Out of all the recipes published on my website, I make these peanut butter banana chocolate chip oatmeal bars most often. A one-bowl recipe, these healthy snack bars are naturally gluten free, adaptable to many different ingredients, soft-baked, incredibly flavorful, and very easy to make. When packed with chocolate chips, you can count them among your favorite gluten-free dessert recipes, too!
I originally published this recipe in 2012 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more options for ingredient substitutions.
Truly one of my favorite homemade snacks, these peanut butter banana oatmeal bars have made their rounds in my kitchen for more than 10 years. Sometimes I change the recipe based on the ingredients I have and they still manage to turn out wonderfully! Satisfying your sweet tooth and unbelievably easy to make, these healthy oatmeal bars should definitely be on your to-bake list. I can’t get enough.
These Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Bars Are:
- Super easy and quick (a great one-bowl recipe to make before school starts!)
- Mega flavorful and wholesome, just like peanut butter banana muffins
- Gluten free
- Vegan if using dairy-free chocolate
- Filled with healthful ingredients*
- Soft-baked and moist
- Adaptable to what you have on hand
- Freezer-friendly
*Ok ok I know chocolate chips aren’t necessarily healthy but they’re good for the soul! And, of course, they’re totally optional, so feel free to leave them out. Either way, these are a prime choice if you’re on the lookout for healthier dessert recipe ideas.
One reader, Leighann, commented: “This recipe is SO good! So easy to make, delicious, and healthy! Definitely will be making again! ★★★★★“
One reader, Laken, commented: “I adore this recipe. I make them a few times a month. My family loves to gobble them up for breakfast or snacks. Thank you so much for sharing it. ★★★★★“
One reader, Veronica, commented: “I made these oatmeal bars with almond butter and they are absolutely divine! They came together so easily and exceeded my expectations in terms of taste and texture. They are incredibly addicting and will absolutely be a repeat bake in our house. We love that the ingredients are wholesome yet so satisfying and provide the perfect amount of sweetness. Thank you, Sally! ★★★★★“
Ingredients in Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Bars
Over the years I’ve tested a lot of ingredient substitutions for these oatmeal bars. Read about the ingredients and any substitutions below:
- Bananas: You need about 3 medium or 2 large ripe bananas for 1 cup (230g) of mashed bananas. Want to turn these into pumpkin peanut butter bars? Swap canned pumpkin puree for the mashed banana. If you’re not a fan of banana, my recipe for peanut butter oatmeal bars is very similar but without banana in the ingredient list.
- Peanut Butter: I used to make these peanut butter oatmeal bars with 1/3 cup of peanut butter, but recently switched it to 1/2 cup for more flavor. You can use any nut butter you want, natural, homemade, or processed. Same options go for these flourless peanut butter oatmeal cookies, too.
- Coconut Sugar or Brown Sugar: I love making these with unrefined coconut sugar. You can use brown sugar instead, but I don’t recommend liquid sweetener.
- Applesauce: I used to make these with an egg, but found that unsweetened applesauce works like a charm instead of the egg. You can, of course, use an egg or even a “flax egg” substitute. See my recipe notes below.
- Almond Milk or Regular Milk: I usually make these with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, but any milk works.
- Vanilla Extract & Cinnamon: Both add flavor.
- Oats: Whole oats or quick oats work here. I recommend whole oats for a little more texture. Use certified gluten free oats if necessary.
- Baking Powder: Baking powder adds lift.
- Salt: Salt balances the other flavors.
- Chocolate Chips: If you want to make these bars vegan, you can skip the chocolate or use dairy-free chocolate chips instead. You can also skip the chocolate chips or replace with peanut butter chips, chopped nuts, or raisins.
Easy Way to Mash Bananas
This trick for mashing bananas is a total game changer whenever I make banana muffins, breakfast cookies, and banana bread. Just use your mixer! Peel and break your spotty bananas into chunks, place in your mixer, and beat until mashed. Beat the rest of the wet ingredients right into this bowl. So easy.
Mixing Bowl to Oven in 10 Minutes
After you mash the bananas, beat in the rest of the ingredients. This is a 1 bowl recipe! If you don’t have a mixer, you can mash the bananas with a fork, then just stir in the rest of the ingredients. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, then spread the batter into the lined pan. Give it a taste—the batter itself is SO DARN GOOD.
