BLUEBERRY OATMEAL BARS

If you’re a blueberry fan, these will soothe your sweet tooth in a big way! They’re delicious warmed up in the morning and travel well.

Adapted from Fatfreevegan.com

Makes 24-30 bars, depending on how you big you cut them.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

Blueberry filling

  • 1 pint (2 cups) fresh or frozen blueberries
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup (or more, if you’d like them sweeter)
  • 2 Tbls fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch + 2-3 tsp water, whisked to form a paste

Batter

  • 3 cups rolled oats (not instant, and check the label if you need gluten-free options)
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 3 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 6 Tbsp water
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

    1. Preheat your oven to 375F. To prepare your pan, spray oil or line with parchment an 8″ square baking dish or cake pan.
    2. Filling: In a small saucepan, combine the blueberries, maple syrup, lemon juice and applesauce, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When it boils, stir in the vanilla and the cornstarch mixture. Continue to stir as the mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat and set aside to cool for several minutes.
    3. Put 1-1/2 cups of the oatmeal into a blender and grind it to a fine powder. Pour it into a medium-sized mixing bowl and add the remaining oatmeal flakes, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Stir in the apple sauce, remaining maple syrup, water and vanilla, and mix well.
    4. Spread half of the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing well to cover the bottom of the pan. Spoon the blueberry filling over the batter, and cover the blueberries with the remaining batter.
    5. Bake for 30 minutes, or until lightly browned, and allow to cool before cutting. The bars are a terrific and healthy breakfast treat, or if you cut them into smaller pieces, they’re great snacks, too! Your little ones will love them.