If you want to kickstart your baking adventure (or simply hate cleaning up after), then trust me, peanut butter banana oatmeal bars fit the bill! They’re tasty, ridiculously simple to make, and totally predictable – I mean, just hearing the name tells you exactly what flavors you’re in for.

These Are Not Your Basic, Average Oatmeal Bars

This recipe nails it with the sweet banana, nutty peanut butter, and decadent chocolate chips. Just a bite hits all the right notes, perfect for pretty much EVERY sweet tooth!
You’ve got room to play around, too. Want it sweeter? Just tweak how ripe your banana is, or toss in a bit more sugar or maple syrup. Heck, you can even mix it up with different types of nut butter for a change!
Best part? These babies are super simple to whip up, an awesome choice for quick breakfasts or afternoon snack attacks. Crazy weeknights will get a thousand times better with them, too!

5 Easy Steps To Make Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

Simple Ingredients

I’ve done a TON of testing with the peanut butter banana oatmeal bars over the years! Check out what I’ve found:

Bananas: To make 1 cup of mushy bananas, you’ll need 3 medium-sized ripe bananas. But if you crave pumpkin bars, feel free to use canned pumpkin puree instead!
Peanut Butter: Originally, I used about ⅓ cup, but I have bumped it up to half a cup (½) for an extra boost. You can pick any type of nut butter — homemade, natural, or even processed. It’s your call!
Sugar: I’m all about coconut sugar (preferably unrefined) for these bars. It gives them an AMAZING flavor! Brown sugar works, too, but I’d love to steer clear of any liquid sweeteners for this recipe. Thank you very much!
Applesauce: Unsweetened applesauce works great in my favor, but you can still use an egg/ flax egg alternative.
Milk: I often go with unsweetened almond milk for these banana peanut butter oatmeal bars, but honestly, any type of milk will do the trick!
Vanilla Extract + Cinnamon: These are our flavor boosters right here. Don’t ever skip them!
Oats: You can use quick or whole oats for these peanut butter banana bars. Personally, I like the texture that whole oats give but use quality gluten-free ones if you need to. Not an oatmeal fan? I got these no-bake chocolate peanut butter bars to give in to your craving!
Baking Powder: This guy helps the banana peanut butter bars puff up nicely.
Salt: Just a pinch to balance everything out.
Dark Chocolate Chips: Now, if you’re going vegan, consider leaving out the chocolate chips or swapping them for dairy-free ones. Or, if chocolate isn’t your thing, try natural peanut butter nuts, chips, or even raisins instead. It’s YOUR taste that matters!

Instructions

Step 1.

First, preheat the oven to 350°F (about 177°C). Grab a square pan (9×9”) and line it with parchment paper, leaving some overhang so you can easily lift out your bars later. Have you got it? Good.

Step 2.

Take a big bowl or use a stand mixer if you have one. Throw in some bananas and mash ’em up real good. Once they’re mushy-mushy, add the rest of the ingredients in order (check my recipe). Mix it all up at medium speed until you’ve got a thick but pourable batter. Easy peasy.

Step 3.

Next, pour or spoon that mixture into your prepared pan. Pop it in the oven and let it bake for 25 to 30 minutes. We want the center to set, but it might still look a bit soft. Don’t worry, that’s normal.

Step 4.

After baking, remove the pan from the heated oven and let it cool at room temperature (30 to 60 minutes). What’s next? Of course, stick the entire pan in your fridge for an hour until it’s completely chilled! Trust me, it makes cutting the bars a WHOLE lot easier.

Step 5.

When they’re finally cooled, use the parchment paper to lift these bars out of the pan. Those parchment paper might be a bit damp from soaking the bars’ excess moisture, but nothing serious.

Now comes the fun part — slicing into them! Sometimes, I like to drizzle some melty peanut butter on mine, but hey, that’s totally optional. Enjoy your homemade masterpiece!

Try oatmeal chocolate chip cookies or oatmeal raisin cookies yet? No? Then what are you waiting for? Let’s jump in!

Notes

1. Bananas are among the most important ingredients in these bars, and their ripeness (or lack thereof) DEFINITELY has a say in the final product!

Ripe bananas have a much higher concentration of natural sugars, so the bars will taste deliciously sweet without needing a lot of added sugar. Plus, they are softer and easier to mash, giving us a moister and way more flavorful bar.

So do not throw unripe bananas into the recipe, my friends. My tip is to look for bananas with plenty of brown spots on the peel; these are the sweetest and best for our baking adventure!

2. Whole oats are my all-time favorite, but as I said earlier, you can also use quick oats. Just note that their texture will not be the same; quick oats result in a denser bar since they have been rolled and chopped finer than whole oats.

3. Any type of nut butter, such as almond butter, cashew butter, or a mix, can work for these bars!

Just be sure to choose a nut butter that you like the taste of, as it will eventually become the MOST outstanding flavor. For example, almond butter tends to be a bit drier than peanut butter, so you may need to adjust the wet ingredients in your recipe by a teaspoon or two.

4. You can pop the cooled bars in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 10 days! This little tip helps them retain their moisture and fresh vibes.

For longer storage, consider freezing them for up to 2 months. Just remember to wrap the bars in plastic wrap or store them in a freezer-safe container to prevent freezer burn. Nothing too difficult!

FAQs

My Bars Turned Out Dry. What Went Wrong?

Either your bananas aren’t ripe enough, or you overmixed the batter. Make sure you follow EVERY step and note in the recipe!

Can I Make These Bars Vegan?

Yup. Just choose a nut butter made without honey or other animal products! You can also replace the applesauce with a chia seed (or flaxseed) egg or use dairy-free chocolate chips instead of regular ones. Options are truly endless!

Why Do My Oatmeal Bars Turn Out So Crumbly?

These banana peanut butter oat bars don’t need to bake long, you know? Leaving them in the oven for more than 30 minutes is exactly why they turn out so dry. ALWAYS keep a close eye on them during baking and take them out as soon as they are set!

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So easy for a scrumptious treat of the day, don’t you think? I can’t wait to see how yours turns out!