Oatmeal Bars Recipe inspired by Nature Valley’s soft baked bars, but even better homemade with a thick, chewy texture and rich peanut butter flavor.
author’s note
Homemade Oatmeal Bars That Beat the Box!
When I road tripped to California (DISNEY!!!) with my family a few years back, I grabbed a stash of snacks for the drive. One of them was Nature Valley’s® Peanut Butter Oatmeal Squares.
I’m usually a traditional granola bar girl, but I was instantly hooked on how soft these were and how strong the peanut butter flavor was. I also couldn’t help thinking I could make them even better at home. Or at least with better ingredients 🙂.
After a little testing, I finally got it right, and honestly, I’m way more excited than I probably should be about this recipe. These bars turned out so much better than anything from the store.
I’m truly obsessed. Like best breakfast bar I’ve ever had and I don’t say that lightly. They’re soft, chewy, and taste like a cross between a peanut butter cookies and oatmeal, but they’re made with minimal refined sugar, no flour, and plenty of peanut butter to keep them filling with a boost of protein.
Oatmeal Bars Recipe Ingredients
| Ingredient Group | Helpful Tip |
|---|---|
| Peanut Butter | Use creamy peanut butter for the smoothest texture and best binding. Avoid no-stir peanut butters since they can be inconsistent in baking. |
| Sweeteners | Honey adds chew and moisture while brown sugar boosts that classic soft baked flavor. |
| Oats and Oat Flour | Old fashioned oats give structure while oat flour keeps the bars tender. Measure oat flour after blending up the whole oats. |
| Egg and Vanilla | These help bind the bars and add richness. Make sure the egg is at room temp for easier mixing. |
| Peanut Butter Chips | This Oatmeal Bars recipe is easy to switch up by using semi sweet, milk, or dark chocolate chips instead. |
Featured Comment
“These are so good! My family loves them and they never last in our house. Definitely recommend!”
– Lu
How To Make This Oatmeal Bars Recipe
- Prep pan: Heat oven to 325°F and line a pan with parchment, leaving an overhang.
- Mix batter: Beat until smooth, then gently fold in the chips.
- Bake: Spread evenly and bake until edges are lightly golden and the center is set.
- Cool: Let bars cool completely in the pan so they fully set.
- Slice: Lift out using the parchment and cut into bars.
The BEST Baking Pan!
My Favorite Pan
I swear by this 8 x 8-inch pan when baking. It’s made from heavy aluminized steel, which means heat spreads quickly and consistently so you don’t get burnt edges or underbaked centers. The corrugated bottom helps with airflow and release, so bars lift out clean and bake with the perfect texture.
Storage
Let bars cool completely, then wrap each bar individually in plastic wrap. Store at room temperature for 2 to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week.
More Easy Snack Recipes:
Oatmeal Bars
Video
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (like Skippy)
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup oat flour (blended oats) see note 2
- 1 cup peanut butter baking chips
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter optional
Instructions
- Heat oven to 325°F and line an 8 x 8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.
- Add all ingredients except the peanut butter chips to a large bowl. Beat with a hand mixer until smooth, then gently fold in the chips with a spatula.
- Spread batter evenly in the pan and bake for 18 to 25 minutes until the edges are lightly golden and the center is set with very little jiggle.
- Remove bars from the oven and let cool completely in the pan so they fully set.
- Optional: For extra peanut butter flavor, place 1/4 cup peanut butter in a small resealable bag, snip a small corner, and drizzle over the bars.
- Lift out using the parchment and cut into 16 bars with a sharp knife.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I had a holiday in the USA a few weeks ago and I done it on the cheap by shopping in walmart instead of always eating out. I bought the nature valley bars and they are divine. They are my favourite of all the breakfast bars I have ever had. However, we don’t have them here. So I’m so glad i came across this cause I’m going to make this at the weekend. We don’t have peanut butter chips either 🙁 so i might use chocolate chips instead.
I’m so happy you found this recipe then!! I hope you love them 🙂
Hi,
These look so delicious. Do u have any nutritional information for them (like…calories, fiber, protein etc.)?
Thanks!
Made these for my husband who loves the Nature Valley bars. He loved them! Thanks for giving me a recipe to cut out processed ingredients.
Awesome!! That is so great to hear! Thank you for the comment Alicia! 🙂
Hi Chelsea
So, I love to bake….but I always have problems with the outcome…
I posted earlier that I was going to use Wow Butter instead of peanut butter. (Also used Choc. chips) Aside from that, I followed the recipe to a T. They smelled wonderful. However, they came out so crumbly and dry, they won’t even stay in the squares that I cut, they just fall apart into crumbs 🙁
Everyone said how great they are, so clearly it’s me…I just wish I knew what. ….
Any thoughts?
It may be the Wow butter if you’ve tried everything else; I’m not sure what else could make them crumbly 🙁 I’ve made these many, many times and never had them crumble, but I’ve also always used regular peanut butter, so that’s all I can think that would have changed it? I wish I could be of more help Shelley!!
Hi! This recipe sounds awesome!! I have a question, besides the fact that they wouldn’t be quite as healthy for me, could I make these using regular flour and not whole wheat flour?? I have everything in the house but the whole wheat flour and really don’t want to make an extra trip to the store just for flour! Thank you!!
Yes that is totally fine! 🙂
Do you have a calorie/carb count on this?
Hi Chelsea,
I would love to make these for my daughter for breakfast. She doesn’t feel comfortable eating PB just before school, as many kids at school have allergies. Have you ever tried this with a PB substitute , such as Pea butter or Wow butter?
I would love to hear what you think?
I haven’t ever tried a substitute for peanut butter and one person that did try Wow Butter didn’t have great results, so I’m not sure if I would recommend a substitute for these. I wish I could say for sure if I knew what would work, but I don’t unfortunately.
How do you think they would turn out if I substituted banana for peanut butter?
I actually don’t think that would work for these bars unfortunately.
Thank you so much for posting this. These are my absolute favorite bars and this was spot on and DELICIOUS!!! Although i didn’t add the peanut chips and I changed the amount of honey.
Five stars!
I’m soooo excited I found this pin and recipe!! My son eats a NV square every morning and it is my daily dose of guilt. Just kidding, I’m not that dramatic. I had them for me when he was a baby for a quick snack, then it turned into him trying them, then now at 2 years old he eats one while we get ready for work. I’m excited to try this. Mostly for the better ingredients for my son, but also because those squares are pricey and sometimes the quality is weird. Like sometimes they are soft, sometimes they are hard…yuck! Thank you!!
Dear Chelse,
I baked a batch of these this morning (actually around 3am) by 9 am they were GONE!!! I am right now busy making 4 more batches for neighbors and myself plus typing up your recipe to give to them.”WARNING” Ladies these are so beyond good that they ought to be illegal cause I could NOT stop eating them.These have got to be by far the “BEST” oatmeal bars (the copy-cat soft ones) EVER!!! A part of me wishes I never found you and your recipe but I can’t help but Thank you and wanna jump through the internet and hug you for sharing this out-of-this-world-GREAT recipe. Lord help I can’t quit eating them they are just that GOOD no no nonot just GOOD……..YUMMY-LISHOUS.
Thank you from the bottom of my southern Texas heart.Now I gotta go find a rehab that will cure an oatmeal bar addiction.
Again Thank for sharing
Dianne M.
San Antonio, TX