Orange High-Energy Oat Bars
45 min
Breakfast
Snack
Make-ahead
On-the-go
Freezer-friendly
10 ingredients or less
bars
Total
45 minPrep
15 minCook
30 minContains
tree nut
Swap out
peanut
gluten
Free from
soy
sesame
Ingredients
-
½ cup (50 g)raw pecans
-
⅔ cup (87 g)dried apricots
-
-
½ tspground cinnamon
-
1 Tbsp (6 g)orange zest†
-
1 pinchsalt
-
1 cup (240 mL)peanut butter
-
-
¼ tspflaked sea salt
Make your own
Directions
- Add the pecans to a pan on medium-high heat and toast for 3 - 5 minutes, or until they become aromatic. Stir often.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 10 x 7 inch (26 x 17 cm) baking dish with parchment paper.
- Add the apricots and toasted pecans to a food processor and blitz into small chunks.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, along with the oats, almond flour, cinnamon, orange zest (save a bit for garnish!), and salt. Stir well.
- Then add the peanut butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Mix again.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Press down as firmly as possible, levelling it all out.
- Bake on the centre rack of the oven for 25 - 30 minutes, or until the top is lightly golden. Then let cool for a few minutes before removing from the baking dish to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a microwave or on the stove, using a double boiler. Drizzle it over the bars.
- Sprinkle on some sea salt and reserved orange zest. Cut into 8 squares or about 10 bars, and enjoy!
Notes
- †Make it yourself by adding raw almonds to a food processor and blending until you achieve a flour-like consistency.
- †One orange yields approximately 1 Tbsp of zest.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days, in the fridge for up to 6 days, and in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Let us know what you think
Plate method
The Plate Method is a visual tool that helps us ensure our dietary needs are on track. Touch the image below to see how this recipe measures up.
Grains & Starches 42%
• rolled oats
Proteins 42%
• raw pecans
• almond flour
• peanut butter
Fruits & Veggies 16%
• dried apricots
• orange zest
Calcium
No significant sources of calciumFat
• raw pecans
• almond flour
• peanut butter
Nutrition info
We believe that focusing on numbers can harm our relationship with food. Instead, our philosophy is to Nourish the Cells & the Soul. If you require specific nutrition information due to a medical condition, please consult with a dietitian or physician. The nutritional information provided is composed with the utmost care. However, we cannot guarantee the correctness of the displayed values, see also our disclaimer.
Watch it step-by-step!
Discussion & Rating
Hi, Is it possible to substitute the nutbutter with something else (because my husband is allergic)?
These are so easy to throw together. I make them for our road trips to Colorado; they hold up great in an airtight container in the cooler. Perfect snack that will keep you full for hours!
This came out soooo amazing! Thank you so much for this recipe! I don't often use orange zest, I sometimes haven't liked it in the past, but in this recipe, it creates such amazing flavor!! And this comes out sooo pretty!!
I'm so happy to have tried these. This recipe is a hit! The orange and apricot are, as ever, a wonderful complimentary profile duo. I wasn't sure what to expect with a peanut-forward flavor with these fruit flavors, but hear me now and listen to me later: It's amazing!
A few tweaks, I used a 8" x 8" glass baking dish as that was all I had. I needed to push back the bake time (to get that golden crust) to about 40 mins.
Also, in future, I think I'll use less chocolate (I know? What? lol :)
Maybe because my baking container was smaller, I found that I had too much chocolate left over. In any case, this is a lovely recipe, totally freezer-friendly, and I will be making it again. I think it will become a regular in my roster. Thank you Sadia & PUL team! Best, sadie :D
Very easy to make and really delicious!!
Delicious! My husband and kids loved these as well.
Great recipe, made it tonight for the 4th time for my super fast growing teenage son of 15. Fantastic and delicious for a pre-rugby practice snack.
I am diabetic though, type 2, and the syrup is a too much sugar for me. Any ideas to substitute?
Also, in South Africa, real maple syrup is very difficult to come by, and if you do, very expensive, so after the second time I substituted with a golden syrup instead.
Thanks for great recipes!
Excellent snack.i liked it better with almond butter.With peanut butter, it was too peanutty.All the other tastes were masked.But with almond butter,all the tastes were enhanced.
I have made these chocolate-orange bars for my family many times now, and they are always an amazing breakfast to look forward to. Plus, they are really easy to make :)
This recipe makes wonderful energy bars. Chocolate and orange combination is one of my favourites.
Simply amazing!!! Thanks Sadia, greetings from Greece!
Full of goodness! Mmmm, love it!
