5-Ingredient Sweet Potato Oatmeal Bars made with wholesome ingredients like fresh sweet potatoes, almond butter, pure maple syrup, oats, and pumpkin spice. A healthier fall treat, ideal for those who love mindfully sourced sweet treats.
If you are a sweet tooth owner, sweet potato lover, healthy treat enthusiast, and/or obsessed with fall flavors, these easy sweet potato oat bars are for you!
Soft and chewy with a protein bar like texture, these amazing oat bars are loaded with pumpkin spice flavor and gooey chocolate for a fun snack that nails all of your specifications.
We set the bar high around these parts!
Aside from their amazing flavor, my favorite part about this easy recipe is the fact that it only requires five basic ingredients and absolutely zero baking experience. That’s right! Novice bakers shall have great success with the simple methodology here.
Plus, they are naturally gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free (vegan friendly) too!
Let’s discuss the simple ingredients for sweet potato oatmeal bars! The great news is you can find the full list of ingredients at any grocery store.
Ingredients for Sweet Potato Oatmeal Bars:
Sweet Potato: The star of the show here, we need about 1 medium-sized sweet potato to generate just under a cup of mashed sweet potato.
Pure Maple Syrup: The sweetener here, we need pure maple syrup for an unrefined sweetener. It also adds a light maple flavor, which pairs nicely with the fall flavors.
Unsweetened Almond Butter: Bringing richness and stickiness to the recipe, almond butter helps bind the ingredients and makes the bars taste so inviting.
Quick Oats or Rolled Oats: Taking the place of flour, we need quick oats or old fashioned oats. I like using quick oats (or instant oats) for a less chewy texture. For gluten-free sweet potato bars, use certified gluten-free oats. I use gluten-free sprouted oats.
Pumpkin Pie Spice: Bringing warm fall flavors to these delicious sweet potato bars. Pumpkin spice is a delightful combination of ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, allspice and ground ginger.
Chocolate Chips (optional): While the chocolate chips are optional, they add so much pizazz to these healthy sweet potato oat bars. They create fugdy texture and gooey pockets of chocolate bliss.
You can also use peanut butter chips, sugar-free chocolate chips, or butterscotch chips.
Recipe Customizations:
- For richer, chewier bars, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of avocado oil, melted coconut oil, or melted butter.
- Add 2/3 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts for a nutty crunch.
- Substitute 1/2 cup of the oats for 1/3 cup of protein powder plus 2 to 3 tablespoons of unsweetened almond milk or oat milk.
Now that we’ve covered the simple ingredients, let’s bake up some chocolate chip sweet potato oat bars!
How to Make Sweet Potato Oatmeal Bars:
Cook the sweet potato using your preferred method. For the quickest route, I microwave my sweet potato. To do so, rinse it well, then poke it several times with a fork. Wrap it in a wet paper towel and microwave for 5 minutes per side, or until it is very tender.
Allow the sweet potato to cool. To speed up the process, you can refrigerate it, or cook it up to 5 days ahead of time.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
Remove the skin of the sweet potato and mash the flesh. Measure out ⅔ cup of mashed sweet potatoes and transfer it to a large mixing bowl. Note: you can also use a food processor to make the sweetpotato oat bars if you’d like.
Add in the pure maple syrup and almond butter (and vanilla extract if adding) to the large bowl with the sweet potato puree and mix well until the wet ingredients are combined.
Transfer the oats, pumpkin pie spice, sea salt, and chocolate chips (the dry ingredients) to the mixing bowl and mix well to combine.
Spread the sweet potato mixture into the prepared baking dish into an even layer. If you’d like to add more chocolate chips on top, feel free to do so. You can also sprinkle pumpkin seeds or coconut flakes on top too.
Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 30-40 (I do 35), until the edges are slightly golden brown.
Allow the bars to cool to room temperature before slicing and serving.
Storage Options:
- Room Temperature: Cover the baking pan with plastic wrap and store on the counter for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerator: Store leftover sweet potato bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Freeze in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months.
The next time you’re craving cozy fall flavors in the form of a delicious chewy bar, let these warmly spiced oatmeal bars be your guiding light.
While I love them as breakfast bars during the fall, they are marvelous no matter the time of year. They are also a delicious way of hiding a vegetable for those who have picky eaters at home.
Looking for more healthy dessert recipes? Also try these gems!
More Healthy Treats:
- Almond Flour Pumpkin Cake
- Double Chocolate Sweet Potato Bread
- Oatmeal Tahini Cookies
- Applesauce Cake
- Date Brownies
- Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies
The perfect celebration of sweet potato season right here!
Sweet Potato Oatmeal Bars Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup mashed sweet potato
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ cup unsweetened almond butter
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Optional Additions
- 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips or sugar-free chocolate chips
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Cook the sweet potato using your preferred method. For the quickest route, I microwave my sweet potato. To do so, rinse it well, then poke it several times with a fork. Wrap it in a wet paper towel and microwave for 5 minutes per side, or until it is very tender. Allow the sweet potato to cool. To speed up the process, you can refrigerate it, or cook it up to 5 days ahead of time.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- Remove the skin of the sweet potato and mash the flesh. Measure out ⅔ cup of mashed sweet potatoes and transfer it to a large mixing bowl.
- Add in the pure maple syrup and almond butter (and vanilla extract if adding) to the large bowl with the sweet potato puree and mix well until the wet ingredients are combined.
- Transfer the oats, pumpkin pie spice, sea salt, and chocolate chips (the dry ingredients) to the mixing bowl and mix well to combine.
- Spread the sweet potato mixture into the prepared baking dish into an even layer. If you’d like to add more chocolate chips on top, feel free to do so. You can also sprinkle pumpkin seeds or coconut flakes on top too.
- Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 20-30 (I do 25), until the edges are slightly golden brown. Allow the bars to cool to room temperature before slicing and serving.
