mixing bowl
  • Stir in the almond butter until it is well-combined with the banana and a thick creamy substance results.
    Mashed banana and almond butter mixed together in a mixing bowl
  • Mix in the rolled oats and chocolate chips and stir until everything is well-combined.
    All of the ingredients for the breakfast oatmeal bars in a mixing bowl
  • Transfer the bar mixture to the prepared baking pan and smooth it into an even layer.
    Oatmeal bar mixture in a parchment lined baking pan ready to go into the oven
  • Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 18 to 25 minutes, or until the edges of the bars are golden-brown and the bars appear set up. Allow the bars to cool completely before slicing and serving.
    Finished oatmeal bars in a baking sheet fresh out of the oven

Video

Notes

*Use peanut butter or sunflower seed butter in place of almond butter

Nutrition

Serving: 1Slice (of 16) | Calories: 139kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 6g | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g

This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.

Vegan oatmeal bars collage

This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.

Recipe Rating




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TonyaB

Sunday 12th of November 2023

This was awesome! Just made them. I added white chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips and walnuts. On the top I put a thin layer of honey. Oh my goodness...So good! Thank you for the recipe this is going in my favorite recipe box.

Julia

Monday 13th of November 2023

Ooh, all of that sounds amazing, Tonya! Thanks for sharing! xo

Kelly

Sunday 5th of November 2023

I like to follow a recipe exactly as written but I didn’t have almond butter. I decided to use Nutella. My son thought they were delicious so I guess it was a success! Thank you!

Julia

Wednesday 8th of November 2023

OMG, nutella sounds SO amazing! I'll have to try this myself! Thanks for the inspiration :)

Allison

Friday 6th of October 2023

Super easy and quick! Very yummy :) I added coconut because I add coconut to everthing.

Julia

Saturday 7th of October 2023

Ooh, yum! I have yet to add coconut to these bars but it's definitely on my to do list! Thanks so much for sharing, Allison!

Blaine

Sunday 24th of September 2023

Can I sub applesauce for banana?

Julia

Sunday 24th of September 2023

Hi Blaine! I haven't tested applesauce myself in this recipe, but I think it would work! I would start with 1 cup of applesauce and if it seems like the mixture is too thick, I would add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup more. Let me know how it turns out! xo

Michelle

Monday 4th of September 2023

Trying these for the first time. I was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabeties. So overhauling my diet last 6 months with good results. Thanks for recipe and hardly any sugar!

Julia

Tuesday 5th of September 2023

My pleasure, Michelle! My heart goes out to you - I know it can be difficult to make dietary changes but it really does get easier over time and I'm thrilled you're finding recipes that work for you! xo

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