Happy Monday, friends! 😀
Don’t believe me? How about now… ?
Still no, eh? Tough crowd. I know, I know – Mondays can be a little rough. That’s why I spent part [10 minutes] of my weekend baking up some treats to share with you guys… And by baking I mean throwing a few ingredients in a bowl, mixing them together, tossing the mixture into the fridge, and calling it good. So… no-baking, I guess? I mean, sure, there was some minor stove work involved…
… but let’s not get caught up in petty details – let’s talk about the finished product instead.
Snack/protein/energy bars. Everyone loves them. They’re quick, they’re easy, they’re convenient, and with the proper ingredients, they’re pretty healthy and satisfying too. They’re also the bane of my existence. Why? Two words – peanut.allergy. Almost every single commercial bar out there is either loaded with peanuts or may contain traces of the pesky buggers; and most of the peanut-free versions leave a little something to be desired in terms of staying power. But that’s what weekend afternoon baking sessions are for, right?
If these bars look a little familiar, it’s because they were completely inspired by my Rice Krispie Energy Bites. I loved the flavour of those so much that I wanted to recreate them – only this time with a different texture. So, I swapped out the cereal for oat flour and was rewarded with a softer, denser, and fudgier bar.
I also threw in regular oats and crispy rice cereal to add some texture and crunch; and chocolate because… well… who really needs a reason for chocolate?
The result is, in a word, phenomenal. Imagine a subtly sweet bar that’s packed with flavour and wholesome ingredients. A bar that’s soft and fudgy enough to melt in your mouth, yet dense and textured enough to surprise you with the occasional crunch. A bar that satisfies not only your body, but your soul as well. Deep. Now stop imaging and go whip up a batch! It only takes all of 10 minutes!
I’d love to know if you make this (or any!) recipe! Tag @runwithspoons on Instagram and Twitter, and be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy and delicious recipes straight to your inbox!
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No-Bake Almond Fudge Protein Bars
- Total Time: 10 mins
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup oats, ground into a flour
- 1/2 cup quick oats
- 1/3 cup vanilla protein powder (I used whey)
- 1/2 cup crispy rice cereal
- 1/2 cup almond butter (or peanut butter)
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- Optional: 2-3 Tbsp. chocolate chips for melting
Instructions
- Prepare a 9×5 loaf pan by spraying it with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine oat flour, quick oats, protein powder, and crispy rice cereal. Mix until well combined and set aside.
- In a small pan over medium heat, add almond butter and honey, stirring until the almond butter is melted and fully combined with the honey. Stir in vanilla extract.
- Remove from heat and pour into the dry mixture. Stir until everything is fully combined.
- Pour into prepared loaf pan. Using a spatula or your hands, spread the mixture evenly in the pan, pressing down firmly.*
- Optional: place chocolate into a microwave safe bowl and nuke on high in 20 second intervals, mixing between each. When chocolate is fully melted, drizzle over the top of the packed mix using a spoon.
- Place pan into fridge and allow to cool for ~30 minutes before cutting into bars.
Notes
* make sure to press the mixture into the pan very firmly or the bars may fall apart.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
I have to say that for being ridiculously easy to make, these guys are also ridiculously difficult to resist. Photographing them was probably one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in a while, and it’s a miracle that I had anything left to showcase at all with the amount of snacking that went on behind the scenes. You guys know what I’m talking about… uneven edges, broken pieces, crumbs… a nibble here, a tiny sliver there. Oi. At this rate, I’ll be whipping up another batch very, very soon.
Happy Monday! 😀
Oh my gosh, these look like the perfect way to use up the unwanted, taste-less peanut butter in my pantry! My boyfriend will hopefully give me some of his whey protein for them if I share 😉 thanks for the recipe, Amanda.
Oh. My. Yum!! This sounds amazing and I just happen to be almost out of my peanut butter balls… I know what I’m making later this week 🙂
i’m sitting here on a layover and all i want are those bars. Gah… You sure know how to make a girl drool
This makes me gush considering you are the brilliant mind behind the delicious Healthy Bites <3
Haha! That last paragraph describes exactly why I never document my baking adventures- the results are always ugly after my taste tests. But, I’m glad you were able to manage such beautiful pictures of these bars because they look AMAZING. I have a jar of Justin’s Vanilla Almond butter and I’m reeeaaally tempted to whip up a batch of these using that! I’ll let you know how they turn out. (:
Happy Monday (from someone who actually loves them as much as you do)!
