Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
Published January 28, 2025
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 40 minutes
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
1 cup/240 milliliters plain whole-milk yogurt
¾ cup/165 grams packed brown sugar
½ cup/120 milliliters unsweetened applesauce
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1¾ cups/161 grams cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup/128 grams all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
Nutritional analysis per serving
25 grams carbs; 25 milligrams cholesterol; 146 calories; 2 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 4 grams fat; 2 grams fiber; 141 milligrams sodium; 4 grams protein; 12 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two opposite sides.
- Step 2
In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, brown sugar, applesauce, eggs, oil and vanilla. Add the oats, flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Fold by dragging a large flexible spatula under and over the mixture, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as you go, until no dry streaks are visible. Transfer batter to the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 27 to 30 minutes.
- Step 3
Transfer to a rack to fully cool. Once cool, using a paring knife, separate the two edges without parchment from the pan. Then using the parchment overhang, lift out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 16 pieces with a serrated knife.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. To reheat, wrap in foil (no need to thaw if frozen) and bake at 325 degrees until warm, about 10 minutes (longer if frozen).
Private Notes
Comments
If you soak the old-fashioned oats in the yogurt and applesauce overnight, they work too.
If you have rolled oats, you can blitz them in a food processor or blender to create quick cooking oats.
Just like granola, these make it easy to sub in other spices, add nuts or seeds, throw in some coconut, etc. As for the many comments on the sugar content and the fact that these bars are “just cake”: pretty much 100% of muffins are actually “just cake,” dressed down. So too are many types of banana bread, zucchini bread, and many other things some people choose to routinely eat for breakfast. If that’s not what you want for breakfast, maybe don’t eat it.
@Juan Jose I did. it turned out great!
Like a lot of others mentioned, this is more like a quick bread than oatmeal bars. I used bobs red mill 1-1 gluten free flour, and rolled oats that I soaked in the yogurt overnight and it took 1 hour to cook. I wanted these to freeze for a quick postpartum snack but I'm not sure they really fit the bill. I'll still eat it but it's kind of like a bland banana bread.
These are wonderful! Keying off others' suggestions, I toasted old-fashioned oats, mixed them with the yogurt, and let the mix sit for about an hour. Add-ins: 1 cup rough-chopped pecans, 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, 1/2 cup rough-diced prunes. Baked in a 9x9 pan for 43-45 minutes. Warm from the oven or at room temp, they disappeared, even well after breakfast.