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I've got a new recipe for you today that's technically part of my baking series. But no one will mind if you don't actually have to bake them in the oven, will they? My girls seriously love them so much that they dance around the kitchen when they see me making them. :)
And I love it when I have a batch of these bars on hand because then I am prepared with yummy, filling snacks when I hear the inevitable, "I'm hungry..." These bars would also be a great way to supplement a lunch or even have as a quick breakfast with a side of fruit. I think the moral of the story is that it's hard to go wrong with this recipe, so I hope you and your family enjoy them just as much as we do! Try these Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats or these No Bake Samoa Cookies too!
No-Bake Peanut Butter Oat Bars
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups peanut butter (could sub sunflower seed or almond butter for those with allergies)
- 6 tablespoons pure maple syrup (can sub honey)
- 1 cup oats (purchase "gluten-free" oats for those with allergies)
- 1 cup puffed rice cereal (Arrowhead Mills is a good option or you can sub more oats)
Instructions
- Line an 8 x 8 inch square baking dish with wax or parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together the peanut butter and maple syrup until it's mixed together thoroughly.
- Pour in the oats and cereal and stir with a rubber spatula until well combined.
- Spread the bar mixture into one even layer in the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate for at least one hour. Cut and serve or store in the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition Facts
Selena C says
I love this recipe! So simple yet delicious! I substituted the peanut butter for homemade cashew butter (my husband has peanut allergies) and the bars barely lasted the afternoon! Thank you for sharing this with us.
Denise says
These are sooo good! Great crunch! Not too much peanut butter for my family:) They were gone within a few days. Making more now....thank you!
Carla says
I made these and they were good, but I also thought it was way too much peanut butter. Either add more cereal and/or oats or reduce the peanut butter to a cup. I also found them to be crumbly.
Kelly B says
I made these yesterday and they are absolutely delicious. We enjoyed them this morning with our green breakfast smoothies (also a recipe from this website), and we all loved them. I would go so far to say that I prefer them over sugar-laden peanut butter cookies -- they could totally pass as dessert. I made them as-is; I found Enjoy Life cereal at our local Whole Foods and for the peanut butter I used Adams crunchy and it worked great. I did not find them to be crumbly as others have reported. I used a spatula to spread out the mixture and made sure it was pressed very firmly into the pan. I chilled for about 4 hours before cutting and stored them in an air-tight container. This will definitely go into our grab-and-go breakfast rotation. Thank you!
Kristen says
Do you think you could sub the Maple Syrup for Honey? Have a sensitivity to maple so I'm trying to eliminate from my diet. These look soo good, I ordered my flax cereal this weekend can't wait to make them!
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi Kristen. Yes, we often use them interchangeably.
Melissa Moss says
Made these today and they did not disappoint. They came out a little bit crumbly, but I'm thinking it's the peanut butter I used (Teddy's). So glad I found this recipe and thank you for sharing it! They are so good!
Jill Page says
Hi - I love Lisa's recipes and usually have good luck. I've made these twice exactly as instructed and they do not hold together. As soon as I try to cut them into squares they crumble. Super frustrating as they are not inexpensive to make.
Mary F. says
Try using a muffin tin so you don't have to cut.
Nicci says
I just made these as I found the crunch flax cereal today at big lots! We haven't tried them yet as they are chilling but it just seemed like way too much peanut butter compared to the 2 cups of cereal/oats. I think next time I would use only 1 cup peanut butter
Deb says
Would you adjust the amount of maple syrup if you were using conventional peanut butter (Skippy or Jiffy)?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Yes, you would since both already have a lot of added sugar.
Laura says
I have regular flax seeds. Would that be just as good? I didn't see the cereal when I was shopping last.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi Laura. Since flax seeds are so tiny, there would be a pretty big difference in volume. You could try nuts or a different whole grain cereal.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hello. Lisa just updated this recipe. See above and here is the link to the new cereal: http://amzn.to/2ims1kW.
Elizabeth B says
This sounds so good. How sweet would you say they are? We don't really do much sugar here. Also, what do you think adding mashed banana to this? I don't know why but I love bananas in almost everything and would like to know what you think.
Thank you!
Elizabeth B
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. The maple syrup makes them sweet and the banana would make them sweeter. :)
Danielle says
This looks delicious! You mention in the blog post honey and raisin juice concentrate. I don't see those in the recipe.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. Those are ingredients in the cereal.
Sheila Blair says
Thank you so much for introducing new whole foods but keeping it real!
So many people are cooking with highly specialized food now and it's discouraging for eating healthy to mean I must have high priced ingredients shipped in for every day cooking. I keep coming back to your site and cookbook because I can find what I need for your recipes at my local grocery. And, your recipes are healthy and delicious!
Jessie says
What kind of peanut butter do you like to have on hand? I'm just starting out the cleaning eating and trying to find a good peanut butter, as I love peanut butter but know that JIF is a no no for this lifestyle change.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
We look for organic peanut butter that has peanuts as the only ingredient (maybe salt).
