Peanut Butter Oatmeal Protein Bars

What Are Oatmeal Protein Bars?

Oatmeal protein bars are simple snack bars made with wholesome, natural ingredients that can be used as a quick on-the-go breakfast or for refueling after a workout.

Post-workout snacks need to be high in protein and iron which these bars certainly contain!

How To Make Peanut Butter Oatmeal Protein Bars

Mainly, a protein bar is always made of nuts and protein powder to boost protein intake.

Ingredients

These oatmeal protein bars are made with 6 simple ingredients 100% vegan:

• Peanut Butter – choose natural, fresh peanut butter. It needs to be runny when taken out of the jar. Peanut Butter has a habit to dry up if left in the jar for too long. If you only have raw peanuts, you can make your own using my peanut butter recipe.
• Brown Rice Syrup – you can use maple syrup or coconut nectar instead by I prefer brown rice syrup as it is less sweet and releases slower in the body after sport.
• Rolled Oats and Jumbo Oats – I used a combo of jumbo size oat and rolled oats to add some texture to my bars. Make sure to use certified gluten-free oats if you are celiac.
• Vegan Dark Chocolate Chips – optional, but I love it!
• Vegan Pea Protein Powder – I used a vanilla one to add some extra flavor.
• Coconut Oil or Almond Milk – I prefer to use coconut oil as it makes the bars hold together better, If you prefer to use almond milk, pick unsweetened almond milk, but you can choose the plant-based milk you like.

Instructions

You can read the short instructions in the recipe card, but here are my important tips.

Combine the natural peanut butter, liquid sweetener (maple syrup, coconut nectar, or brown rice syrup), and coconut oil (or plant-based milk) in a saucepan.

Keep the saucepan under medium heat to melt the ingredients and form a runny batter.

Combine the rolled oats, vegan protein powder, and dark chocolate chips in a large mixing bowl.

Pour the lukewarm melted peanut butter mixture over the dry ingredient mix and store the peanut butter oatmeal protein cookie batter with a silicone spatula.

The dark chocolate chips will start to melt because of the warm peanut butter, it will make them softer to eat.

Setting The Peanut Butter Protein Bars

Transfer the batter into a square 9-inch x 9-inch brownie pan lined with parchment paper and flatten the top with your spatula.

Add a few more chocolate chips on the top for decoration and pop the bars in the fridge for one hour or in the freezer for 30 minutes to set.

Once the bars have set, take them out of the fridge, out of the pan, and cut them into 10 small bars.

You can, of course, flavor your bars with anything else you like. Here I topped my bars with chocolate chips but you can add vanilla extract, pecan nuts, puffed cereals, chia seeds, or even vegan candies.

The texture of these bars is chewy, with a lovely coconut flavor and bites of oats all around the bar. It is not too sweet but very fulfilling. I made 9 bars with this recipe.

Then some cereal is usually rolled oat because it makes a perfect base to boost complex carbs before running. Finally, sweeteners are most of the time brown rice syrup as it contains less sugar than honey.

Storage Instructions

These bars can be stored for quite some time because they contain no eggs or dairy.

You can keep them in the fridge for up to 3 weeks as long as they are in an airtight container.

If you store them in the pantry, you can keep them for about a week, but their texture will be softer so I prefer the refrigerator option.