Healthy Chunky Monkey Oatmeal Bars
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Looking for delicious healthy dessert recipes you can feel good about? These quick Healthy Chunky Monkey Oatmeal Bars are so simple and easy to make, you’ll be amazed how good they taste. This healthy dessert recipe is even vegan (score!) and can be made gluten-free easily!
More healthy dessert recipes? This Chunky Apple Walnut Cake, these Healthy Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Cookies and our Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars are also loaded with oats!
What Are Healthy Chunky Monkey Oatmeal Bars?
All you need to make these scrumptious bars a healthy dessert recipe are oats, peanut butter, bananas, a little maple syrup, chocolate chunks and walnuts. Save the chocolate chunks for the top of the bars to make ’em look pretty.
The bananas are the natural sweetener in these bars for a healthier choice. If you want more sweetness, make sure you add maple syrup or some sugar sweetener of your choice to give them a little more sweetness. If you don’t want the sweetness, leave it out for a healthier choice.
I used Enjoy Life Chocolate Chunks
These bars are actually vegan (no egg needed) and you can make them gluten-free if you want to use gluten-free oats, which I did with this batch.
Check out my video to see how to make these baked & easy healthy chocolate oatmeal bars with banana, peanut butter & walnuts! You’ll love this healthy dessert recipe!
Oh! And we have to mention our Chunky Monkey Blondies, since we’re all about chunky monkey!
About Healthy Dessert Recipes Using Oats
I love using oats, because they are among one of the healthiest grains on earth. They include important vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants.
Studies show that oats and oatmeal have many health benefits. These include weight loss, lower blood sugar levels and a reduced risk of heart disease. They are a great source of carbs and fiber, promotes healthy gut bacteria and increases feelings of fullness.
Oats can be a great addition to a healthy diet. They can be eaten as oatmeal for breakfast, added to baked goods and more. So yummy!
In this quick healthy dessert recipe, we used old-fashioned oats. They give texture and they are super healthy! I don’t recommend using quick oats for this recipe, if you want texture.
Ingredients You Need for Our Quick Healthy Dessert Recipe
- old-fashioned rolled oats or for gluten free option, use gluten free rolled oats
- peanut butter or any nut butter you prefer
- ripe bananas, mashed
- maple syrup or brown sugar or sugar of choice
- walnuts, roughly chopped
- Optional: cinnamon
- chocolate chunks or chips of choice optional, for vegan option use vegan chocolate chunks or chips
Baking Chunky Monkey Bars
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Line an 8 x 8-inch pan or baking dish with parchment paper and spray with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a med or large bowl, mix or whisk together the oats, mashed banana, peanut butter, maple syrup and walnuts until fully incorporated.
- Transfer the batter in the prepared pan and spread out on an even layer.
- Top with chocolate chunks or chips, then bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.
- Allow the bars to cool in the pan, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Storing Our Healthy Dessert Recipe
- Because this baked oatmeal recipe is dairy-free & vegan, you can place them in an airtight container and store them at room temperature for up to 2 days.
- Store any leftover bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- Can also freeze 3 months in a ziplock bag.
More Options For Your Healthy Chunky Monkey Oatmeal Bar Recipe
- If you want to add some fruit in these banana baked oatmeal bars, blueberries or strawberries would be great options.
- Love texture? Add some steel cut oats, coconut or almonds for a change up.
- Add some flaxseed or chia seeds for more Omega-3, texture and healthy vibes!
- Use gluten free oats for gluten free option!
- For vegan option, use vegan chocolate chunks or chips.
These homemade quick healthy desserts have better flavor than any oatmeal recipes you would get at the grocery, in my opinion, as far as a granola bar or soft oatmeal bar. Especially if you want something without all the preservatives and loaded sugars, but still want something satisfying to curb your appetite.
All you need is 20-25 minutes in the oven and you got yourself a winner to add to your favorite healthy dessert recipes!
These are great for breakfast, snacking and packing in lunches. Even if you don’t normally bake, this easy bar recipe is so easy to make, you don’t even need a mixer.
Besides these Healthy Chunky Monkey Oatmeal Bars, these Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars, OMG Honey Chex Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars and these No Bake Chewy Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Granola Bars are also great, if you want other ideas for yummy bars.
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Healthy Chunky Monkey Oatmeal Bars – Easy
Ingredients
- 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats or for gluten free option, use gluten free rolled oats
- ½ cup peanut butter or any nut butter you prefer
- 2 large ripe bananas, mashed
- 1-3 tablespoons maple syrup or brown sugar or sugar of choice
- ¼ cup walnuts roughly chopped
- Optional 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup chocolate chunks or chips of choice optional for vegan option use vegan chunks or chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Line an 8 x 8-inch pan with parchment paper and spray with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a med-large mixing bowl, mix together the oats, mashed banana, peanut butter, maple syrup and walnuts until fully incorporated.
