These No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars are an easy, healthy breakfast or snack for chocolate peanut butter lovers. They have a crunchy oatmeal layer topped with melt-in-your-mouth chocolate peanut butter ganache and topped with extra oat crumbs.
If you love no-bake dessert recipes like my No-Bake Brownies, No-Bake Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake Bars, or Healthy No-Bake Oatmeal Bars, you’ll be for a treat with this healthy raw dessert.
They are not only easy to prepare, oven-less, and perfect on hot summer days. But also a healthier treat packed with raw ingredients that brings you all their vitamins and nutrients.
Ingredients and Substitutions
All you need to make these delicious, decadent chocolate oat bars with peanut butter are:
- Quick Oats – I don’t recommend rolled oats simply because their texture is coarse and the layer doesn’t firm up the same.
- Coconut Oil or plant-based butter – I recommend refined coconut oil if you don’t like the light coconut flavor that contains extra virgin coconut oil.
- Sea Salt – for decoration and flavor.
- Coconut Sugar or unrefined cane sugar, or simply any sugar you have on hand. I do have a preference for unrefined sweeteners, but brown sugar and white sugar also work well.
- Vanilla Extract – for flavor.
- Maple Syrup or any liquid sweetener you love, like agave syrup or coconut nectar.
For the chocolate peanut butter mixture you need:
- Dark Chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips – I do like 70% cocoa to keep the sugar low and enhance the chocolate flavor of the bars.
- Peanut Butter – Pick natural peanut butter with no added sugar and no added oil.
How To Make Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
This is the easiest no-bake bar you will either make. The base and topping use the exact same mixture to reduce the effort in the kitchen. Plus the middle layer is a simple combination of two ingredients.
So let me share with you my tips to make this easy dessert in no time. As mentioned earlier, the oatmeal mixture is used to make the base and topping of the chocolate peanut butter bars.
- In a large mixing bowl, add quick oats and salt. Stir to combine and set aside at room temperature.
- In a non-stick saucepan, add coconut oil, maple syrup, and coconut sugar.
- Bring the saucepan over medium heat, stir constantly until the sugar is fully melted and the mixture is warm and bubbly.
- Pour the liquids onto the oat mixture and using a silicone spatula, or the paddle attachment of your stand mixer, stir all the ingredient together.
- The oatmeal mixture should be slightly wet but sticky, and if not, if too dry, simply add a splash of water. It should hold together if you squeeze the batter in your hands.
- Line an 8-inch x 8-inch square pan with parchment paper. Lightly grease the paper with cooking oil spray.
- Add some of the oat mixture to cover the bottom of the pan evenly, but keep about 1/2 cup aside in the bowl for the topping of the bar.
- Press the batter firmly onto the baking dish, using the back of a spoon or a silicone spatula to spread an even layer of oats. Set aside the base in the fridge while making the filling.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, or non-stick saucepan add chocolate chips and peanut butter.
- Stir and cook over medium heat until the chocolate is completely melted and combined with the peanut butter into a thick and shiny chocolate mixture.
- If you are using a microwave, microwave in 30-second bursts to avoid burning the chocolate and stir after each time. Stop when fully melted.
- Remove the bar from the fridge and pour the warm chocolate layer all over the oat base.
- Sprinkle the remaining oatmeal mixture all over the bar.
- There are two options to set this no-bake dessert. First, you can refrigerate the dessert overnight to set the layers over time.
- For a quicker dessert, pop the bar in the freezer for 15 minutes. The bar is ready when the chocolate peanut butter filling is thick, not liquid and the toppings is hard.
- Use a long sharp knife to easily slice this peanut butter oatmeal bar recipe. Warm the knife blade over a flame, or warm water.
- Dry the blade, then slice the bar into 16 squares. The warmth of the blade makes it easier to cut through the chocolate and oat layers without breaking the layers into crumbly pieces.
Storage Instructions
Store the bars in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze the bars in zip-lock bags or airtight containers for up to one month.
Thaw in the fridge the day before serving.
Serving
You can serve the bars at room temperature. They won’t melt that easily, except if you place them in a hot sunny place.
Serve plain or with a drizzle of extra melted dark chocolate, peanut butter or shredded coconut.
You can also pour Vegan Whipped Cream or Peanut Butter Dip on the bar for a decadent version!
Allergy Swaps
Here are some options to make this oatmeal bar if you have some allergies to the ingredients used in this recipe:
- Nut-Free – You can swap peanut butter for sunflower seed butter, pumpkin seed butter, or tahini.
- Sugar-Free – You can use sugar-free liquid sweeteners and allulose instead of coconut sugar. Also, use a sugar-free stevia-sweetened chocolate chip brand.
- Gluten-Free – Pick gluten-free certified oats.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below I answered your most common questions about this no-bake recipe.
The combination of fat, proteins, and fiber from both ingredients is vital to keeping you full for longer and decreasing the release of sugar into the bloodstream.
Therefore, peanut butter and oats are great for a healthy breakfast or snack.
More Healthy No-Bake Dessert Recipes
Here are some more dairy-free, no-bake treats you may want to bake next time.
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No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup Coconut Oil - measured unmelted, packed in the cup
- ⅓ cup Maple Syrup
- 2 tablespoons Coconut Sugar - or unrefined cane sugar or sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Sea salt
- 2 ¾ cups Quick Oats
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Chocolate Layer
- 1 cup Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips - or semi-sweet or 70% dark chocolate
- ¾ cup Peanut Butter
Instructions
- Line an 8-inch x 8-inch square pan with parchment paper. Lightly oil the paper with coconut oil. Set aside.
Oat Mixture
- In a large non-stick saucepan, add coconut oil, maple syrup, and coconut sugar. Bring over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook until a gentle simmer forms and the sugar has completely melted.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Stir and cook an extra minute until all the ingredients are well combined.
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, add quick oats and salt and pour the warm liquid mixture on top.
- Stir the ingredients together using a paddle attachment or silicone spatula until they form a sticky oat mixture.
- Press about half of the mixture all over the prepared baking dish or slightly more, depending on how thick you want your bar. But keep at least 1/2 cup of your oat mixture for the top of your bar at the end.
- Pop the pan in the fridge while preparing the chocolate peanut butter layer.
Chocolate Filling
- In a non-stick saucepan, over low-medium heat, melt chocolate chips and peanut butter until smooth.
- Remove the pan from the fridge and pour the warm chocolate peanut butter mixture over it. Spread evenly with a silicone tool. Then, sprinkle the remaining oat mixture all over the bar.
Refrigerate overnight
- Place the chocolate oatmeal bar overnight in the fridge to firm up.
- Slice the next day into 16 squares.
Storage
- Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 1 month in zip-lock bags.
These are so freaking good! Make them immediately!
Excellent!!!! And easy!