Holaaaaa,
me encantan todas las recetas, todo esta muy bueno y estas barritas son deliciosas
I’ve recently found ‘YouTube’ and this is my first channel and I just love it. The added website is amazing! This is my first recipe and it is scrumptious. I’m brand new at this life style after a life time of feeling like a square peg trying to fit in a round hole and I feel like I’ve found my ‘place’ and it’s amazing to get this level of information and such kindness. Being new, I wish that we could have a tutorial in how to grab recipes and save them to one place. Recipes from here but from anywhere. There are so many apps but it’s overwhelming and I would love to be able to quickly find the ones i love - would you ever consider that as a show idea?
This tastes like heaven. When I do this recipe, I just wanna eat it all. My advice: TRY THIS.
I'm simply addicted to these bars, thanks for sharing this amazing recipe!
This is one of my favorite healthy breakfast recipes! I make it for myself and my toddler, and we both love it :)
To make it just a little healthier for an everyday breakfast, I like to take out the chocolate and maple syrup, and then add around 1/2 cup extra peanut butter to keep it from being too crumbly.
I've also tried variations of this recipe by replacing the apricots with cranberry and dried mango, replacing the pecans with pistachios, and adding cashew butter instead of peanut butter. I think it's a great base recipe for making all different types of bars.
Thanks from me and my little one to Sadia and team for such a heartwarming recipe!
These look great, yet I'm concerned about using 1/2 maple syrup (a lot of sugar and it's costly ...eep). I recognize quantities in recipes serve a purpose (structure, texture, volume). Would scaling back to 1/3 markedly compromise? Thoughts? I hope to make for a birthday treat for a family member! :D Many thanks! I love your content (especially the food science and cooking tips! :)
This is a lovely autumn/winter snack! I didn't have almond flour but used some coconut flour instead, turned out great! Thank you for the recipe! :D
All my love!
hello I am planning on making this for my girls for school lunch boxes. could I use coconut butter instead of peanut/almond/ cashew butter?
These were great! I agree with another viewer that the bars taste like something you're getting away with. I didn't have enough oats, so subbed in the remainder with almond flour. Used dried cranberries and a sprinkling of crystalized ginger, subbed cashews for pecans, and left off the zest (didn't have any) and chocolate (decided it didn't need it/effort). I was very cautiously optimistic based on my degree of substitutions but they turned out wholesome yet amazingly decadent! I can't wait to make these again, but now I'm completely out of oats. Also, to address the crumbling issue, I actually stored these bars cut up in the freezer and used some parchment paper between layers. Just let them thaw out for about 10 minutes and they're perfect! Thank you again, Sadia and PUL team!
Awesome!
OMG these are my new favourite baked goods...EVER! I added about 11g of orange zest and used 10g extra of chocolate (half semi-sweet half unsweetened) and dates instead of dried apricots. They are bursting with flavour and perfectly satisfy my sweets craving without leaving me feeling gross and heavy afterwards. I can't way to make these again!!!
lovely!
This is my go-to protein snack !! So easy to make and incredibly delicious!! Perfect for make ahead and freezer-friendly!!
I use almod butter instead due to a peanut allergy and I skip the dark chocolate, just a personal preference :)
Absolutely love this recipe! These oat bars have been a staple in my household ever since I made them the first time, now I always make a huge batch and freeze half so I have them on hand for busy days - or when I just want a delicious snack;) I either enjoy the bars as they are, or crumbled on top of some vegan yogurt for a super filling breakfast.
I normally switch out the apricots for dates and the peanut butter for almond and cashew butter and they turn out amazing every time! I really love how flexible the recipes are, and the alternative suggestions they give. Thank you PUL for another great recipe!
Just tried these and were AMAZING! Loved the ingredients' combination and oh, the scent in the kitchen 😍
These were delicious! I may have not used enough peanut butter, because my bars were crumbly and fell apart easily but I’m still gonna eat them! Chomp!
Thank you for your glorious recipes 🤩
I never leave reviews but I loved these SO MUCH that I had to come here and say THANK YOU!
This is such a delicious, simple and weekly recipe for me now. I am noticing a huge difference in my gut health because of these recipes!
I've been a huge fan of PUL's YouTube channel for years and I am so thankful to have this recipe in my back pocket when I need something energizing and filling. Thank you thank you thank you-- you should absolutely try this recipe!
Few alterations I made: I used lemon instead of orange, Justin's almond butter instead of peanut butter (due to allergy), and walnuts instead of pecans--it turned out great! Definitely recommend using a food processor in the first step, helps break down the nuts and prevents the bars from breaking once they're cooked :)
Super tasty! I swapped out the apricots for dates and peanut butter for almond butter since that was what I had on hand and it worked out great with a perfect consistency! Next time, I'm going to try with the prescribed ingredients but I just wanted to share my experience with other readers of this versatile recipe. Thank you so much for helping so many people gain a healthy and fun relationship with food - I love your Youtube channel and this website (which is the most useful and practical recipe website I've ever encountered). Warm regards from Sweden!
