These gluten-free Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars are ultra chewy and loaded with flavor. They’re packed with oats, nut butter, and dark chocolate–plus they’re made with better-for-you, wholesome ingredients — perfect for a grab-and-go breakfast on a busy morning.
A Delicious On-The-Go Breakfast
My family loves Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars–they’re the best for grab-and-go breakfast or snacks. They’ve got great ingredients, and are filling, tender, soft, and ultra chewy. These bars taste like a mash-up of soft granola bars and a bowl of oatmeal. You’ll get wholesome-tasting, surprisingly-filling oat-filled bars.
Thanks to the nut butter and plenty of oats, these bars have substantial protein and fiber, and that helps your body feel fuller for longer.
How To Make Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
These bars are one of the easiest recipes ever. You can make it in one bowl and whip it together in minutes.
- Combine all the ingredients (except the dark chocolate) in a large bowl and mix to combine.
- Coarsely chop the dark chocolate (you want some in every bite!) and add to the batter.
- Mix the batter and then transfer to a lined 8×8-inch pan.
- Bake until lightly browned at the edges and firm in the center.
Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bar Ingredients
- Old-fashioned oats: The oats make up the base of these bars and give them that soft chewiness. Make sure to use old-fashioned oats — quick oats are too processed and will make the bars overly dry. Steel-cut oats won’t soften enough.
- Oat flour: No need to buy specialty flour. You can make oat flour with quick or old-fashioned oats; read more on this below.
- Cinnamon: This spice adds a really nice complementary flavor to the oats, but it’s completely optional. If you aren’t a cinnamon fan, leave it out!
- Salt: Salt helps balance all the flavors in these Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars.
- Peanut butter: Peanut butter contributes structure and stability (as well as protein).
- Coconut oil: The coconut oil gives the bars a nice flavor and moistness.
- Honey: I sweeten these primarily with honey, and natural sweeteners are always a great choice.
- Light brown sugar: The bars needed a bit more sweetness, and using only honey made them too wet. So, I added 1/3 cup of brown sugar.
- Vanilla extract: Adds a nice subtle flavor.
- Egg + egg yolk: The egg provides stability to the batter and adds flavor and protein. The second egg yolk adds additional structure and flavor. Use the leftover egg whites in this egg wrap!
- Dark chocolate: Dark chocolate has antioxidants in it, among other benefits. If you aren’t a fan of dark chocolate, you can use milk or semi-sweet chocolate, but it will make the bars a bit less healthy. Alternatively, you can add chopped nuts instead (or in addition).
How To Make Oat “Flour”
If you have quick oats or old-fashioned oats, you can have oat flour ready for in flash.
- Place the oats (old-fashioned or quick oats–not instant or steel-cut ones) into the bowl of a food processor or a small blender.
- Pulse the oats until ground into a powder-like consistency that resembles regular flour.
- Stir the oats around if needed to be sure all the oats are finely ground.
- Make sure to measure your oat flour after you blend it into flour.
Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bar Tips
- Line the pan with parchment paper and leave an overhang for easy removal. This batter is sticky and hard to remove without it. If you don’t have parchment, grease the pan really well.
- Let the bars cool. You may be tempted to eat one straight out of the oven (and hey, you do you!), but these bars are crumbly and a bit gooey while hot. As they cool, they firm up and are much easier to cut and serve.
- Don’t overbake. Take the bars out when the edges look a little brown. The middle and top of the bars may look a bit wet or gooey, but as long as the bars don’t jiggle when slightly shaken in the pan, they’re done. If you bake them too long, they’ll turn out dry and not very soft or tasty.
Quick Tip
Make sure the ingredients are gluten free. If you are gluten intolerant, make sure to check all the products to be sure they are gluten free. The ingredients are naturally gluten free, but some brands don’t process them in gluten-free facilities. Check the label to be sure.
Storage
Leftovers?
Store Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy them within 2-3 days for best results. Feel free to warm individual bars for 5-10 seconds in the microwave if you like them warm.
To freeze: Wrap individual bars tightly in plastic wrap and then place in an airtight freezer-safe container. Thaw individual bars at room temp, and if desired, warm through for 5-10 seconds in the microwave.
More Healthy Breakfast Recipes
- Healthy Breakfast Cookies no baking required
- How to Make Oatmeal with four flavors
- Yogurt Bowl with eight flavor variations
- Peanut Butter Overnight Oats reader favorite!
- Acai Bowl four tasty recipes
Soft-Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/3 cup oat flour finely ground oats
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk save the whites for another recipe or discard them
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang (these will be nearly impossible to get out otherwise).
- To make oat flour, place old-fashioned or quick oats in a blender and pulse until they resemble flour. Measure after blending to make sure you have the right amount.
- Combine the ingredients except for the dark chocolate chips in a large bowl and stir until smooth and well combined. Coarsely chop the dark chocolate chips and add to the batter. Stir to combine. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
- Bake 23–26 minutes or until set at the edges (it will look slightly wet in the center, but as long as it doesn’t jiggle, it’s done. The bars will firm up as they cool; be careful to not over bake).
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi, I would love to make these bars, but am allergic to peanuts, is there another ingredient I could use instead of peanut butter?
You could replace everything with almonds and almond butter!
Can these be made with a nut free butter?
I believe sunflower butter or another nut butter with similar consistency should work great!
Could you use a flax egg in the recipe, I follow a plant based diet.
Thanks!
Sorry I haven’t tested these with a flax egg and not super familiar with flax eggs!
These are SO good, I can’t get enough of them! I thought I might freeze some for later, but between my husband and I, they didn’t last long enough to make it to the freezer. I was a little short on honey, so I used what I had and then added a little extra brown sugar. I baked them in an 8×8 glass pan and they ended up needing closer to 30 minutes, and they came out perfect. I think they would be great with some shredded coconut added and can’t wait to try out some more flavors!
I am so happy to hear this!! Thanks so much Abbey! 🙂
I made these and the kids said they were really good! But-they’re about a third as tall as in your photos. Did you do a double batch and still put them in an 8×8?
I didn’t! I think the photos are deceiving since it’s an up-close (macro) lens and I’m photographing the edges which are slightly thicker, but these bars are fairly thin!
These were awesome!! Made them with the new protein Kodiak Oats since I needed something for post workouts and they are delish! Will def be making these again!
So glad to hear that! Thank you Britt!
I’ve made these several times and each time I do I triple the recipe. I don’t add the sugar and they are plenty sweet, even for my picky eaters. Thank you for a keeper!
So glad these have been enjoyed! 🙂
Lots of the comments here are about how good these look. Has anyone tasted them? They are great if you’re looking for a chewy/gummy bar, that tastes strongly of peanut butter.
Sorry you didn’t love these Suzanna!
These were soooo good, the cinnamon flavour was lovely and the texture was perfect, I’m never buying premade breakfast bar things from the store ever again! The only thing I did differently to the recipe was to use almond butter instead of peanut butter (boyfriend’s allergic) and they were delicious
Awe, yay! So thrilled to hear these were a hit! Thanks Charlotte!
Just pulled these out of the oven and they smell amazing. Instead of oat flour, I used oat pulp left over from making oat milk. I also added some uncooked quinoa for added crunch and protein. I’m resisting the urge to cut one before it’s cool!
Sounds great! Hope you love them! 🙂