These soft and chewy Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars are perfect to make ahead and grab for a quick breakfast or snack! They’re freezer-friendly, super easy to make and naturally sweetened with honey and bananas!
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Since we’re back from our best ever Hawaii vacation and Whole30 is over, I’m craving all things BUT eggs for breakfast. Actually… we’ve kept up the hard-boiled egg habit, but I usually eat them as snacks instead of for breakfast.
No, I’m talking oats, peanut butter, honey, carbs ETC. Whole30 did us so much good, but I was very ready to pick up the recipe testing on these bars I had first tried back in November. So many of my favorite things, all wrapped up in bar form, and totally okay with me to eat for breakfast or snacks. Not to mention such a great use of leftover bananas!
Ingredients in these Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars:
- Bananas – Duh!! The good news is they are not required to be super ripe for this recipe to succeed. I used up our ripe ones and had to continue testing with newer bananas. Still worked just fine.
- Rolled Oats – Old-fashioned, rolled oats. I use Bob’s Red Mill. Use the gluten-free specific kind if you need that!
- Peanut Butter – We love PB. Hope you do too. If you don’t, another nut butter would probably work but I haven’t tested anything but peanut butter.
- Honey – Used as the sweetener in the recipe, and I just love the PB/honey combo.
- Almond Milk – But you can use any nut milk or dairy milk if you want.
- Baking Powder – For some puff!
- Cinnamon – Cinnamon and peanut butter is just a combo I love. For yummy flavor!
- Salt – A bit of sea salt to balance all the sweetness.
Can I use a different sweetener instead of honey?
I have personally tested this recipe with maple syrup instead of honey, and I prefer honey as the sweetener. There’s just something so good about the honey/peanut butter/banana combo that I love. Maple syrup adds a different kind of sweetness that I usually love, but not in the case of these Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars.
That being said, you are always welcome to make this recipe your own and try it any way you want!
Can I use a different nut butter instead of peanut butter?
I have not tested this recipe with anything other than peanut butter, but I do think it would be delicious with any nut butter, particularly cashew butter. I was specifically going for the PB/banana combo when I was testing out this recipe.
Are these Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars good for meal prep?
Yes! We love them for a breakfast or snack prep. Each bar comes in at around 225 calories. Have one for breakfast with a hard-boiled egg for a macro balanced morning meal, or grab one as a snack to help keep you satisfied between meals.
I keep these bars in a airtight container in the fridge or freezer.
How long do these Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars last in the fridge?
Keep these bars in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Are these Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars freezer friendly?
Yes! During testing, I froze several of these breakfast bars and was able to thaw and eat them later without being able to tell they were frozen.
I tried two different methods of thawing which both worked very well:
- Overnight thaw – Pulled a frozen breakfast bar out of the freezer and put it in a container in the fridge. Ate the next day.
- Counter quick thaw – Pulled a frozen breakfast bar out of the freezer and left it on the counter for one hour. Was still very cold when I ate it but was thawed and soft.
How long do these Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars last in the freezer?
Keep these bars in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
More breakfast meal prep recipes from Project Meal Plan:
- Pecan Pie Stuffed Oatmeal Breakfast Cups
- Best Ground Turkey Sausage Patties
- Make-Ahead Freezer Friendly Breakfast Burritos
Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 8 bars 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Description
These soft and chewy Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars are perfect to make ahead and grab for a quick breakfast or snack! They’re freezer-friendly, super easy to make and naturally sweetened with honey and bananas!
Ingredients
- 2 medium bananas
- 1 + 1/2 cups rolled oats (not quick or instant)
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons almond milk (or any kind)
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoons salt
- optional: 1 banana, cut into 16 slices, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Mash bananas in a medium sized mixing bowl until no chunks remain. Add all remaining ingredients to the bowl (except optional sliced bananas) and mix thoroughly. Pour mixture into the prepared 8×8 pan. Optional: Top with sliced bananas in 4×4 rows. Press them slightly into the batter.
- Bake for 23-26 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let the bars cool for about 5 minutes, then remove from the pan using the parchment paper. Place on a cutting board and let cool for a few more minutes, then use a sharp knife to cut into 8 bars.
Equipment
8-Piece Pyrex Sculptured Mixing Bowl Set
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Rubbermaid High Heat Spatula Scraper
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Nutrition information estimated with My Fitness Pal.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 225
- Sugar: 14g
- Fat: 9g
- Carbohydrates: 31g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 6g
Keywords: breakfast, banana, breakfast bars, oatmeal, peanut butter, honey, oats, bars
Thanks for reading and possibly making these Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Bars! I hope you love them as much as me! Tag me or use the hashtag #projectmealplan to share yours!!
Hey, I'm Danielle. I made Project Meal Plan because being prepared and saving time are my favorite things. It doesn't hurt that I LOVE cooking and photography too. 
I’m going to have to try these!
They’re so easy! Great way to use up bananas!
Did you use natural peanut butter in these?
Hi Bethelda – Yes, I use natural peanut butter with just peanuts and salt in the ingredients list. Any creamy PB would work 🙂
Are these supposed to come out soft? Mine turned out soft and crumbly. Not hard like a granola bar. I was expecting them to be harder.
Hi Pam, yes they’re supposed to be soft and chewy! Not like a granola bar, more like a soft oatmeal cookie texture. Hope you liked them!
hello
What should i serve it with ?
These would be great with some warm peanut butter drizzled on top, or depending on your diet, a hard boiled egg or fresh fruit. Great for breakfast or snack!
So yummy! Think you could use apples in this? If so how would you change the recipe?
Hi Missy! Thank you! I’m not exactly sure how to make this recipe with apples without some testing, but here’s one I came across that looks similar: https://iowagirleats.com/2017/10/13/apple-cinnamon-oatmeal-bars/
Hope this helps! Danielle
Do you have to add the honey? Would they hold up without it?
Hi Mary – I do think the bars would hold up without the honey, however they may not be sweet enough. You could try maple syrup instead if you have any. Hope it works for you! Thanks for your question. -Danielle
How long can these be stored in the freezer?
Up to 3 months for best condition, but up to 6 months would be alright too.