No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

Peanut butter oat bar squares stacked 4 high.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

Deliciously sweet with chocolate and peanut butter, these no-bake peanut butter oatmeal bars are perfect for a homemade snack or after dinner treat. Made with wholesome ingredients, like dates, oats, and flaxseeds. And the best part!? They take only 20 minutes to make.

Course Snack

Cuisine American

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 20

Rest Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings bars

Calories 187kcal

Author Sara

Equipment

1 food processor
1 9x5 loaf pan

Ingredients

Oatmeal Bar Ingredients

14 pitted medjool dates
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter
½ cup rolled oats/old-fashioned oats (certified gluten-free if needed)
¼ cup flaxseed meal
¼ cup unsweetened, shredded coconut (+ more for sprinkling on top)
¼ tsp. fine sea salt (just a pinch if your peanut butter already has salt in it)

Chocolate Topping Ingredients

2 tbsp. coconut oil, melted
3 tbsp. cacao powder
½ tbsp. pure maple syrup (more if you like it sweeter- taste and adjust)

Instructions

Add dates to a food processor. Blend until only small pieces remain. You may need to scrape down the sides of the food processor a few times until done.
After dates are blended, add peanut butter, oats, flaxseeds, coconut, and salt to the food-processor. Pulse until all ingredients are evenly mixed and a sticky "dough" is formed. You may need to break up the date chunks with a fork from time to time (and if some smaller chunks of dates remain, that's okay too).
Place parchment paper in the bottom of a large loaf pan or square baking dish, ensuring there is some extra hanging over the sides. Scoop mixture into prepared pan and press down firmly with fingers (or the back of a spoon) until mixture is evenly spread and packed down.
Mix the melted coconut oil, cacao, and maple syrup in a small bowl until cacao is completely mixed in. This will be on the thicker side. Spread chocolate evenly over bars. Sprinkle with shredded coconut if desired.
Refrigerate for about 30 minutes so chocolate and bars can set. Take bars out of pan by pulling on the ends of the parchment paper and place on a cutting board. Evenly cut into bars or squares.
Store bars in fridge in an airtight container. These should stay good for about a week in the refrigerator.
Enjoy!

Notes

I make my own chocolate topping for these bars, but you can easily use melted chocolate chips to spread on the bars if you want. If using chocolate chips, melt ½ cup chocolate chips with 1 tsp. coconut oil and then spread onto bars. Also, look for organic and/or fair-trade certified to keep them as clean as can be (Equal Exchange Chocolate Chips or Hu Chocolate Gems are our favorite).

Nutrition