My friend’s birthday is soon and she may or may not be obsessed with nut butter. I think this would be a perfect gift
Whenever I did food photography in high school, I know the hardest thing for me to resist was the decorative additions to the photos. The extra chocolate chips in your pictures? Those were my WEAKNESS. I used to have to keep replacing my decorative pieces LOL. These look really good! I just got a jar of almond butter and I’m not debating on whether I want to make banana bread or these bars right now. AHH. Decisions, decisions! But why make decisions when you can have both 😉 I’m pretty sure you just made everyone’s Monday a LITTLE bit brighter!
Uuuuhm,Amanda? – You. are. so. mean.
I want these now. Like,really. Really. Really bad.
It only takes 10 minutes… just sayin’ 😉
It would,if I wasn’t out of oats. 🙁
SWOOONN I love this so much because I can make these and they are dairy free if I use rice protein!! They look soooo dang good. I would have wanted to eat them all for sure before snapping pics, but I also find that when I get decent pictures my food tastes so much better because I can look at pictures while eating. OK I am bizarre..SEND SOME MY WAY PLEASEEE!
HOLY MOTHER OF DELICIOUSNESS! These look so good! Fudge is probably one of my favorite things in the planet and I absolutely cannot wait to try these! I’ll let you know how they go 😀
Woo! Your cinnamon scones are still on my to-bake list. I can definitely see them happening soon, especially since the weather is starting to cool down.
Oh goodness, those definitely turned out well! While I can go either way with textures on a protein bar, I prefer them to have a little bit of a crunch to them – so I love that you added some crispy rice cereal to them. And I would say that chocolate is non-optional 😉
And crumbs and uneven edges is the best part of cutting into baked goods…how else are you going to make sure that every piece is even? 😉
I love this recipe! Healthy dessert with extra protein? Win.
I like the sound if a dense bar that melts in your mouth, yum!
If I had 100% free reign of the kitchen right now I’d make these in a heartbeat. I was essentially drooling throughout your entire post. Maybe one of these weekends…or you know, you can just make some (a lot) for me and send them over. 😉
Wellll, you don’t technically -need- a kitchen 😉 Not that I wouldn’t be up for sending some, I’m just not sure how well they’d travel 🙁
Ummmm these look amazing! I may have to save this recipe to make.. like, tonight. Thanks for sharing girl.
Oh my do these look delicious or what! I’m all about the smooth creamy protein snack bars rather than crunchy. And if they have chocolate in it, even better 🙂
Oh my goodness…. these sound amazing and I don’t use that word lightly!! I’m pretty sure my kids and I would LOVE these. I’m thinking this weekend for a celebration treat of making it a full week back to school.
When it comes to snack bars, I prefer all textures. I just love ’em, especially when chocolate is involved. I am all about the nibbles, slivers, and chocolate picked off the top. Yeah, I’m that person.
Oh man, you sure know how to treat a Monday right, those look delish! I am 100% on the Uneven edges, broken pieces, & crumbs train…they taste much better than an entire piece, am I right?!? Happy Monday!
These look delicious! I am a former protein bar addict but now I much prefer to make them myself! I will definitely try these out!
Want!!! I don’t think I could stop at just one… or three… though. Yipes! haha
Welcome to exactly what happened to me 😆
Oh YUM. I love that these are so simple and quick to make. My kinda snack! I love anything fudgy and nut buttery too 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
These bars look AMAHZING! So love them! Thank you so much for sharing!
I am gonna make these tonight – I hope they are around tomorrow morning too 😉
Oh my gosh, I’m SO excited for these bars. First, I love that they’re no bake. And second – um all the almond butter!!
And honey, and chocolate chips.
My kind of bar:)
mmmmm mmmm MMMM these babies look GOOD!! I go either way with the texture thing. Sometimes I just want something smooth and easy to toss down my throat, while other times it’s all about the crunch or bite to a bar!
Well, these protein bars certainly look amazing!!!! I love that they’re no bake and I love that they call for almond butter! Can I have some now!?! 😉
These sound great! So few homemade energy bars don’t require a food processor (which I don’t have), so I’m definitely giving these a shot! What kind of protein powder did you use?
With bars, I generally prefer a dense texture. My favorites are Quest, lara, Kit’s Organic and Nugo (dark chocolate)
I used a vanilla whey from a company called Genuine Health http://www.genuinehealth.com/proteins.html
Such a great treat, and a definite Happy Monday Maker! Your photos are beautiful, too! 🙂
AWESOME protein bar recipe! I prefer a smoother, denser texture, for sure.
Okay, I HAVE to make these ASAP…yummy! Thanks for sharing this!
