Dried-Fruit-and-Nut Oat Bars (With Video)

Prep Time:

30 mins

Cook Time:

30 mins

Total Time:

1 hr

Servings:

16

Our recipe for oat bars with dried-fruit-and-nut produces a nutrient-dense snack that's filled with flavor and crunch. Ground oats or quinoa flakes help form the base, which gets an added nourishing boost from oat bran, ground flax, and wheat germ. We love the flavor of dried papaya, cherries, and blueberries combined with pecans and macadamia nuts, but you can swap in your favorite nuts and dried fruits, just be sure to keep the amounts roughly the same. To help bind the mixture, use a blend of pureed dates and honey, which adds just the right amount of sweetness while keeping these healthy bars free of any refined sugars.

Equipment for Fruit-and-Nut Oat Bars

Food processor: A food processor is really useful for grinding the oats into flour and the nuts into a finely chopped mixture, as well as pureeing the softened dates. If you don't have one, you can swap in store-bought oat flour or quinoa flakes and use a knife to finely chop the nuts; meanwhile, a blender will work just as well for pureeing the dates.

Baking pan: Use an eight-inch baking pan to pat the mixture into a square shape. Coating it with cooking spray and lining it with parchment paper makes it extra easy to lift the bars out after baking.

Serrated knife: We've found that a sharp, serrated knife is the best tool for slicing the baked oat mixture into 16 small squares with nice, clean edges.

To make these bars vegan, swap in brown-rice syrup for the honey.

Directions

Heat oven; simmer dates:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place dates in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to a simmer.
Drain dates, reserving water; puree:

Drain reserving cooking water. Puree dates in a food processor with honey and 1/4 cup reserved cooking water until smooth.
Prepare pan; combine dry ingredients:

Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray and line with parchment paper leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides. Mix oats or quinoa flakes, nuts, papaya, cherries, blueberries, bran, flaxseed, wheat germ, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
Mix in date puree; press into pan:

Mix in date puree. The mixture should be moist enough to hold together. If necessary, add up to 1/2 cup more cooking water. Press mixture into pan.
Bake; let cool, then cut into bars:

Bake until center is firm and edges are golden, about 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 16 bars.

Storage

Cooled and cut bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to four to five days. For longer storage, keep them in the refrigerator for up to one week or in the freezer for up to one month.