Dixie says
how many calories. what is the nutritional value?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. Sorry but we do not provide nutrition details. This post will help you understand why: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/01/04/healthy-eating-defined/.
Vane says
Do the oats need to be cooked? I'm I missing a step?
Thanks!
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Nope, these are no bake. :) Give it a try!
Leslie says
Thank you for using Enjoy Life products in your recipe! My son has multiple food allergies and there company makes a lot of great products that are safe for people with food allergies. I will be whipping up a batch of these.
Gill says
We can I substitute for oats?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
While I don't no exactly how to sub in this recipe. If you do a google search for no-bake gluten free cookies, you might find a recipe that you like. I know some use puffed-rice cereal.
MIchelle says
What brand and kind (old fashioned, quick cooking, etc) of oats did you use? Thank you.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
You can use any brand. I like Bob's Red Mill or Trader Joe's.
Elaine @Flavour and Savour says
So easy! These sound fabulous. I know my "littles" would love these. Thanks!
Cindy says
Do you think that grape nuts would be a good cereal to try in this recipe?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. I'm sure they would work.
Jamie says
How long do you think these will last in the fridge?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
They should be good for up to a week.
Sasha says
These sound amazing and so simple. Could they be frozen? I like to make big batches to use later. My kids always beg to eat a whole batch if they are just in our fridge :)
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Sure, you can freeze them!
Ally @OmNomAlly says
I definitely don't mind that these aren't baked - it means there is significantly less time between prep and eating! The crunchy flax cereal looks delicious too :) do you think I could use buckwheat kernels as a substitute?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. That's not something we've tried.
Naomi says
Did you use quick oats in this recipe?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi Naomi. You could but I use regular rolled oats.
rakhi says
@Admin
I have another formula for you today that is in fact a piece of my preparing arrangement. Be that as it may, nobody will mind on the off chance that you don't really need to prepare them in the stove, will they?
regards
rakhi
Emily f says
Just made these taste great! Thanks for the recipe. Love that cereal too
Courtney says
What type of peanut butter are you using? When I try to bake with natural peanut butter it never sets up.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. We use organic peanut butter with no added ingredients; just nuts and a little salt. These are not baked.
Melissa Brown says
Yum! I love peanut butter and these look great. It is nice to give the kids a wholesome snack with so little ingredients.
Thanks for sharing!
Bethany @ Athletic Avocado says
Mmmm these look like the perfect afternoon pick-me-up snack! Peanut butter and crunch is what I need at 4 pm!
Joani says
Great recipe! My local grocery outlet actually had this exact cereal for just 1.49 a box!! I didn't have maple syrup, so I substituted honey and actually cut that in half bc I don't like too much sweetness. Whipped them up this morning and added a few mini chocolate chips pressed into the top. My boyfriend actually moaned with happiness when he tried them! Great recipe!
Linda says
Outstanding! And a good "base" recipe. I didn't have the cereal on hand so I used chopped pecans. Oh my it was good. Now I'm thinking of other combinations. Thank you!
Aileen says
I love a good no bake bar - you have to save time where you can when sticking to a real good lifestyle!
Sue says
I have all of these ingredients on hand (we are GFCF) What a good way to use up the 3 boxes of this cereal I bought my boys don't care for it. Do you think you could add chocolate chips to it somehow? My kids probably won't eat them otherwise!
Joani says
I added chocolate chips to mine! All I did was press some on top after I had placed them into the pan :)
Sue says
Yes, the chocolate chips are definitely needed, otherwise too peanuty buttery for us. Mine crumbled when I cut them, is this normal? I followed the directions exactly. Almost like they are too dry.
Joani says
Really? Mine were almost too wet!
Sue says
Hmmm what am I doing wrong. I used Skippy peanut butter. I measured everything to, whereas I usually "eye" it in these types of recipes. Maybe add more syrup?
Lindsay says
Would love to try to make these with PB2! Thanks for posting.
Angela says
Love this! Where do you buy this cereal locally (Charlotte?)
Stephanie says
There is a store locator on the product website - looks like Whole Foods, HT and Bilo's all carry this cereal :-)
Emma {Emma's Little Kitchen} says
I really do adore your recipes Lisa- simple, to the point, and damn tasty!! Do you think puffed brown rice might work with these? I have a bag languishing in my pantry...
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi Emma. Yep, it should work well.
Rachel F. says
I can't wait to try these. Thank you for posting a recipe that caters to people with allergies.
Nicole says
Can you buy this cereal in stores, or is it only sold on their website?
Taryn says
If you go to the company's website they have a store locator for their products. You choose the product and they give you a list of stores close by. Many stores around me carry them!
Lisa says
We've seen it at Target too!
Muriah says
Does it matter what kind of oats you use? Quick, rolled, etc?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
I've used both for no-bakes but prefer the texture that results from rolled oats.