Oh, hey there! Remember me? 😉 Things have been super hectic with finishing my last EVER classes as a pharmacy student, immediately starting my first P4 rotation, and packing up our apartment to move into a townhouse. I’ve hardly been in the kitchen at all other than to cut up some fruit or throw together a sandwich for lunch, which has me going a bit stir-crazy. I started doing the big pack of our kitchen today (which is absolutely insane – the amount of boxes for the kitchen is exponentially higher than any other part of our apartment), and because I had small amounts left of things like peanuts, chocolate chips, coconut… I decided I had to make the kitchen a mess before packing it all up. Makes sense, right? I got myself a snack for the week out of it, too, so definitely a good idea. 😉
These bars are a peanut butter oatmeal cookie-like base, with lots and lots of mix-ins. Feel free to throw whatever you have in there, whether it be any kind of nut, candies, pretzels, dried fruit… the possibilities are endless! I stuck with peanuts, coconut, brown rice puffs, chocolate chips, and a hint of banana. All fantastic things for a breakfast bar, yeah?
If you’re allergic to peanuts, feel free to substitute the peanut butter with any other nut butter! I think sunflower seed butter would be heavenly. I’ll have to try that next! I love me some sunflower seed butter.
These bars are full of health, packed with protein and fiber from the oats and almond meal, and coconut oil provides some healthy fat. All naturally sweetened with banana and a little bit of liquid stevia (I love the organic liquid stevia from Trader Joe’s – it has no bitter aftertaste), these bars are something you can feel great about having for breakfast! With a little bit of chocolate, they also satisfy that sweet tooth, and if you use dark chocolate, that also makes it good for you, right? 😉
What is your favorite kind of breakfast or snack bar?
- 1 overripe banana, mashed
- 1/2 cup natural peanut butter*
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 tsp liquid stevia (or 1/4 cup honey)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 Tbsp (1/4 cup) coconut oil, melted
- 1 cup oats (make sure they are certified gluten free if gluten intolerant)
- 1 cup brown rice puffs (or crisp brown rice for crunch)
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup peanuts**
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips**
- 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes**
Line an 11x7 inch pan (brownie pan) with parchment paper, and preheat the oven to 350ºF.
In a large bowl, mash the banana, and combine with the peanut butter, until smooth. Add the eggs, stevia, vanilla extract, and melted coconut oil, stirring until smooth.
In a medium bowl, stir the oats, brown rice puffs, almond meal, baking soda, baking powder, salt, peanuts, chocolate chips, and coconut flakes together, until well mixed.
Add the dry mixture into the peanut butter mixture, stirring until just combined.
Transfer the dough to the prepared pan, spreading evenly with a spatula.
Bake at 350ºF for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean, and the edges are golden brown.
Allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool. Allow to cool completely before cutting.
Store leftovers in an airtight container. These bars can be frozen, tightly wrapped, for up to 2 months.
*You can substitute the peanut butter for any other nut or seed butter.
**Feel free to use any mix-ins - up to 1 1/2 cups nuts, seeds, dried fruit, candies, etc.
https://cookingalamel.com/2014/05/breakfast-cookie-bars-gluten-free.html