You are right…These look pretty much AMAZING! And the fact that they are no bake? Um, yes please!
Yummy! I’ve been looking for a recipe that doesn’t use Protein Powder. Lately, I’ve been trying not to eat it so much because I used to rely so heavily on it (more protein… less carbs mentality). I wonder if you subbed for more flour and eggs or egg whites, you could get a similar consistency? 🙂
LOOKS Awesome!
C
PS > What camera and lens do you use?
I don’t like to eat a lot of protein powder either, but I still have a big tub of it leftover from back in the day that I’ve been trying to use up, and I find that as long as I’m not using it to make smoothies or adding it to everything, then a small amount in baked/unbaked goods is alright. But if you wanted to omit it, you could probably just add more flour. I wouldn’t suggest eggs because it would make the dough too wet, and you would probably have to bake it.
As for my camera, I have a Canon EOS7D and alternate between a 50mm and 18-135mm lens.
True! Raw eggs are not really a good thing to eat.
I know; I’m the same way. I used to make oatmeal with vanilla protein and I do miss it. I like the creaminess it does add. Perhaps I’ll have it more often 🙂
Ah! I love the 50mm lens. I honestly feel complete with it.
C
I loooove dense textures when it comes to anything – health bars, cookies, cake! I’m also all about eating the bits and pieces, even before they’re baked 😉
Oh wowwww! These look too good! Definitely getting added to my list of things to make!
Mmmm these look SO good and so professional, my friend! I think I will be making these this week as I have some protein powder I want to use up. I’m going to have to use chocolate protein powder as that’s all I have at home…nothing a bit of extra vanilla essence can’t fix! Do you think replacing the cereal with equal amounts of oat flour will be fine? If not, I’ll go get buy some cereal. It’s been a while since I baked so I’m looking forward to getting back into it. And I’m definitely with you about uneven ends and crumbs- take one for the team and eat enough to make sure the dimensions are sorted out ;)!
Mmm the cereal is more for added crunch and texture than anything else, so if you wanted to omit it, I’d add some extra oats (not flour) instead.
I was considering replacing the cereal with chopped walnuts.
It’s all about the nibbles and uneven edges when baking. In fact, I’d have to say I consider it a fail when there aren’t any of those. Then it’s all about making them up ;).
Almond butter anything is great but these sound particularly delish!
Saw these on instagram yesterday and I literally started salivating! You basically came up with a recipe which combines are my favourite foods. You are incredible!
They’re all my favourite things too. In fact, I’m pretty sure I could easily survive on almond butter, oats, honey, chocolate, and Greek yogurt and never complain.
Oh yes, I play the sliver game all the time! Have to even everything up and you can’t let it go to waste! I love thick dense sweets. I feel like most of the time the lighter textures don’t really satisfy me.
Drooling. These actually look amazingggg. PINNED for must making!
Oh my….I LOVE no bake goodies, and I love the ingredient list of these!! Definitely going to make them, though I totally get you on the broken pieces and stuff – I am SUCH a snacker while baking. I can not even wait to let them harden in the fridge, you find me 2 hours too early opening the fridge door and checking if they are ready to be eaten 🙂
And for me, added chocolate is never optional !
I’m horrible when it comes to being patient with recipes. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve ruined loaves/cakes/cookies/puddings/JELLO(!!!) because I couldn’t wait to dig in. But hey, as long as it tastes good 😉
Those look so fabulous! I tend to always love cutting little corners off here and then and nibbling away on any tasty baked treat! Before I know it, I keep cutting more and more bites off and in no time I’ve consumed so much! But freshly baked/homemade goods are the best and I can’t resist!
I love cutting off slivers of brownies and other baked goods. And then those slivers get larger and larger and pretty soon I’m eating a giant piece of them. No shame…They may have been difficult to photograph but they came out pretty fantastic looking 🙂
Any idea on calories?
Sorry Romy, I don’t calculate the nutritional info on my recipes – I just try to focus on using healthy ingredients. You can use an online calculator like this one to figure them out http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
I made the almond fudge bars, which are delicious, but I think nutritional content should be included to classify your recipes as “clean eating” protein, sugar, calories, etc., I don’t think the reader should have to figure it out. There are lots of websites that do include nutritional content.
Thanks
Thanks for your input, Cheryl. I actually include nutritional info in all my new recipes and I’m in the process of adding it to my old ones.
In mine I added an additional scoop of protein powder, 1/4 c raisins, 2tbs amaranth, 2tbs ground chia seeds, 1/4c almond slivers, 1/4c macadamia milk and the total calories for 12 bars (about 3tbs) was 150.