Healthier No Bake Oat Fudge Bar Recipe (Gluten Free, Egg Free)
This oat fudge bar recipe is a simple way to make a homemade treat in a few minutes of hands-on time without turning on the oven. With a soft oat base and crumble with a rich nut butter-chocolate layer, these bars come together quickly using pantry ingredients and a few easy steps. They’re naturally gluten free and egg free, making them a great option for snacks, desserts, and make ahead treats for a variety of diets.
✩ What readers are saying…
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made these over the last couple years- a dozen? more? They’re a staple now, especially when the days start to get hotter and I can’t fathom turning the oven on when in need of a chocolate fix. Thanks for this recipe- it’s amazing!” -Alyssa
I’m so excited to share these quick, easy, and DELICIOUS no-bake bars with you! I wanted something similar to the classic well-loved, less healthy version of no bake bars, those oatmeal fudge bars made with sweetened condensed milk (not that the milk is all that awful since it’s only two ingredients and I love to use it for no-churn chocolate chip ice cream as well as no-churn chocolate ice cream, but it is full of sugar…).
I found a recipe that used chocolate chips and nut butter for the filling and then I replaced heaps of brown sugar with just 1/3 cup of honey, reduced the fat by 1/4 cup, and added ground flax seed for additional omega-3s, leaving the sugar found in dark chocolate chips as the only additional sugar.
At just 136 calories per bar with 3 grams of protein and 2 grams of fiber, it’s a snack or easy dessert you can enjoy totally.
I’m also completely loving that these are super easy, don’t heat up the house when it’s warm (making them perfect for summer), and work as both a snack and a dessert!
Ingredient Notes
- Oats: Use whole rolled oats for this recipe.
- Butter: I love the flavor, but if you’re okay with coconut flavor you can use that and keep this vegan. I often use a combo of butter and coconut oil like I show above.
- Ground flax seed: This really ups the nutrition with omega-3 and fiber, but if you don’t have it you can use a half cup of ground up oats (the flour-like texture helps the crumble hold better).
- Honey or Maple Syrup: Either of these work in the recipe, but to keep it vegan, use the maple syrup.
- Natural nut butter: You can use any natural nut butter you’d like – peanut butter, almond, cashew, or even sunflower seed. Just make sure the ingredients are only the nut/seed and salt.
- Dark chocolate chips: I prefer 70% chocolate chips for this recipe, but you can use any chocolate chips you have (the sugar will just be more than in the recipe card nutrition).
No Bake Oat Fudge Bars Recipe
- Step 1: Prep an 8×8 inch pan with parchment for easy removal. Warm and combine all the ingredients except chocolate chips and nut butter in a saucepan.
- Step 2: Press part of the mixture in the bottom of the pan, set aside the rest.
- Step 3: Melt the chocolate chips and nut butter together in the microwave or over low heat on the stove.
- Step 4: Spread over oatmeal base and crumble remaining oat mixture over the top.
- Step 5: Refrigerate for a couple of hours before cutting.
So easy – they only take about 15 minutes to make! I like to put these together in the morning and then by afternoon they are ready for snacks or a dessert.
I served these to friends for dessert and no one felt cheated or even realized that they were “healthier.” That’s the thing with chocolate – I’m finding more and more than when chocolate is involved, you can always use less sugar in a recipe and it is still a wonderful treat.
Storage
- Room Temperature: You can leave these out for a couple of hours before they get too soft and need to be refrigerated.
- Refrigerator: These will last more than a week in the fridge when stored in an airtight container.
- Freezer: The bars freeze great and some people in my house like to eat them from frozen! I’ve kept them up to six months frozen.
I hope you make this oat fudge bars recipe and love it like we do – please leave a rating and review to let me know!
Want to save this?
Enter your email below and you’ll get it straight to your inbox. Plus you’ll get easy new recipes, gardening tips & more every week!
Healthier No Bake Oat Fudge Bar Recipe (Gluten Free, Egg Free)
Equipment
- 8×8-inch baking pan
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter or coconut oil (or a combo)
- 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 ½ cups rolled oats
- 1/2 cup ground flaxseed
- 1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips or 6 ounces chocolate, broken
- 3/4 cup natural nut butter peanut, almond, cashew*
- Optional: 1/4 cup more chocolate chips melted, for drizzling
Instructions
- Line a 8×8-inch pan with parchment or foil, leaving it to hang over two opposite edges (to use as handles to lift out and cut easier).
- Add the butter and/or coconut oil, honey, and vanilla to a large saucepan and melt together over medium heat. Mix in the oats, flax, and salt and cook, stirring constantly for about another minute. Remove from heat.
