Easy Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
A simple, from-scratch breakfast bar made in mini loaf pans for uniform shape. Mix one plain oat base, split it into bowls, and flavor each batch differently.
Servings 8
Calories 318kcal
Equipment
- 1 mini loaf pan or muffin pan
Ingredients
For the plain base
- 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup butter (salted and melted)
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/4 cup brown sugar packed (or leave out for less-sweet bars)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg beaten (optional, for extra-sturdy bars)
Flavor add-ins (each amount flavors one portion of the base, about 2 bars)
- Cinnamon-raisin: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 3 tablespoons raisins
- Chocolate chip: 3 tablespoons mini chocolate chips (plus a pinch of cinnamon, if you like)
- Cherry-almond: 3 tablespoons dried cherries + 2 tablespoons sliced almonds
- Pumpkin chocolate: 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree + 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice + 2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease your mini loaf pans well or line them.
- In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter, honey, brown sugar, salt, and vanilla (and the beaten egg, if using) until smooth.
- Add the rolled oats and stir until every oat is coated and the mixture holds together when squeezed.
- Divide the base evenly into a bowl for each flavor. Stir a different set of add-ins into each. For the chocolate chip batch, let the mix cool a couple of minutes first so the chips keep their shape.
- Spoon the mixture into the mini loaf pans and press down firmly with the back of a spoon. Press the pumpkin chocolate batch especially firmly, since the pumpkin makes it wetter.
- Bake for about 22 minutes, until the edges are golden (all flavors bake in the same time). The centers will still be slightly soft.
- Let the bars cool completely in the pans, a full hour, before removing. This is the most important step, since it's what sets the bars. Once fully cooled, flip the pan over and tap the bottom, and the bars drop right out and hold together.
Notes
Store airtight at room temperature up to 1 week, or freeze wrapped individually up to 3 months. No mini loaf pans? Use a greased muffin tin and the same bake time.
Nutrition
Calories: 318kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 51mg | Sodium: 249mg | Potassium: 143mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 384IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 2mg
