These Vegan Raspberry Oatmeal Bars are packed with whole grains, raspberries, and chia seeds for the perfect healthy snack or treat! Gluten-free and kid-friendly.
I have enough raspberries in the freezer to feed a small village.
Raspberry jam. Raspberry pancakes. Raspberry smoothies. Raspberry ravioli. I'VE DONE IT ALL. Oh and obviously putting them all over my Overnight Steel Cut Oatmeal!
Last weekend I was perusing the blog for a work week snack and stumbled upon my beloved Blueberry Oatmeal Snack Bars recipe. I messed with the jam a bit, added a splash of almond extract, subbed raspberries for bloobs, and voila! The newest version of nomtastical fruit bars were birthed.
I chowed down on three bars plus thirty seven million crumbs the day I made them. The boyf proceeded to take three a day in his lil' lunch box and before we knew it, they ceased to exist.
Do you know what that meeeeeeeans?
"Hey, boo? Would you mind not taking raspberry bars in your lunch today cuz like, I've only had three and they're almost extinct." INSERT TEAR DROP EMOJI HERE.
How to Make Vegan Raspberry Oatmeal Bars
First, we're making a super simple homemade raspberry jam (you could use store-bought if you fancy). Then we make a divine oat crumble for the bottom and top layers. Easy peasy!
I'm a big fan of buying oat flour for convenience factor but you can certainly make your own by grinding old-fashioned oats in the blender. I think a portion of almond meal would be quite lovely in these Vegan Raspberry Oatmeal Bars, too! I'll be sure to try that when I make a....peach version.
Oh and the almond extract! Don't you forget it. I wrote "optional" because I don't want you to not make them if you're only missing that one ingredient butttttttt I'm team almond all day err' day so I highly recommend you use it.
I use this Frontier almond flavor which is actually a bit lighter in taste, so I'd even bump it up to a teaspoon if you're using that brand. Living on the edge here!!
Are Oats Gluten Free?
Oats do not contain gluten. This gets confusing because they are often processed in facilities that do process grains with gluten, which means risking cross-contamination. If you are avoiding gluten for personal or health reasons, be on the lookout for steel cut oats that indicate they’re certified gluten-free on the label.
Can I Use Another Fruit Besides Raspberry?
Yes! This blueberry version and apple version are both insanely tasty. If you have a handy bag of frozen mixed berries, those would be fab, too!
This fruity oatmeal bar recipe has a) breakfast potential, b) snack potential, c) dessert potential, d) all off the above. D!!! I loved these warmed in the microwave with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. What a dream!
If you loved this vegan raspberry oatmeal bar recipe, give it a thumbs up by leaving a 5-star rating and/or comment!
CRAVING MORE OATMEAL GOODNESS? DON’T MISS MY OTHER GO-TO OATMEAL RECIPES:
- Healthy Blueberry Oatmeal Snack Bars
- Apple Oatmeal Bars
- Salted Chocolate Covered Oatmeal Bites
- Morning Glory Baked Oatmeal Bars
- Banana Zucchini Oatmeal Cups
All I want to know is why raspberry isn't spelled "razberry" and why blueberry isn't spelled "bluepberry."
PrintVegan Raspberry Oatmeal Bars
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
- Category: Snack, Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These raspberry oatmeal bars are packed with whole grains for the perfect healthy snack or treat! Vegan and gluten-free.
Ingredients
For the raspberry chia jam:
- 2 cups frozen raspberries
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- 3 tbsp pure maple syrup
For the bars:
- 1 cup oat flour (GF if necessary, can sub all purpose flour)
- 1 ½ cups old-fashioned oats (GF if necessary)
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp almond extract (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F. Grease an 8x8in baking dish with coconut oil or cooking spray.
- Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add raspberries, chia seeds and maple syrup. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, stirring often. Use a potato masher to smash berries for the "jam" layer. Set aside to cool (I usually put it in the fridge).
- Combine oats, oat flour, sugar, cinnamon salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.
- Add applesauce, maple syrup and coconut oil, vanilla, and almond extract, stirring to combine.
- Set aside a heaping half cup of the oat mixture and then spoon the rest evenly into the prepared pan. Top with raspberry chia jam, spreading evenly with a spoon or spatula. Drop the rest of the oat mixture on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into 12 bars.
Notes
STORAGE: Store bars in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Freeze bars for up to 3 months.
Ains says
haven't made these yet, recipe looks good tho! just wanted to say the writing style of this recipe/blog was such a delight.
★★★★
Alexis Joseph says
Awww yay, thank you!
Michelle says
Had some frozen raspberries and a hankering for some squares. Most recipes call for raspberry jam so right off the bat this recipe spoke to me. Wow! My only change was to add some chopped walnuts to the topping. These are fantastic!!!! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
★★★★★
Alexis Joseph says
Awww I'm so glad! Be sure to check out the blueberry version, too!
Elena says
I have made this recipe countless times and with multiple fruit and berry toppings. I substitute more apple sauce for coconut oil and the recipe becomes oil free! These bars are absolutely delicious and could be eaten for breakfast too 🙂
★★★★★
Alexis Joseph says
Love that! Thanks a ton for letting me know, Elena! I hear thy're great with leftover cranberry sauce, too 🙂
Lisa says
Love this! Have made several times.
Today I subbed fresh cranberry sauce for most of the raspberries (added 1/4 cup)
And used mashed sweet potatoes thinned with a little water for the applesauce (I was out but had leftover sweet potatoes). Can’t wait to try this version when it comes out of the oven
★★★★★
Alexis Joseph says
OMG that is a genius idea!! It's like Thanksgiving dessert bars! Let me know how they turn out 🙂