- Press 1/2 to 2/3 of the mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan (it will be a thin crust), reserving 1/3-1/2 for the topping.
- Cook the chocolate and nut butter together in a small saucepan over low heat until melted (or microwave 1 minute in a glass bowl). Spread evenly over prepared oatmeal crust.
- Crumble the reserved oatmeal mixture over the top of the chocolate layer and press it lightly. Optional: Drizzle with melted chocolate chips.
- Place the pan in the fridge, covered, for a couple hours until firm before cutting into 36 small bars.
- Store in the refrigerator for about a week (they also freeze wonderfully for up to 6 months). Note: you can keep them at room temperature for a couple hours before they get to soft and need to go back to the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition
Adapted from this recipe.
More Healthy Recipes To Try
- Cashew, Cranberry & White Chocolate Granola Bites
- Chocolate Chip Almond Granola Bites (+ Lots of Variations)
- Ultimate No-Bake Chewy Granola Bars
- Dark Chocolate Coconut Clusters – Low Sugar & 3 Ingredients
This recipe has been updated, it was originally published in 2015.
I made these for a baby shower and they are so good! Have you ever baked and cooled the crust before adding the filling and topping? I’m wondering what that would be like …
I’m so glad you liked these, Nancy! I’ve always liked the no-bake feature, so I’ve never tried cooking the crust. 🙂
Hi Jami, just double checking….is the peanut butter that you used natural “Just peanuts” peanut butter or regular old peanut butter? Thanks for the simple dessert recipe!!
I only use “just peanuts” (and salt) peanut butter, Lola!
I add a little salt to the crust mixture. 👌🏻
Good idea!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made these over the last couple years- a dozen? more? They’re a staple now, especially when the days start to get hotter and I can’t fathom turning the oven on when in need of a chocolate fix. Thanks for this recipe- it’s amazing!
I love this, Alyssa! Thank you so much for letting me know. 🙂
These are wonderful, and never last long whenever I make them for my family. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe!
I’m so glad you like them, Becky!
I really am trying to learn the Gluten Free thing, The only thing I know is it is suppose to be healthier for you. They are delicious and are healthy for you, and my family thinks so, too. Thanks for sharing this info and recipe!!
Think I could use applesauce in place of the butter? Butter and coconut oil or both bad for the heart. These sound so good that I may just try the applesauce and let you know. LOL But first I have to go shopping. <3 Gloria
The applesauce will not hold the oats together, Gloria, but you are of course welcome to try! I hold to the body’s need for healthy fats like butter and coconut oil and the amount here is very small in the serving. But we all gotta do what we feel is best, and they are very good. 🙂
Common – very common misconception that Coconut oil and butter are bad for the heart. Please read “Nourishing Traditions”, and I could refer you to much more, but do some research with an open mind, and after hearing both sides, let your own good judgement help you decide.
I’d suggest vegetable shortening; it has about half the saturated fat of butter, and zero cholesterol.
The relationship between dietary fat and health is really complicated (like everything in the human body… for example, too much sodium is bad, but too little is bad as well – ditto for potassium, calcium, and magnesium – our bodies run on these four elements).
Whether foods high in saturated fats and/or cholesterol are bad for any given person depends 1) on their genetics, and 2) on their current state of health; the latter is dependent somewhat on diet. Someone eating a low-carb diet with healthy vegetable fats (avocado, olive) and animal fats (from grass-fed or free-range animals) will be able to tolerate a little butter in their diet a lot better than someone eating a traditional American diet of corn, wheat, processed foods, and factory-farmed / processed meats.
Suggested further reading:
authoritynutrition.com/saturated-fat-good-or-bad/ (this site is a .com so not that high quality, but the gist of the scope of the issue is laid out)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/02/10/feds-poised-to-withdraw-longstanding-warnings-about-dietary-cholesterol/
I used margarine (without partially hydrogenated oils a.k.a. trans fats) and it worked well. Margarine has less saturated fat than butter and coconut oil, if that’s what you’re concerned about.
Peanut butter and/or mashed bananas will hold the oats together better than applesauce. (I’ve made a 3 ingredient oatmeal bar in the past with oats, peanut butter, and mashed bananas.)
Have you done the coconut oil/maple syrup combo? We have a favorite teacher at school who’s vegan and it’s so hard to come up with treat ideas for her that actually taste good.
I have made what is almost this exact recipe, but I always use a coconut oil and maple syrup combo and they are delicious. I have made two batches in the last month or so since I found the recipe.