Homemade oatmeal bars recipe (granola bars)
Just put it in the oven and it’ll work! All you have to do to make these wholesome oatmeal bars (vegan & gluten free) is mix 5 ingredients (no peanut butter) and bake them in the oven. In less than 30 minutes you'll have your own homemade healthy granola bars, much better than the store-bought stuff.
Servings: 10 servings
Calories: 250kcal
Equipment
- 1 rectangular baking dish 8x11 inches (21x28 cm) or a 9 inch square pan or a 10 inch round cake pan
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- ⅔ cups honey or maple syrup
- 2 ½ cups oats, I use half rolled and half quick oats, see notes.
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Optional
- ½ cup sugar-free dried cranberries or raisins or chocolate chips
- ½ cup sunflower seeds
- 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 320°F / 175°C, fan setting (if you don't have a fan setting, increase the temperature at 370°F/ 185°C).
- Warm the honey and the coconut oil (wet ingredients) in the microwaves or on the stove). This will make it more runny and it will coat the oats better.
- Add the dry ingredients (oats, salt and cinnamon) and mix well with a spatula until all the oats are sticky and wet.
- Optionally, add the cranberries (or chocolate chips), the sunflower seeds, the dessicated coconut and the vanilla. Stir well to distribute them evenly in the oat mixture.
- Line your baking dish with parchment paper, transfer the mixture into the dish and level the surface with a spatula. Then, press the oat mixture very firmly with the back of a measuring cup or another utensil with a level bottom (if the mixture starts to stick to the back of the cup, wet it with some water).
- Bake in the oven for 17-20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Take the pan out of the oven and immediately cut into bars while the bars are still inside the pan and warm. Be careful not to damage the pan. If you get any loose pieces, stick them back with your fingers.Let the bars cool in the pan, then lift the parchment paper and transfer them to a cutting board. Cut again with a sharp knife.
Video
Notes
If you use a round cake pan you can cut the bars in triangles.
For soft baked oat bars, reduce the baking time by 5 minutes.
Use a thick type of honey, such as thyme honey, because it will make the bars more cohesive.
This recipe has been tested with quick oats only and rolled oats only (also known as old-fashioned oats). Both types will work, but if you make it with quick oats only, the bars may be more crumbly (my guess is that quick oats, being more thin, absorb more honey, so the remaining honey on their surface can't hold them together as well). So, I generally use half of each type to get the chewiness level I like.
Make sure to use gluten-free oats if you make them for someone who follows a gluten free diet.
Nutrition
Calories: 250kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 62mg | Potassium: 140mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 4IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg
