You Got This!
These quick and easy peanut butter banana oatmeal bars are naturally gluten free, adaptable to many different ingredients, soft-baked, incredibly flavorful, and very easy to make.
Ingredients
1 cup (230g) mashed bananas (about 3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas)
1/2 cup (125g) creamy or crunchy peanut butter*
1/4 cup (50g) coconut sugar or brown sugar
1/4 cup (45g) unsweetened applesauce*
1/2 cup (120ml) almond milk (or any nondairy milk)
2 and 1/2 cups (213g) old-fashioned whole oats or quick oats (not instant)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup (180g) semi-sweet chocolate chips (use dairy free for vegan)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper with enough overhang on the sides to easily remove the bars from the pan. Set aside.
In a large bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, mash the bananas. On medium speed, beat or whisk in the remaining ingredients in the order listed. Batter will be a little thick, but still pourable.
Pour/spoon the mixture evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 25-28 minutes or until the center is set (it will still look relatively soft!).
Remove from the oven and cool in the pan at room temperature for 30-60 minutes. After that, place the pan in the refrigerator for 1 hour until chilled. The bars are difficult to cut if they haven’t been chilled.
Remove bars from the pan using the overhang on the sides then cut into bars. Sometimes I drizzle melted peanut butter over each, but that’s optional. (Note: the parchment paper is always a little moist from soaking up some moisture from the bars.)
Cover leftover bars tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.