These strawberry oatmeal bars are vegan, gluten-free, & refined sugar-free! They are the perfect spring or summer treat filled with fresh, juicy strawberries & delicious rolled oats!
Gluten-free & vegan Strawberry Oatmeal Bars
These strawberry oatmeal bars are the perfect spring or summer treat. They are made with real, nourishing & wholesome ingredients. They are naturally sweetened from the strawberries, a bit of coconut sugar & some honey!
Remember to get certified gluten-free rolled oats & flour to make these gluten-free. If gluten isn’t a concern for you this recipe should also work with regular rolled oats & flour!
I tested the oat layer with a flax egg (I share in the recipe) & a regular egg. Both turned out great & will work well in this recipe. If you are vegan opt for the flax (or chia) egg. If using flaxseeds you will need them to be ground in order to ‘gel’ & form into the right texture for the bars!
Can I make them lower in sugar?
If you want to make them lower in sugar I have an alternative I can recommend. I can’t say for sure how any substitutions will work as I haven’t tried any yet. If you do try any please let me know how they work out & I will also update this blog post when I try any for myself!
As I am sure you know by now, Lakanto is my go-to for lower sugar baking. I even made an eCookbook including it as my main sweetener of choice for most of the recipes! So if I was going to swap out the coconut sugar for something that won’t spike blood sugar I would use this.
Ingredients you will need for these strawberry oatmeal bars:
Strawberry Layer
- Strawberries, fresh or frozen
- Lemon juice
- Honey
- Ground flax (or ground chia seeds)
Oatmeal Layer
- Coconut oil, softened (or butter)
- Coconut sugar (or granulated sweetener of choice)
- Ground flaxseeds (or 1 egg)
- Vanilla extract
- Baking soda
- Pink salt
- Cinnamon
- Gluten-free rolled oats
- Gluten-free flour (this is my favourite one)
How to store these bars
I recommend storing these bars in an air-sealed container in the fridge. I did leave one on the counter to test it & see if the middle would soften. It softened slightly but not too much, however, I do think they are best stored in the fridge!
Note: after a couple days in the fridge they started to get ‘mushy’ so for this reason I would recommend enjoying them as soon as possible. They were still great warmed up with ice cream after they started to get a little extra soft.
Can I freeze these bars?
I haven’t personally tried freezing them & due to the nature of the filling I think the texture could be affected. However, I don’t see why they couldn’t be stored in the freezer & then re-heated as desired. Just keep in mind I do think they are best when enjoyed fresh!
Can I serve them warm?
You can, but keep in mind the middle will soften a lot & they can get messy. If you want to enjoy one warm I recommend putting it into a bowl & eating with a spoon or a fork like you would a crisp. I would also recommend topping it with a bit of vanilla ice cream, so delicious!
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Strawberry Oatmeal Bars
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: overnight
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: dessert
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
These strawberry oatmeal bars are vegan, gluten-free, & refined sugar-free! They are the perfect spring or summer treat filled with fresh, juicy strawberries & delicious rolled oats!
Ingredients
Strawberry Layer
- 2 cups strawberries, fresh or frozen
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp ground flax (or ground chia seeds)
Oatmeal Layer
- 1/3 cup coconut oil, softened (or butter)
- 2/3 cup coconut sugar (or granulated sweetener of choice)
- 2 tbsp ground flaxseeds (or chia seeds) + 3 tbsp water (or 1 egg)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp pink salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 + 1/4 cup gluten-free rolled oats
- 3/4 cup gluten-free flour (this is my favourite one)
Instructions
Strawberry Layer
- For the strawberry layer, add the frozen strawberries, lemon juice & honey to a medium sized pot over low heat.
- Stir the mixture using a spatula regularly to prevent burning & pressing the strawberries as they become soft.
- Once the strawberries have softened, continue to simmer for about 5 minutes on low heat. Check it regularly & stir often to prevent it from burning to the pot.
- Remove from the stovetop & add the ground flax.
- Let cool slightly while you make the oatmeal bars.
Oatmeal Bars
- For the oatmeal bars, start by making your flax or chia egg. In a small bowl add the ground flax or chia seeds & the water. Allow it to sit & thicken for 5-10 minutes.
- Next, in a separate bowl, add the coconut oil & coconut sugar together. Add the rest of the ingredients adding the egg last, until well incorporated.
- Take 2/3 of the oatmeal mixture & press firmly into a parchment paper lined square baking dish. Save the remaining 1/3 for the top of the strawberry layer.
- Evenly pour the strawberry layer over the bottom oatmeal layer.
- Add the leftover oatmeal pieces to the top of the strawberry layer, in little pieces evenly over the top.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, until the top is golden brown.
- Remove & let cool completely.
- Place the bars in the fridge for 8+ hours or overnight to firm up (you can enjoy the right away but the middle will not be fully set).
- Slice into bars, top with melted coconut butter if desired & enjoy!*
Notes
*I keep them stored in the fridge in an air-sealed container.
**Note: after a couple days in the fridge they started to get ‘mushy’ so for this reason I would recommend enjoying them as soon as possible. They were still great warmed up with ice cream after they started to get a little extra soft.
Keywords: vegan, gluten free, strawberry, oat bars, oatmeal
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I love this recipe, it’s so fresh and delicious, and really not hard to make. I used a 7×11 inch baking dish vs the square baking dish Lauren mentions and still works perfectly.
★★★★★