Happy Monday! While you are reading this, I am most likely sitting at my new, ultramodern desk at work, chowing down on one of these bars. Nom nom.
When the weekend winds to a close and the workweek starts, do you ever find that you’re having trouble keeping up with all of the things that you need to do?
Trust me, I know firsthand how hard it can be to get back into the swing of things. It can be way too easy to forget about breakfast, or to turn to candy and a soda from the vending machine when that mid-afternoon craving hits. That’s where these bars come in.
They’re super dense and filling, but in a good way that will keep you feeling full thanks to the dietary fiber and protein that these contain. And they’ve got loads of texture from the oats, almonds, and shredded coconut, plus just the right amount of sweetness to tickle your taste buds without being overloaded with empty calories.
I put raisins in these, but dried cranberries are another tasty option. You could also try chopped dates (we love them in our energy balls!) or apricots if you prefer, or even dried blueberries!
They’re special diet-friendly, made without any animal products to satisfy the vegans and dairy-free friends and family members in your life. For a peanut-free version, try almond butter or sunflower seed butter. You can feel free to swap out the almonds for pumpkin or sunflower seeds as well.
This recipe makes about 12 bars, so they’ll definitely last through the work week for a two-person household – perfect if you want to grab one on your way out the door each morning, or pack one in your bag for an afternoon snack.
They bake up super quick, and are done in just 45 minutes! Rather than setting aside a big chunk of your weekend to cook, these are easy to make on Sunday night before the rigors of the work week kick in. Enjoy!
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Easy Vegan Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
Description
A quick, filling, and nutritious breakfast bar that you’ll want to make every week! Oats, almonds, and shredded coconut give these bars a satisfyingly dense texture without being heavy. These are great for breakfast, or a mid-morning snack with a cup of coffee.
Ingredients
- Cooking oil spray
- 2 Tbsp ground flax seed
- 2 Tbsp water
- 2 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 cup turbinado sugar, or coconut sugar
- 3/4 cup almonds, chopped
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup peanut butter
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with a piece of parchment and grease with cooking oil spray.
- Mix the flax and water together in a small bowl to make a flax egg, and set aside. Combine the oats, flour, salt, baking powder, and turbinado sugar in a large bowl (larger than you think you will need). Add the almonds, raisins, and coconut and mix well.
- Melt the coconut oil in a glass 2-cup measuring cup or a heat-safe bowl in the microwave. Add the peanut butter and stir until thoroughly combined. Add the apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, flax egg, and vanilla, and stir well.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the oat mixture and stir well until all the ingredients are moistened. I find it easiest and most effective to use my hands – just dig in.
- Dump the dough into your prepared pan and spread it out evenly . Using your hands, press the dough down very firmly all round the pan. The harder you press, the better the bars will stay together when you cut them.
- Bake for about 30 minutes, rotating halfway through. They should be lightly golden on top and the sides should be just a bit crunchy. Let cool completely, then remove from the pan and cut into 12 equally sized bars.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Vegan
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Breakfast
Keywords: breakfast bars, oatmeal, vegan, healthy snack
What about you? Did you make a batch of these and love them as much as we did? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, and please rate the recipe!
And for more oaty goodness, check out some of our other vegan breakfast recipes for on-the-go mornings:
- Coconut Almond Chia Granola (Gluten Free & Vegan)
- Blueberry and Pecan Oat Bars
- Fig Newtons for Grown-Ups (Vegan & Gluten-Free)
- Fruit and Chocolate Granola Bars
- Peanut Butter Jelly Oat Balls
- Whole Wheat Oat Bars with Chocolate Drizzle
Photos by Raquel Smith, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published on July 21, 2014. Last updated: December 31, 2019 at 5:31 am. With additional writing and editing by Allison Sidhu and Nikki Cervone.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Raquel Smith
Raquel is a whole foods enthusiast, an avid mountain biker, and a dog lover. She works by day at Food Blogger Pro and formerly maintained her food blog "My California Roots" (now merged into Foodal).
These look so good. I’m a massive oatmeal fan so will have to try these!
Thanks, Ciara! I put oats in just about everything I can. So good for you, and so tasty!
Raquel, these look really good. Are they crisp like biscotti, or chewy? Pinning this for future reference.
Thanks, Geraldine! They are definitely more on the chewy side.
great healthy bars!
Thanks, Dina!
What is the calorie count per serving?
HI Lisa! They are about 300 calories apiece if you cut it into 12 bars. That’s not bad for a filling breakfast!
The instructions are missing the addition of the flax/water mix.
Do I add it along with the wet ingredients?
Oh gosh, so sorry about that, Laura! Yes, the flax is mixed with water and allowed to hydrate for a few minutes to make a vegan egg substitute, and then it’s mixed with the rest of the wet ingredients. The recipe has been updated! Thanks for pointing this out.
Thanks Raquel, I did just that.
They turned out delicious!
★★★★★
Oh good, so glad they worked out for you!
I avoid coconut oil because of the saturated fat content. What can I substitute it with?
I don’t have any suggestions for replacing the coconut oil since I haven’t tried it without. Sorry, Elle.
Can these be made without the added oil? I am on a whole food plant-based diet without any added oils. Thanks.
Made these and it seemed to be missing quite a bit of liquid in the recipe, I used apf, do you think that’s why it was so dry??
These are like granola bars and the mixture is pretty dry over all. Having said that, whole wheat flour tends to absorb more liquid than all-purpose. Mixing with your hands can help, if you have difficulty combining the ingredients!
Applesauce works for replacing oil in non vegan baking. Do you think it will work here? Also, need to find replacement for non desired peanut butter. I’ll keep searching…
Applesauce should work! Check out our article on oil substitutions for tips. And feel free to use any type of nut/seed butter- almond or sunflower should work well. Let us know how it turns out!