The bars take about 25–30 minutes to bake. Remove them from the oven, then let them cool completely. I usually cool them on the counter for 30 minutes, then place the whole pan in the refrigerator for 1–2 hours. Without refrigeration, the bars don’t cut as neatly.
What’s the Texture Like?
So what’s the texture of these peanut butter banana oatmeal bars like? Following the recipe, bake time, and cooling instructions below, the bars are somewhere between baked oatmeal and a soft granola bar. They’re very moist, but maintain their bar shape when you’re holding/biting into one. I recommend storing them in the refrigerator.
See more of my egg-free baking recipes and gluten-free recipes. If you sweet tooth is calling, here are 20+ healthy dessert recipes and 40+ gluten-free dessert recipes, too.
More Healthy Favorites
- Morning Glory Muffins
- Whole Wheat Banana Muffins
- Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies
- Greek Yogurt Zucchini Bread
- Vanilla Almond Granola
- No-Bake Chocolate Fudge Oat Bars
Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours (includes cooling)
- Yield: 16 bars
- Category: Bars
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These quick and easy peanut butter banana oatmeal bars are adaptable in many different ways. See my blog post above and recipe notes below. They’re a more solid form of my delicious baked oatmeal.
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 (60g) 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)
Instructions
- 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.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze squares in single layers between sheets of parchment paper in a freezer-friendly container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowl | 9-inch Square Baking Pan
- Peanut Butter: You can use any nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew) you want—natural, homemade, or processed.
- Applesauce: I used to make these bars with 1 egg instead of the applesauce, but love their flavor with applesauce a bit better. You can, of course, use an egg instead or even use a flax egg substitute. Flax egg = mix 1 Tbsp ground flax with 3 Tbsp warm water and let it sit for 10 minutes while it “gels” up. Use the “flax gel” as a replacement for the applesauce/egg.
- Oats: Use certified gluten free oats to ensure the bars are gluten free.
- Chocolate Chips: You can skip the chocolate chips or replace with peanut butter chips, chopped nuts, or raisins. Or use a combination of any of those add-ins.
- Vegan: Use dairy-free chocolate chips and nondairy milk to ensure the bars are vegan.
- Gluten Free: Make sure your oats are certified gluten free to ensure these bars are gluten free.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Can I use regular milk?
Hi Lily, absolutely, you can use any kind of milk.
To make the PB drizzle, do you add anything to it?
Hi DJ, the drizzle is simply melted peanut butter and is optional. Delicious with or without!
Good recipe. I was pleasantly surprised. Question: the photo has a peanut butter looking drizzle but I don’t see any mention of it in the recipe.
Hi Chris, Sometimes we drizzle melted peanut butter over each, but that’s optional.
Delicious and easy to make 🙂
This is an awesome recipe and my new favorite go-to dessert! So simple to make but so yummy. I also add some shredded coconut.
This is a great recipe but I’ve been making it with eggs and whole milk, which helps with the texture. I also use fewer chips and often swap out peanut butter chips for some of the chocolate ones. It keeps very well for days.
I omitted sugar to let the banana give its natural sweetness, and used egg and turned out SO GOOD! Stored in the freezer to pull out for a quick and easy breakfast or snack! Thank you Sally!
I made these for my toddler (used 2 eggs instead of applesauce to get some added protein, added a little bit of whole wheat flour to thicken it up, and removed the chocolate chips) and he absolutely loves them. Honestly, it’s one of the few things that he likes to eat consistently! I put some in the freezer for emergencies and they’re a god send!
Really disappointed in this recipe. It didn’t taste like peanut butter, or banana or anything. It was very bland and dry, recipe said 28-30 minutes, at 15 minutes, mine were way over baked. Really wanted to like this, but was a dud. Disappointed to have wasted ingredients
Hi Jamie, these are thick bars with a very wet dough and 15 minutes doesn’t seem like enough time, unless you used a larger pan. I wonder if yours were over-baked, or if you substituted any ingredients?
My kids love these and so do I! Love the quick and easy recipe for healthy snack
What can you use if you do not use applesauce?
Hi Mike, you can use 1 egg instead of applesauce.
Can I make muffins with this recipe?
Hi Bobbi, the texture won’t be like muffins, but you can use a muffin pan to make smaller individual servings of these. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. You might enjoy these peanut butter banana muffins as well.