Incredibly easy and delicious! I used lime zest and dates instead of orange zest and dried apricots (since that's all I had at the time and was too impatient to try this recipe!) so I put a dairy-free white chocolate drizzle on top instead to complement the lime and it worked well. Since then I've made it with the orange zest, apricots, and dark chocolate and it was equally as delightful. Do yourself a favor, make this with whatever you have in your kitchen today! Your tastebuds will thank you.
I have made this recipe already 4 times now, really my all-time favorite for busy work weeks. For me, the combination of chocolate and orange is just 🤤. Never lasts long if this one is on the counter!
Made this many, many times. It is amazing and delicious.
What can I substitute for the almond flour? We have a family member who cannot eat almods, but this recipe looks so delicious, and I would really like to make it.
I love these breakfast bars. They're referred to in our house as "the bars that make you feel like you're getting away with something," because you feel like you're eating a sweet for breakfast
Loved these so much. Only change I made was to just stir in some vegan chocolate chips into the mix instead of drizzling melted chocolate over the top.
I’ve made these bars a few times. Very yummy!
Love it!
This one is AMAZING!! LOVE IT <33
delicious... these will stick to your ribs and carry you through the day! want to make again and again... 🤎
I LOVE these bars. They are easy to make and last a long time if you put them in the fridge. They are perfect for on the go or if you want to add some delicious flavour to your yogurt. I have made these a few times and always enjoy them. They are also yum with a glass of milk. ;) Check out all their recipes, refer all your vegan friends for these nutrient and flavor packed recipes. Pick Up Limes works so hard to create these recipes. Thank you guys!
So good & filling! Perfect for pre workout snack. I made it twice already! Thank you for the recipe😍
Super simple and easy to adapt to what you have on hand! These make a great snack or breakfast, but definitely make sure not to skip the chocolate!
Already made it twice, my family eats this as a treat!
I gave it a try even when I was in serious lack of ingredients.
No orange zest, so used lime zest.
No dried apricots so used mix of raisins and dates.
Walnuts instead of pecans.
Skipped the chocolate part.
I also messed up a bit because I made oats flour instead of using it whole.
It still came out great. It is quite crumbly, but when freezed, it holds its shape.
Someday I'll try to follow the recipe as it is without any modification :D
We love this recipe! We've made it many times. We often taken it with us as hiking snacks, so we leave the garnishes off and mix them in instead. Mini dark chocolate chips mixed in taste phenomenal 😋
For some inexplicable reason, a couple of times we've made this it has turned out very crumbly. Like you could barely hold a bite in your hand, let alone a bar. However, whenever this happens we just use it as granola and enjoy it immensely 😁 (We occasionally break up bars to turn them into granola if they aren't crumbly enough to start with. It tastes really good...)
P.S. This new site is magnificent, even with the occasional unobtrusive ad. I make all recipes based on weight, so I really appreciate that the metric conversions are much more accurate on this new site as well. Also, I use your recipes all the time and I've noticed at least a couple places where you have edited the recipes for this new site. Way to go! I think the edits are great, and it also shows how much you care about delivering the highest quality recipes possible. Thank you so much! You've made being vegan so much more doable and enjoyable! 😋😁
This was amazing! I used it as a dessert and it lasted for two weeks in the fridge! I replaced the orange zest with glazed zest and reduced the maple syrup consequently and it gave it an amazing flavor!
Oh dear, another winner recipe for a chocolate lover🤤. I’m afraid that I’ll succumb to gluttony🤣
I was surprised that this bar didn’t feel heavy, albeit filling, despite the variety and forms of nuts. It’s really an optimised recipe: sublime flavour pairing of orange, vanilla, and salt (really good: it breaks off the sweetness👏🏼) in addition to a wonderful chewy texture. It’s amazing how a solid bar can “melt” inside the mouth.
A strong recommendation from my part: try to eat it directly from the freezer😲. The larger amount of fats prevents the bars from being completely frozen, and you’ll experience an extra flavour dimension. It’s almost like eating an ice cream🤩. Be careful though with your first bite😉
I tried this recipe and the bars are really crumbly. I think it's because I don't have a food processor. I tried to cut everythig finely, but maybe it wasn't enough...They taste really good though!! :)
This recipe sounds great. What could be User instead of dried apricots and other dried fruits? They are very hard to get here, seems unpossible :(
Best oat bars I've ever tasted! Added a little orange flavouring to boost the zestiness. So good.
Hi Sadia and crew, I'm a huge fan of all your work!! I have the unfortunate case of being allergic to oranges so any substitute for the orange zest that might still go well with chocolate? Would stewed berries or thinly sliced apple work instead? Or some more dried fruits such as dried figs? Racking my brain trying to figure this out. Lots of love and support to you all, greetings from Dublin :)
I love these and I make them so often! They are my favourite snack! I even made them for my family in Greece when i visited last summer and they were super impressed. By the way, the new website looks amazing! Sending many greetings from Amsterdam :)