Peanut Butter Protein Oat Bars [Recipe]

Peanut Butter Protein Oat Bars [Recipe]

In case you didn’t know already, I’m somewhat of a peanut butter addict. I also love my morning bowl of Umpqua oats to get my day off to a great start. If you haven’t tried my

Chunky Monkey Protein Oatmeal go take a peek! It’s a super delicious healthy treat that’s guaranteed to make you feel warm & fuzzy on the inside. As quick and easy as my morning oatmeal can be, I don’t always have those 5 minutes spare and some mornings I’m not always that hungry. So it’s great to have something else on hand that ties me over for the morning and that I can just grab and wrap to go! That’s why these Peanut Butter Oat Bars are the bomb!

peanut butter oat bars

Let’s set something straight right off the bat. I’ve called these sensational snacks “oat bars” to try to avoid any confusion, but back in my homeland (that’s England by the way, where the English language came from ;-)) we would actually call these flapjacks. Now Jason tells me that Stateside the term flapjacks is exclusively used to mean pancakes – is this true?! Anyway, so I thought I’d play it safe with the name oat bars! Now I think about it though, I’m pretty sure you could make yourself some American-style flapjacks with the exact same ingredients. Let me know if you give it a go!

The original recipe called for quick cooking oats but I wanted to use what I had on hand. My pantry is well-stocked with the super tasty Umpqua Oats Maple Pecan oatmeal. Given that they’re already flavored I figured I could reduce the amount of additional sweetener I used in this recipe. Instead of 1/4 cup of honey that was suggested, I used just 2 tbsp which definitely helped to make these bars a little more macro friendly. I would probably even try leaving out the honey altogether next time as these bars came out sweet as pie and not at all crumbly.

peanut butter oat bars

I actually prefer a little more crunch to my oat bars so I’d even try tinkering around with a little less milk next time or leaving my mixture to bake for a wee bit longer than 25 minutes. One thing I wouldn’t compromise on though is the peanut butter! You definitely don’t want to skimp on this. PB is the glue that holds my life together 🙂 It’s also the glue that makes these oat bars hold their form and satisfy your hunger!

When it comes to nut butters my absolute favorite brand is Betsy’s Best. I don’t think a day goes by that I don’t budget some of my fat macros for a couple tablespoons of BB’s gourmet peanut butter. But I was running low on supplies so on this occasion I substituted with some equally delicious cashew butter. I was NOT disappointed.

Of course, if you do need to skimp a little to make these oat bars more macro-friendly, then you might like to try using a peanut butter powder instead, like Chike. I used Chike for the optional topping in this recipe but you could definitely use it as a replacement for the nut butter mixed in with the oatmeal. Let me know how it turns out if you do!

Peanut butter protein oat bars

Peanut Butter Protein Oat Bars

Roz
Try these super yummy protein packed oat bars full of flavor & fiber!
No ratings yet
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Cooling time 15 minutes
Course Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 9 squares
Calories 202 kcal

Equipment

  • 2 mixing bowls
  • 1 baking pan or glass baking dish

Ingredients
  

  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1/4 cup peanut butter
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1.5 cups oats (rolled or quick)
  • 2 tbsp peanut butter powder optional for topping
  • 2 scoops protein powder about 60g

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 F
  • In a medium bowl mix together your dry ingredients, the quick cooking oats, baking powder, sea salt ground cinnamon & protein powder and set aside.
  • In a large bowl mix your mashed banana and peanut butter together until combined.
  • Add in the vanilla extract, honey and egg (to make this vegan you can replace with a flax egg). Mix until combined.
  • Add half the almond milk and stir until everything is fully mixed in.
  • Now add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Add remainder of milk slowly until a cake like batter is formed.
  • Pour the mixture into a lightly greased 9×9” baking pan.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Or until the top slightly springs back when touched and the edges are just barely brown!
  • For the topping you can drizzle regular peanut butter on top. I mixed 2 tbsp of Chike peanut butter powder with water for my topping to make this a little more macro friendly.
  • Cut into squares and enjoy!
  • Store in refrigerator, reheat in microwave or enjoy cold!

Notes

Add milk gradually to ensure you achieve a mixture that is not too liquid. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1squareCalories: 202kcalCarbohydrates: 22gProtein: 13gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 104mgSodium: 137mgPotassium: 232mgFiber: 3gSugar: 8g
Keyword oats, Peanut Butter, protein
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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