Can I use steel cut oats instead? Thanks
Hi Jade, we don’t recommend steel cut oats for this recipe.
These are amazing!! Definitely a recipe that I will make again
Absolutely delicious! And so simple… nutrition information please before I devour the whole pan
Hi Paige, we don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Hi, just wondering if the sugar content in the peanut butter matters. The Kraft processed types have sugar in it and some natural ones are sugar free. If I use the Kraft kind that contains sugar, do I need to adjust the brown sugar amount?
Hi Marina, no need to reduce the the added sugar amounts—we use peanut butters with a variety of sugar amounts, without any changes to the recipe.
I only have a 8×8 pan. How do I adjust the recipe
You can use 8×8 pan but your bars will be thicker and may take an extra few minutes to bake through.
Wow! This is more like a dessert than a breakfast bar. So gooey and chocolatey, I love it! I added to scoops of flavourless protein powder and cut the oats to 2 cups to accomodate. I used smooth natural peanut butter, brown sugar and oatmilk following the recipe qtys exactly. Baked for 25min and cooled well over an hour. Turned out amazing!!! 10g protein and 234 cal = a boost of energy in my morning. I’d call that a win! Thanks Sally 🙂
Because we are not GF I added 1/4 cup flour to the batter to help thicken it up. They were perfect!
A healthy snack!
I wondered about adding flour as well, since they are so gooey. Thanks for your comment!
These were so so good! I didn’t have coconut sugar but wanted to keep it wholesome so I used 3 tbsp honey and a smidge less milk to compensate for added moisture. So so yummy and wonderful flavor! Can’t believe how delicious these are 🙂
Hello!! I’m about to start making these because they sound DELICIOUS!! Two questions…..
1. Can I replace non dairy milk with plain milk?
2. Can I just double the recipe for a 9X13 baking dish?
Thank you in advance!
Hi Raquel! Plain milk works just fine here. Use any milk you like. Double the recipe would be a bit too much for a 9×13. We recommend making the recipe twice in a 9×9 instead!
Hi Sally! These BARS sound great, but I’m intrigued by the glaze atop them – ESPECIALLY as there was no mention of it anywhere in the post.
Please – can you tell me what kind of glaze/drizzle it is, and do you have an available recipe for it?
Many thanks, from a crisp, 10°F Alberta, Canada morning.
Hi Terry! That’s just melted peanut butter. 🙂
Great recipe! Is there a way to replace banana?
Hi Houd, you can use 1 cup of pumpkin puree in place of the banana. You could also try sweetened or unsweetened applesauce instead of the mashed banana. The bars may not be as solid, so you may want to bake a few extra minutes. Or, we have these recipes for peanut butter chunk oatmeal bars and pumpkin chocolate chip oatmeal bars as well. Enjoy!
Looks fabulous! I’m on a weight loss program. I can still have sweets. I just have to account for them. So I need the calories per bar, if possible. Many thanks.
Hi Valerie, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076 Hope you enjoy these bars!
Hi Sally! I love these bars! Wondering if I can replace the brown sugar with honey?
Hi Nykia, we’re so glad you love these bars! We don’t recommend liquid sweetener with this recipe.
These taste amazing however the bars fall apart because they are so moist. Is there any way to firm the bars up? If they could be cut and stay together they would be perfect
Hi Angie! They should stay together – did you let them cool? Perhaps yours could use a few more minutes in the oven next time.
What is the nutrition information on these bars?
Hi Kim, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
What a super recipe. So easy! And a great way to use up too-speckled bananas. We love these as an afternoon sweet treat. Thanks Sally and team!
Great tasting and healthy…what more can one ask for in a recipe? Well, a larger batch of course! I made in 9×13 pan…I just increased the ingredients by dividing ingredient amounts in half then added that much more.I did half rolled old fashion and half quick along with same concept using chocolate chips and raisins. This gave my bars more layers of different chew textures.
I love these and will be sharing them with my “Old Gay Guys” walking group next week but I’ll most likely need to bake another batch by then
I feel like the nutritional facts used to be on here somewhere. Is there a way to put them back on the page?
Hi LJ, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
I don’t know how to save the recipe. Not good with computers
Hi Judy! We’re happy to help. On the bottom right-hand corner of your screen, there should be a teal outline of a heart in a white circle. If you click that, it will favorite the recipe. Hope this helps!