Apple & Lemon Oat Bars

These irresistible, soft oat bars are full of apple, nuts, and seeds, with a lovely fresh lemony lift. They are perfect for popping into a lunchbox or taking them out and about in a snack box when you know hungry tummies will strike.

This is the kind of recipe I like to batch-make at the beginning of a busy week, ready to grab from the fridge or freezer whenever someone needs a quick, filling snack.

The oats, walnuts, chia seeds and ground flaxseed provide good levels of fibre, healthy fats and protein.

These bars are naturally egg-free and dairy-free, with gluten-free and nut-free switches in the notes below.

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Apple & Lemon Oat Bars

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Chilling time 1

Total Time 1 25

Course Snacks & Treats

Servings

Calories 133 kcal

Suitable for Special Diet (or adaptable) Dairy-free, Egg-free, Gluten-free, Nut-free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Ingredients

150 g Oats (jumbo or porridge)
100 g Walnuts (chopped)
2 tsp Cinnamon (ground)
200 g Apple (purée)
1 tbsp Chia Seeds (plus extra for sprinkling)
2 tbsp Flax Seeds (ground)
70 g Maple Syrup
70 g Almond Butter (or peanut butter, smooth or crunchy)
1 Lemon (unwaxed and preferably organic; zest and juice)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180°C (conventional) or 160°C (fan).
Line both a baking tray and a 20 x 20cm baking tin with parchment paper.
Mix together the oats, chopped walnuts and cinnamon in a bowl. Spread this mixture evenly over the lined baking tray and toast for 15 minutes in the oven. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool briefly.
Meanwhile, mix together the apple purée, chia seeds, ground flaxseed, maple syrup, nut butter as well as the lemon zest and juice until well combined.
Add the toasted oats and walnuts to the apple mixture and combine well.
Spoon the mixture into the lined baking tin and press it firmly into an even layer using the back of a spoon. Sprinkle over a few extra chia seeds and gently press them into the surface.
Chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or until firm, before cutting into bars.

Notes

Choose an unsweetened apple purée if possible, as the maple syrup provides plenty of sweetness. You could easily use pear or apricot purée instead. This is a great way to use up your windfall apples and pears.

You can use pecans instead of walnuts, and the extra sprinkle of chia seeds is optional.

Gluten-free: Use certified gluten-free oats.

Nut-free: Swap the walnuts for pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds and use sunflower seed butter in place of peanut or almond butter. We love Carly’s sunflower seed butter.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months. They defrost very fast, and one tip is to pop them directly into your lunchboxes the night before, straight out of the freezer.

Nutrition

Calories: 133kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 3gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.001gSodium: 2mgPotassium: 132mgFibre: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 9IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 42mgIron: 1mgManganese: 1mgMagnesium: 44mgZinc: 1mg

Per serving. Nutrition content in food is never consistent, so take these estimates with a pinch of salt! Also, our recipes tend to use low-GI carbs and sugars, so these values are not directly comparable with shop-bought UPFs.

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