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These healthy breakfast bars are the ultimate meal prep for a quick breakfast or healthy snack the whole family will love! They’re filled with creamy peanut butter, rolled oats, pumpkin seeds, and dried fruit. Make them on Sunday, pop them in the fridge, and enjoy them all week long.
If you are a busy bee like me, these breakfast bars make for a great breakfast on the go when you don’t have time in the morning! They pair perfectly with our easy vegan beverages like Cold Brew and Easy Vegan Matcha Latte (3-Ingredients + Date-Sweetened) and are guaranteed to give you the boost of energy you need to have a productive week.
Ingredients You’ll Need + Substitutions
The best part of these wholesome bars is they are incredibly customizable and made with basic ingredients. We’ve shared our favorite way to make these bars, but we’ve also listed several substitutions and favorite add-ins you can try. Use this recipe as a guide and adjust it to suit your personal taste and dietary needs.
- Medjool dates: Many breakfast bars, especially in grocery stores, are filled with refined sugars. These healthy breakfast bars are instead sweetened with highly nutritious Medjool dates and add a natural sweetness and chewy texture.
- Old-fashioned oats: Similar to our Vegan S’mores Granola Bars, we recommend making these healthy breakfast bars with rolled oats. It will give them enough texture without being too soft or dense. Save the quick oats for making our healthy oatmeal breakfast bar recipe.
- Nut butter: Our favorite to use is natural, smooth unsalted peanut butter, but feel free to use any nut butter. Almond butter, cashew butter, or nut butter blends like NuttZo would be great alternatives. Or, if you are nut-free, use your favorite seed butter.
- Cinnamon and vanilla: These ingredients add flavor and sweetness without being overpowering. If desired, you can swap the cinnamon for a pumpkin pie spice blend or another extract, such as almond extract.
- Pumpkin seeds: These powerhouses are nutrient-dense and rich in antioxidants. If desired, you can replace these seeds with sunflower seeds, chopped almonds, chopped pecans, or hemp seeds.
- Dried cranberries (craisins): Add a touch of sweetness and an additional boost of nutrition. Suitable substitutes include raisins, golden raisins, dark chocolate chips, vegan white chocolate chips, etc.
Equipment Needed
- Food processor
- Parchment paper
- Small baking dish (we used a 6-cup Pyrex dish measuring 2x8x6 inches)
- Spatula
- Plastic wrap or reusable wrap
How to Make Healthy Breakfast Bars
- Process the dates and oats. Place the Medjool dates and rolled oats in a large cup food processor. Process on high until they are finely chopped and uniform.
- Add peanut butter, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Process again until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. You’ll know it’s ready when the mixture sticks together when pressed together between your fingers. If it is not sticking together, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until it reaches that consistency.
- Pulse in the pumpkin seeds and cranberries. Be careful not to over do it – pulse just enough times until the seeds and dried fruit are evenly incorporated.
- Transfer to a lined baking sheet. Pour the breakfast bars mixture into the prepared pan of choice and spread it into an even layer, pressing down as you go. We find this easiest to do using a wet spatula to prevent sticking.
- Chill overnight. Tightly cover the baking dish with plastic wrap or reusable wrap and refrigerate overnight, or for a minimum of 2 hours.
- Cut into bars. Using the parchment paper, lift the breakfast bars from the dish and cut into 8 protein bars or squares. Enjoy!
Storage Instructions
These breakfast bars will store best in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 2 months. When storing, it can be helpful to place a sheet of parchment paper between layers of bars to prevent sticking.
If frozen, transfer the bars to thaw them in the refrigerator or at room temperature until softened, then enjoy as usual.
Recipe FAQs
If you use gluten-free certified rolled oats, these breakfast bars are gluten-free. Oats are naturally gluten-free in and of themselves but are often cross-contaminated with glutinous grains such as wheat. If you are gluten-intolerant or making these bars for a gluten-free friend, it is important to purchase oats with a gluten-free certification.
