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Baked Banana Protein Bars {no added sugar, gluten-free, vegan}

banana bread protein bars cut up with knife
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★★★★★

4.8 from 5 reviews

These banana bread protein bars are packed with flavor, vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and come with an extra kick of protein.

Ingredients

Scale

WET INGREDIENTS

  • 1 TBSP flaxseed meal + 3 TBSP water (or chia seeds may be subbed)
  • 3/4 cup mashed extra ripe bananas, about 2 medium
  • 1/2 cup all natural nut or seed butter of choice (I like cashew or almond here)
  • 2–4 TBSP unsweetened cashew or almond milk (or soy, coconut, etc.)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

DRY INGREDIENTS

MIX INS

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF, line 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper, or use an 8×8 silicone pan.
  2. In a small bowl, combine your chia seeds with 3 tablespoons of water and let sit for 3-5 minutes until gel consistency forms.
  3. Meanwhile in a medium bowl, mash your bananas until almost puree consistency. Mix in almond butter and vanilla. Add in flaxseed (or chia seed) mixture, and stir until completely mixed together.
  4. Add in oat flour, almond flour, protein powder, shredded coconut, cinnamon, and pinch of salt; combine with wet ingredients. Add 2 TBSP milk and stir until combined. Mixture will be thick but shouldn’t be dry. May depend on protein powder used. Add another tbsp of milk if needed.
  5. Pour banana batter into prepared pan, and spread smooth with spatula. Top with more coconut and chopped nuts (for styling). Bake bars for about 15-20 minutes, or until edges lightly brown.
  6. Insert a toothpick in middle of pan and check to see if toothpick comes out clean. If the toothpick comes out gooey, bake another 2 minutes. Let bars cool in pan for about 30 minutes. Remove bars from pan and slice into 12 bars, or 16 squares. Store pre-cut bars in airtight container in fridge. Bars should keep 8-10 days in fridge.

Notes

To make oat flour, simple grind oats in food processor or small blender. You’ll need about 1/2 cup rolled oats. I like to keep these bars in the fridge, and find they taste even better the next two days. Bars don’t have to stay refrigerated if packing with lunch. Bars nutrition calculated without optional nuts, based on 10 servings. Recipe adapted from Oh She Glows

Nutrition

Keywords: banana bread bars, low sugar protein bars, gluten free bars

Find it online: https://www.fitmittenkitchen.com/banana-protein-bars-vegan-gluten-free-refined-sugar-free/