This peanut butter oatmeal protein bar recipe has become a weekly staple in our house of late. I am going to make a little confession – Hubby and I eat a lot of bars. They are a quick and efficient snack, and a way to keep going throughout the day. When I am on the road for work, I always pack a bag full of different bars – in case a meal is late or missed, or there are no healthy snack options around the hotel, I like to be prepared.

But let’s be real. Protein bars are 1) quite pricey (up to 3 dollars a bar is not uncommon!!!); and 2) not exactly “natural.” Although there are some pretty decent options available these days. But for a girl who strives to make as much of the food we eat from scratch as possible, and who also tries to minimize packaged, processed foods (even if they are “healthy”), protein bars don’t really fit the bill.

So I’ve been on the search for some tasty homemade healthy options that still meet the “quick and efficient” requirement. And could even be pack-able if necessary. Enter this peanut butter oatmeal protein bar recipe! These are:

Easy to make
Only use a few ingredients
Can be easily modified for your personal preference, or the ingredients you have on hand

If you’ve ever tried a GoMacro bar, these aren’t quiiiiite a true copycat, but they are similar in texture and flavor.

peanut butter oatmeal protein bar close up

Are these Cheaper than Store-bought Protein Bars?

I was also curious to do a price breakdown on this protein bar recipe. I usually get my hemp hearts, chia seeds, maple syrup, and peanut butter from Costco, which probably adds to the savings since those can tend to be pricey ingredients. Keeping that in mind, here’s the price break down for these homemade protein bars…

protein bar price calculations — Cost Calculation for Peanut Butter Oatmeal Energy Bars

Whoa!! 35 cents?!? I figured these would be cheaper than a store bought bar for sure, but this is a savings of $2.65 from any $3.00 bar you would buy, like our favorite GoMacro bars I mentioned earlier. If you were buying 10 of those a week… you would SAVE more than $25 dollars just by making these tasty, easy, simple, bars at home! That’s a win-win in my book! 🙂

Protein Bar Recipe Time!

Shall we get into this protein bar recipe? I hope you find these bars as tasty and satisfying as we do! And that you have some fun experimenting with different ingredients to find the flavor combination(s) that you like the best!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Protein Bars

Peanut butter oatmeal protein bars are quick, easy, and made from just a few ingredients!

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 5

Chilling Time: 1

Total Time: 1 15

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Servings: 12 bars

Calories: 194 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

1½ cups rolled old-fashioned oats
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup honey (or ¼ cup honey & ¼ cup maple syrup, see notes)
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp flax seeds
4 tbsp hemp hearts
½ - 1 tsp cinnamon (adjust amount by preference)
35 g protein powder (optional, see notes)
1 pinch salt

Instructions

If desired, blend 1/2 cup of the oatmeal into oat flour. Or, partially blend the full 1 ½ cups so that you have a mixture of course flour and some partial oat pieces.
Combine in a heat-proof bowl: oatmeal, oat flour, seeds, cinnamon, salt, and any additional ingredients. Mix to evenly distribute.
Combine the peanut butter, honey, and maple syrup (if using) in a saucepan (non-stick preferred).
Heat on medium heat, stirring often, until fully combined and runny enough to easily pour. This should take just a few minutes.
Pour peanut butter mixture over remaining ingredients, and stir to combine. It will become the consistency of a very thick cookie dough.
Transfer to a small cookie sheet and press out to desired shape/thickness. I recommend lining the cookie sheet with parchment paper, and also putting a piece of parchment on top of the bars so you can press them into shape without the bars sticking to your hands or utensil.
Place in fridge for at least 1 hour to cool before cutting into bars.
Store in a sealed bag or container in the fridge for up to 10 days.
If they are too chewy straight out of the fridge, let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before enjoying.

Notes

Other optional ingredient:

Protein powder
Walnuts or other nuts
Dried fruit (bananas, apples...)
Other spices like Chinese 5 spice, nutmeg, ginger
Chocolate chips. Save out to add on top - they will melt if mixed in with the rest of the ingredients! Sprinkle them on the bars after they are pressed into shape, and then gently press them into the top of the bars.

To add protein powder - mix in up to one scoop (35g) protein powder into the dry ingredients. See what you think of that taste/texture, and then adjust up or down in subsequent batches.

Nutrition information included in this recipe reflects 35g of protein powder included in the bars.

If you don't have seeds, don't worry! I add them because I like the nutrition content they bring. But you can leave them out, or add whatever you have instead (other seeds, chopped nuts, etc). I suspect these bars would be equally delicious with just sweetener, peanut butter, and oatmeal. And I'm guessing those are ingredients you probably already have in your pantry!

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Let's see it! Mention @cookcraftcultivate or tag #cookcraftcultivate!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Protein Bar Recipe

Are these Cheaper than Store-bought Protein Bars?

Protein Bar Recipe Time!