These gluten-free bars are packed with wholesome ingredients that will help keep you full until lunch. They contain healthy fats, high-fiber dates, whole-grain oats, and plant-based protein, making them a great snack and the best breakfast bars for busy mornings.
The best way to make sure your bars are the right consistency is to use runny nut nutter and soft, ripe Medjool dates. If either of these ingredients are hard and dry, it will be difficult to make them moist and sticky.
More Healthy Breakfast Recipes You May Enjoy:
- Blender Oatmeal Pancakes – made with just a handful of protein-packed, whole-food ingredients.
- Oatmeal Breakfast Bars (Gluten-free + 9-Ingredients) – if you love these healthy breakfast bars, you’ll love this oatmeal twist!
- Pumpkin Spice Moringa Energy Bars (Easy & Gluten-free) – more energy bars loaded with nutrient-dense ingredients.
- Vegan Carrot Cake Granola Bars w/ Cream Cheese Frosting {gluten & oil-free} – a healthy, naturally-sweetened spin on carrot cake.
- Gluten-Free Lemon Poppyseed Breakfast Cookies (10-Ingredients + 1-Bowl) – if you’re interested in protein-packed breakfast cookies, you’ll love these bright, spring cookies!
Make sure you tag us on Instagram @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris and hashtag #sweetsimplevegan if you recreate any of our recipes, we love to see your photos!
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Healthy Breakfast Bars Recipe
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 bars
Description
These healthy breakfast bars are the ultimate meal prep for a quick breakfast or healthy snack the whole family will love! They’re filled with creamy peanut butter, rolled oats, pumpkin seeds and dried fruit. Make them on Sunday, pop them in the fridge and enjoy all week long.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (350g) pitted medjool dates* (see notes)
- 2/3 cup (71g) organic gluten-free rolled oats
- 1/2 cup smooth unsalted peanut butter* (see notes)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt* (see notes)
- 1/4 cup (32g) pumpkin seeds
- 2 heaping tablespoons (24g) dried cranberries
Instructions
- Line a small baking dish with parchment paper. We used a 6 cup Pyrex dish measuring 2 x 8 x 6 inches
- To a food processor, add in the dates and oats. Process on high until finely chopped and uniform.
- Add in the peanut butter, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Process until well combined, scraping down the sides if needed. You’ll know it’s ready when the dough sticks together when pressed between your thumb and pointer finger. If the dough does not, blend 1 tablespoon of water in at a time until it reaches that consistency.
- Lastly, add in the pumpkin seeds and cranberries and pulse them into the mixture just until incorporated.
- Pour the mixture into the lined baking dish and spread it out evenly into the dish, pressing it down while doing so. We suggest using a wet spatula to do this to prevent sticking.
- Cover the dish and place it into the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
- Remove from the dish and cut into bars or squares. We cut ours into 8 bars.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for a week.
Notes
- If your dates are not soft, soak them in warm water for 10 minutes, Drain before using.
- If you are using salted peanut butter, you can omit the additional 1/4 teaspoon of salt in the recipe.
- If you happen to be allergic to peanuts, you can always sub the peanut butter for almond butter or cashew butter. If you are allergic to nuts altogether, you can always sub the nut butter for sunflower seed butter.
- Feel free to sub out the seeds and dried fruit according your taste preferences, but this is our favorite way to make them.
- Prep Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Category: Breakfast, Fall
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: Vegan, Gluten-free
Nutrition facts label provided by Nutri Fox.
Disclaimer: The nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional’s advice. This page may contain affiliate links, which simply means that we earn a commission if you purchase through those links, but your price remains the same. Thank you for supporting Sweet Simple Vegan!
Really like these bars as an on the go breakfast. So easy to make. Easy to store and have it ready to go so that in the morning they can be grabbed quickly as our family heads out the door. All the ingredients are things our family likes to eat and I love how easy it is to swap out various ones to change it up a bit.
Absolutely scrumptious girl. I make a big batch of these 2 times a week. I live off of them. Yum.
These are so good! I have been making them every week since first trying them.