- Transfer the batter in the prepared pan and spread out on an even layer.
- Top with chocolate chunks or chips, then bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.
- Allow the bars to cool in the pan, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
best recipe
I don’t know if it will or not? I would think it would some?
I have absolutely nothing to keep it from sticking to the pan. Will it still be ok?
Wow! Great job Emily and thank you so much! I’m glad it worked out for you!!
This is REALLY good ! So I’m 10 and I cooked it all by myself! I thought I was going to do it wrong but hey it came perfect! This is really good for children too!
Thank you so much! That is wonderful you approved! xo
Made these today, followed recipe, turned out great. Very good, not too sweet. I love the one bowl.
I’ll have to try your method Emily! Thank you so much for trying them and your feedback! xo
I love these. I have made them many times and I found that they turn out the best if you mix the ingredients in the blender, but leave out half the oats and the walnuts and chips then hand.mix those into the blended batter. You get a smoother bar that sticks together so well. Thanks!
You could try pumpkin puree or applesauce as an option. 1/2 cup per banana replacement. Hope that helps Carolina! 🙂 Happy Holidays! Yikes on the eating the overripe banana!
Was ready to make these tomorrow morning and my husband came home late and hangry — he ate one of my overripe bananas!! Now I only have one (sigh) how can I sub for the other missing banana?!?! Any help/tips would be immensely appreciated!
I would just add some extra steel cut oats in with the other oats to give it a little texture. You can soak them if you want, I don’t know what it would do to the texture of the bars, so if someone else has tried them and had good luck, there ya go. If there aren’t enough oats, it could make your bars rubbery. These are healthy, so another option is you could add in a tablespoon of melted butter or coconut oil to your mixture to help with the texture. Also after you took them out of the oven, did quickly put them in a storage container? Sometimes cookies and bars need a little longer to cool down naturally before being made airtight. Hopefully maybe one of these will help you out. Thanks for making them and I’m glad they were delicious!
These are delicious, although mine came out way too soft and a little rubbery. Should I sub in steel cut oats and, if so, do I need to soak them first like another commenter mentioned?
I added some strawberries and coconut and oh my god this was so good! Definitely recommend 🙂
I love the idea of adding coconut Tonya! I love the idea of steel cut oats in them for sure! Thank you so much Tanya, I’m so happy you enjoyed them! 😉
YUMMO!!!!
I had a lot of steel cut oats so used 1 cup of old fashioned oats and 1 cup of steel cut oats that I soaked with equal parts of almond milk and the recipe turned out delish. The steel cut oats made the bars chewier, which I liked. I think next time I will add a little bit of coconut because I love chocolate. I like the simplicity of this recipe. Thanks!
Yes you can, it will just have more texture and be healthier.
Can you substitute the oats for steel cut oats? If so, how does the recipe change? Thank you
I subbed unsweetened applesauce for the bananas- we will see how it turns out!
I’m so happy to hear Venessa! It’s always a win when the kids love them! 🙂 Thank you so much for letting me know! Very cool!
These are delicious. I blended the oats to give it a more smooth texture before hand. The kids loved them as well. Thank you
It is per serving. These are good for filling you up and a good size. Thank you Mike!
I don’t know if this is a silly question, but the calories listed. Is that for the whole dish or per serving? Looking for healthy alternatives and just trying to keep track. Thank you
Coconut would be a great addition to these bars! I love they aren’t full of sugar too but just enough! Thank you so much Liza!!
these were so good and weren’t full of sugar, also great topped with coconut flakes
I love the addition of coconut flakes! More texture and yumminess! Thank you so much Christina for your review and since it was your first baking experience, that makes this email even more special! xo Happy Baking on!
My first time baking EVER, and these are amazing! I wound up adding cinnamon because ya know, it’s awesome and I also added coconut flakes, they came out soooooo good, thanks for the recipe!!
Updated Kim per your request. Hope you enjoy! xo
Whats the calories per peice ?
That is wonderful to hear! Thank you so much Katie and so happy the kids are loving them too! Woohoo!
So tasty! Just made these and the kids have already eaten half of them!
Thank you so much Valentina! xo
Banana, chocolate and peanut butter is the best!! Those choc chunks on top look amazing and are calling to me. YUM! 🙂 ~Valentina
These sound delicious! I loooove oats, especially in cookies and bars!
I’m loving vegan and this one is super easy to make it that way! Thanks Justin! xo
Wow! I love this recipe. Super easy and easily made Vegan with the use of non-dairy chocolate chips. I can’t wait to make this one!