Gluten Free Vegan Breakfast Bars Recipe
I am a big fan of bars; not the kind you belly up to, the kind you eat. I am especially fond of bars for breakfast. There is many a day that I need something I can just grab and go. If I spend a little time in the kitchen on a lazy Sunday, it makes the rest of my week start off a lot quicker.
These particular breakfast bars are a little naughty and a lot nice. Nice because they are packed full of gluten free oats, heart-healthy nuts and seeds, freeze dried fruit, and coconut milk. They are gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, and vegan. The naughty comes from the addition of some dark chocolate; but just a little naughty since there are some major health benefits to eating just a bit of dark chocolate (not to mention some major taste benefits)!
This is a versatile recipe you can change up to suit your own preferences; I added sliced almonds, roasted pumpkin seeds, freeze dried berries, and,of course, some dark chocolate chips. I sweetened it up with agave but you can also use maple syrup. Nut free? Just add more seeds instead. Don’t want the chocolate? Leave it out. Prefer freeze dried mangos or pineapple? Feel free to change it up!
The trick to these bars is grease up your baking pan well, really press that mixture into the pan, and bake them for an hour at a low temperature. It also helps to let the bars cool completely in the pan before removing them. They stay together better that way.
These are a tasty way to start your day and for some even better news, they just seem to keep getting better and better after they bake so you can make up a batch and eat them all week.
Gluten Free Vegan Breakfast Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- Oil or gluten free non-stick cooking spray
- 2 ½ cups certified gluten free rolled oats
- 1 cup sliced almonds
- 1 cup roasted seeds such as pumpkin or sunflower
- 2 ounces freeze dried fruit
- 1 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
- 6 ounces dark chocolate chunks or chips
- ½ teaspoon kosher or fine sea salt
- 1 (13.5 ounce) can full fat coconut milk
- 1/3 cup agave nectar or maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons tapioca or corn starch
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Heavily grease a 9 by 12 inch baking pan with oil or cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, almonds, seeds, freeze dried fruit, coconut, and chocolate. In a small bowl whisk together the coconut milk with the agave or maple syrup, and starch. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. Spread the mixture into the prepared pan and press down firmly and evenly.
- Bake for 1 hour. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the dish and cut into 12 two inch by 4 ½ inch bars. Let cool completely in the pan before removing the bars.
- Store in an airtight container or food storage bag at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Nutrition
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These look amazing. I love making bars like this, ironically I posted a similar recipe myself today, mine were pumpkin spice flavored. I love the idea of adding coconut milk, I’ll have to try that.
Yum, pumpkin spice saounds delish! I will pop over and take a look.
These look delish Carol! I love a breakfast bar, especially with chocolate :) And all things naughty and nice too of course!
Well, we need a little naughty with the nice, no?
These look so good and yay I have all the ingredients, can’t wait to try!
Yay! Enjoy.
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Thanks for sharing this recipe, Carol. I have celiac disease, and I have read mixed things about whether it’s safe for celiacs to eat gf oats, so I don’t eat them to be on the safe side. Any suggestions for an ingredient that would work well?
Hi Jen. I would try another one of my recipes for bars that don’t call for oats – here is one that should work – http://glutenfreeandmore.com/blog/2012/05/gluten-free-nut-free-cereal-squares-recipe.html
What is really surprising is there are more gluten intolerant individuals in developed countries where wheat is the staple food ; but not much in developing nations where rice and other cereals are the source of carbohydrate sustenance..In these places these people many of which are destitute eat bread and other wheat based goods seldom experience allergic reaction… Therefore could we say that this gluten intolerance and related food allergy is more the effect of pampered eating habits that people from progressive countries are brought up.
Hi! I’ve been browsing your recipes and this one is very appealing. Unfortunately, coconut milk (and regular cream) don’t agree with me — is there something else that could be substituted for it in this recipe?
Thanks!
You could sub any other type of dairy free milk for the coconut milk; rice, soy, hemp, almond… Good luck and enjoy!
Hi, I made these bars last night and they never hardened. I tried cutting them into squares and they just crumbled apart. Any advice?
Thanks!
HI Jennifer, the trick to these is to press down really firmly into the pan and then let them cool completely in the pan before cutting them. Not sure how firmly you pressed them in but I mean REALLY FIRMLY. Hope that helps.
I made these last week. They were delicious. I wasn’t sure what type of chocolate I was supposed to use so I threw in a cup of dark chocolate chips that were already sweetened. I reduced the amount of agave to 1/4 cup which was fine because the chocolate adds plenty of sweet. I lined a 9×13 glass dish with parchment paper and pressed the mixture down as best I could. They came out perfect. Recipe says it makes 12 bars but I got double that. These were perfect to send to school with my daughter so she could have something nutritious before finals that was portable and easy to eat on the fly. I had the last piece exactly one week after making them and it was still good but obviously at the end of its shelf life. I will be making these often this summer so my daughter can take them to camp. Thanks for sharing this healthy, nutritious and delicious recipe!
Hi Linda, thanks for reporting back and I am so happy you enjoyed them as much as we do! Enjoy your summer!
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If I were going to omit the coconut, how much would I reduce the liquid by? (I plan to use almond milk instead, I am just not a coconut fan…) Thanks!!
Hi Heather,
Yes, I totally understand, I’m not huge on coconut either, funny enough!
What I would do is just eye it, and don’t let it get too liquidy. Start with 3/4 cup and work up from there.
Good luck! :)
xo,
Carol
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