These apple oatmeal bars are soft, chewy and studded with apple pieces. They are just 3 ingredients and don’t contain any flour, eggs, refined sugar, dairy, butter or oil. They can be enjoyed for snack, dessert or even breakfast.
A stack of four oatmeal bars

These apple oatmeal bars are full of apple flavor and a great way to use apples that are in season now. The bars also store well in the fridger or freezer for whenever you need a quick treat.

Ingredients

  • Apples
  • Quick Oats
  • Honey

You only need 3 ingredients to make these bars. If you like cozy fall spices, you can also add some cinnamon or apple pie spice. I’ve made them with and without, and they both taste good.

Apples: Apples are used two ways in these oatmeal bars. Some of the apples are cooked until soft and turned into applesauce. The rest are cut into small cubes. If you want to save time, you can also use store bought unsweetened applesauce and only have to cut some apples for the apple pieces inside the bars. You will want to use a sweet apple variety for this recipe, like Fuji, Envy or Honeycrisp.

Quick oats: Quick oats are oats that are smaller and thinner than regular rolled oats. You want to use quick oats for this recipe and not rolled oats because quick oats bind together better.

Honey: A little honey is added for flavor and sweeteness. You can leave out the honey if you are trying to keep these bars very low sugar, but I found the bars weren’t quite sweet enough on their own. Honey can be substituted with maple syrup.

How to Make Healthier Apple Oatmeal Bars

  • If you are making your own applesauce, peel, cut and cook the apples in simmering water until fork-tender. Then place into a blender and blend a few seconds until your apples turn into applesauce. Your applesauce should be thick and a little grainy, but without visible chunks of apples. You can also skip this step and use store bought applesauce.Applesauce in a glass mixing bowl
  • Add applesauce, honey and quick oats to a large mixing bowl and mix until completely combined. Then stir in finely chopped apples.
  • Transfer your mixture to your prepared baking pan, using a spatula to smooth and spread it evenly across.
  • Bake for about 35 minutes or until lightly golden on top. Let cool before cutting with a sharp knife.

Oatmeal bars with fresh apple chunks

Texture

These bars are soft, chewy and lightly sweet with little pieces of cooked apples throughout.

Expert Tips

  • If you like cinnamon and other fall spices in your apple desserts, you can add 1/2 tsp of cinnamon or 3/4 tsp apple pie spice to the mixture before baking.
  • The bars are very lightly sweetened. You can increase the honey amount if you prefer sweeter bars.
  • Make sure to use quick oats and not rolled oats. Quick oats bind together better so the bars will hold their form when you cut them.
  • To save time, you can use store bought applesauce instead of making homemade applesauce. If making homemade applesauce, you do want to blend until no visible apple chunks. If your applesauce is chunky, you won’t have enough liquid for your oats.

A bite taken from an apple oatmeal bar

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4.50 from 6 votes

3 Ingredient Healthier Apple Oatmeal Bars

These healthier apple oatmeal bars are full of apple flavor. They are just 3 ingredients and don't contain any flour, eggs, refined sugar, dairy, butter or oil.
Servings: 12 bars
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
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Ingredients

  • 356 g (about 3.25 cups) chopped peeled apples (about 1 inch cubes) + 70g (2/3 cup) finely chopped peeled apples (1/4 inch cubes), see note regarding substituting the 356 grams of apples with store bought applesauce
  • 2 tbsp (1 fl oz/30ml) honey, or more as needed to taste
  • 2 cups (175g) quick oats

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line an 8 inch by 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper leaving some overhang for easy removal later.
  • Add the 356 grams of large cubed apples into a pot filled with water. Bring to a simmer on the stove and cook the apples until they are fork tender. Drain and remove the cooked apples from the water and place into a blender.
  • Blend the apples for a few seconds until they reach an applesauce consistency. Your applesauce shoud be thick, grainy-like consistency but without visible chunks of apples. If you still have apple chunks, you won't have enough liquid for your oat mixture. You should have 1.5 cups of applesauce.
  • Transfer the applesauce to a large mixing bowl. Add in the honey and whisk until evenly combined. Add in the quick oats and mix until the oats are fully incorporated. Your mixture should be thick. Taste, and if needed, you can add a little more honey. If adding any cinnamon or spices, mix them in now. Stir in the finely chopped apple cubes until they are evenly mixed in.
  • Transfer the batter into your prepared baking pan. Use a spatula to evenly spread it across the pan and smooth the surface.
  • Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until the bars are lightly golden on the surface and cooked through. Let bars cool fully before removing them from the pan and cutting and serving. Store uneaten bars in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

Notes

  • Applesauce substitution note: To save time, you can use store bought unsweetened applesauce instead of cooking apples and blending them. You will need 1 1/2 cups of unsweetened applesauce for the recipe.
  • Make sure your finely cubed apples are no bigger than 1/4 inch thick. If they are too big, they will cause the bars to fall apart when you cut them.
  • If you like Fall spices you can add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon or 3/4 teaspoon apple pie spice to the mixture before baking.
  • You can add more honey to taste. You can also use maple syrup instead of honey.
  • If you have a kitchen scale, I recommend using it for weighing the apples as it is hard to get an accurate measurement for apples using cups.
  • I used Happy Belly Quick Oats* 
  • This product link is an affiliate link. This means I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
     
     
Serving: 1bar, Calories: 78kcal, Carbohydrates: 17g, Protein: 0.1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 0.2g, Sodium: 0.4mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 6g, NET CARBS: 15
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review below!