Peanut butter oat breakfast bars
37 min · 9 g protein · 103 cals / serving
Soft, chewy oat bars that taste of toasted oats and peanut butter, with a little cinnamon and a few flecks of dark chocolate, held together with honey and applesauce. Egg white and a scoop of protein bind them so they slice cleanly and pack for lunchboxes and hikes. Think soft-baked oat bar rather than crunchy granola.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups rolled oats, old-fashioned
- 3 scoops (90 g) whey protein, vanilla
- 2 1/2 tbsp powdered peanut butter
- 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup applesauce, unsweetened
- 1 tbsp peanut butter
- 1 1/2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp dark chocolate 70-85%, 70%, finely chopped, or mini chips
Steps
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Spread the oats on a baking sheet and toast 8–10 minutes, stirring once, until fragrant and lightly golden. This is what makes the bars taste toasty rather than of porridge. Line a 8 inch square pan with baking paper.
- In a large bowl whisk the protein powder, powdered peanut butter, cinnamon and salt with the applesauce, egg whites, peanut butter, honey and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the toasted oats until everything is coated.
- Let the mixture cool for 5 minutes so the chocolate does not melt away completely, then stir in the chocolate. Tip into the pan and press down very firmly with the back of a wet spoon or the bottom of a glass, into a flat, compact layer.
- Bake 18–22 minutes, until golden at the edges and set in the middle; they stay soft and chewy. Cool completely in the pan, then chill 30 minutes before lifting out and cutting into 12 bars with a sharp knife.
Good to know
Mine crumble.
Press harder before baking, and let them cool and chill fully before cutting; they set as they cool.
Other mix-ins?
Dried cranberries or chopped apricots in place of the chocolate, at the same weight. A tablespoon of chopped almonds or pumpkin seeds adds crunch and lowers the score a little.
How do I store them?
Wrapped individually, 5 days in the fridge or 2 months in the freezer. They thaw in a lunchbox by mid-morning.
Per
- Calories
- 254
- Protein
- (37%)
- 22 g
- Fat
- (18%)
- 5 g
- Carbohydrates
- (46%)
- 30 g
- of which sugar
- 10 g
- Fiber
- 4 g
- Sodium
- 310 mg
More breakfast
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 1234 kcal goes into the pot and 539 g of ingredients comes out as about 486 g of food: 254 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.