Healthy Almond Butter Oatmeal Bars
These healthy oatmeal bars are easy to whip up and wonderful for breakfasts or snacks! Soft-baked and lightly sweetened, they’re full of cozy oats and a hint of warm cinnamon, and almond butter gives them a beautifully moist and chewy texture. Leftovers will keep for at least four days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They freeze well too!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (gluten-free if necessary and measured like this)
- ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 1 large egg white (room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (64g) homemade creamy almond butter (room temperature)
- ¼ cup (60mL) pure maple syrup (room temperature)
- 5 tbsp (75mL) unsweetened vanilla almond milk (room temperature)
- optional: 2-4 tbsp (14-28g) chopped or sliced almonds (see Notes!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F, and coat an 8”-square pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg white and vanilla. Stir in the almond butter until completely incorporated. Stir in the maple syrup until thoroughly incorporated. Stir in the milk. Add in the oat mixture, and stir until just incorporated. If using the optional almonds, gently fold them in.
- Spread the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake at 300°F for 10-12 minutes. Cool completely to room temperature in the pan. Allow them to rest for an additional 4+ hours once at room temperature for the best soft and chewy texture before slicing into squares.
Notes
IMPORTANT FLAVOR NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: You can’t taste the almond butter in these bars. Its flavor is incredibly subtle, so it’s mainly included for texture. If you’d like to taste an almond flavor, then use the optional chopped or sliced almonds for a nutty flavor boost.
These bars aren’t overly sweet either! They have the sweetness level of breakfast muffins or scones. If you’d prefer them to be sweeter, the substitute an equal amount of pure maple syrup for the milk. (For example, use an additional 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, and decrease the milk to 3 tablespoons.)
IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It’s extremely important to measure both the oats and flour correctly using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own and love!) Too much of either will dry out the bars and leave them cakey, bready, or dry, instead of soft and chewy.
IMPORTANT PAN SIZE NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: Pan dimensions are measured along their top rims, not their bottom sides. Some square baking dishes have sloped sides, so they’re 9” across the top and closer to 8” across the bottom. If that’s true for your baking dish, it’s actually a 9”-square pan and too big for this recipe. Because it has a larger surface area (81 in2), your bars would turn out really thin, barely hold together, and be prone to overbaking.
IMPORTANT BAKING NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: Do not over-bake these bars! They’re ready to come out of the oven when the edges feel firm but the center still look slightly glossy and underdone. The heat from the pan will continue to cook the center all the way through while you let the bars cool to room temperature and set.
OATS NOTES + ALTERNATIVE: Instant oats are also known as “quick cooking” or “one-minute” oats. They come in large canisters, just like old-fashioned oats. They are not the ones in the small flavored packets of oatmeal.
To make your own, add the same amount of old-fashioned rolled oats to a food processor, and pulse 10-12 times or until the oats are about ¼ to ⅛ of their original size.
FLOUR ALTERNATIVES: White whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the whole wheat flour. Oat flour (gluten-free if needed) may also be substituted, but be very careful when measuring it because it tends to be more absorbent than wheat-based flours.
EGG WHITE ALTERNATIVE: If you prefer to use the whole egg, then use 1 large egg and reduce the milk by ½ tablespoon to compensate for the added volume from the yolk.
ALMOND BUTTER NOTES: This is my homemade creamy almond butter recipe. You just need 10 minutes to make it! If using store-bought creamy almond butter, make sure it only contains almonds and salt. (A little oil is fine.) It should be liquidy at room temperature. Do not substitute crunchy almond butter.
SWEETENER ALTERNATIVES: Honey or agave may be substituted for the pure maple syrup. Alternatively, substitute ¼ cup (48g) coconut sugar or light brown sugar and 2 ½ tablespoons (38mL) milk (any type!) for the pure maple syrup.
I don't recommend substituting sugar-free maple syrup. It’s often water-based, and that tends to make these oatmeal bars turn out cakey, bready, or dry.
MILK ALTERNATIVES: Any milk may be substituted for the unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
DAIRY-FREE VERSION: No modifications needed!
GLUTEN-FREE VERSION: Use certified gluten-free instant oats (like these). For the gluten-free flour, use the following: ½ cup (60g) millet flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) tapioca flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) brown rice flour, and ½ teaspoon xanthan gum. Certified gluten-free oat flour (like this) and many store-bought gluten free flour blends (I like this one from Bob's Red Mill) will also work, if measured like this.
HOW TO STORE: Store leftover oatmeal bars in an airtight container. If refrigerated, they’ll keep for at least four days (if not longer!). These oatmeal bars also freeze really well!
{gluten-free, dairy-free, clean eating, low fat}
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.