These Lemon Poppy Seed Oat Bars are chewy and bursting with bright lemon-y flavours! Made with just 7 plant based ingredients, these are the perfect breakfast or snack to meal prep and take with you on the go! (Vegan, gluten free & oil free)

Granola bars AKA oat bars are a staple on my meal prep list. Especially when I know the up coming week is going to be hectic… like this week. I have 13 days until my final exams are finished and I’M DONE UNDERGRAD! Even though I’m super excited, I also know these next two weeks are going to be super busy and stressful. The key to optimizing and using my time well is to meal prep because this saves me so much time.

I love prepping oat bars for breakfast or to have as a snack. They’re low maintenance, easy to prepare and doesn’t require a laundry list of ingredients. Plus, you can change up the flavour week to week! I have been indulging on Bobo’s Lemon Oat Bars this past month, they are SO addictive but also kind of expensive…so I was inspired to make my own! Plus, it’s spring so recipes with lemons just sounded right.

Making your own oat bars means you have control of what goes in them! No weird or hidden ingredients and you can control the amount of sweetness. Here’s what goes into these Lemon Poppy Seed Oat Bars:

  • Gluten free rolled oats as a base

  • Rice malt syrup for sweetness

  • Coconut butter for chewiness

  • Cashew butter to help hold the bar together

  • Lemon juice because it’s a lemon flavoured oat bar

  • & of course, poppy seeds!

These are honestly SO GOOD and packed with ingredients that will actually leave you feeling satisfied and with energy. Make this for your next meal prep, you won’t regret it!

Why I think you’ll LOVE these Lemon Poppy Seed Oat Bars! They’re:

  • chewy

  • lemon-y

  • perfectly sweetened

  • easy to make

  • vegan

  • gluten free

  • oil free

  • make meal friendly

  • the perfect on the go breakfast or snack!

Tips and Tricks to making Lemon Poppy Seed Oat Bars

  • Do not skip out on soaking the oats in the lemon juice and water! This helps with the chewiness of the bars.

  • Press the bars firmly into the pan to prevent them from falling apart. The potato masher (without holes) is the perfect tool for this! If you don’t have a flat solid potato masher, measuring cups will work too.

  • These bars can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

If you recreate these Lemon Poppy Seed Oat Bars please share it and let me know what you think by tagging me on Instagram @lisakitahara, I love seeing all of your tasty recreations!

Lemon Poppyseed Breakfast Bars

These Lemon Poppy Seed Oat Bars are chewy and bursting with bright lemon-y flavours! Made with just 7 plant based ingredients, these are the perfect breakfast or snack to meal prep and take with you on the go! (Vegan, gluten free & oil free)

Makes: 5-6 bars

Name of image (title of post is fine)

Prep time:

Cook time:

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups gluten free rolled oats (160g)
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 1/3 cup brown rice syrup (88g)*
  • 1/4 cup coconut butter (60g)**
  • 2 tbsp cashew butter (30g)***
  • 1.5 tbsp poppy seeds OR chia seeds
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Optional: 1/4 cup powdered sugar + 2 tsp lemon juice for lemon icing drizzle.

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
  2. Add 1.5 cup of oats into food processor and pulse 6-10 times or until coarsely ground Add in the other half of oats, water and lemon juice. Mix with a spoon and let it sit for 3-5 minutes.
  3. If your coconut butter is not already runny, melt it down. Then into a large bowl, combine it with the rice malt syrup, cashew butter, lemon zest, vanilla and salt.
  4. Add in the oats and poppy seeds, and mix until combined.
  5. Transfer the batter into a line 8×4 inch bread pan or mini loaf pans. Spread evenly so that the top it flat and even.
  6. Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating half way. The edges will be slightly firmer and more browned.
  7. Once removed from the oven, allow it to cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Carefully remove from the pan and place on cooling rack for another 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the lemon icing by combining the powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl until desired consistency. Divide into 5-6 bars and enjoy!

NOTES:

  1. *maple syrup can be used instead of brown rice syrup

  2. **coconut oil can be used in place of coconut butter

  3. ***cashew butter has the most neutral flavour BUT you can use another nut/seed butter- although it may change the flavour of the bar.

Save it for later! ↓

Konnichiwa

About Lisa

I'm Lisa, a home cook, recipe developer and founder of Okonomi Kitchen. Here, you'll find a mix of classic and modernized Japanese recipes, and creative, plant-forward meal inspiration using seasonal ingredients. I hope to share more about Japanese cuisine and culture through food and recipes.

Read More About Me

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3 Comments

  1. I just made these today – they are amazingly delicious!! I made it with lime juice and chia seeds (and maple syrup since I didn’t have brown rice syrup). If a baked good can taste bright and cheerful, this is it 🙂
    Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply

  2. These are sooo delicious! I, too, love the Bobo’s version but have a hard time paying over $2 per bar. I honestly like this better. I have made them with both poppy seeds and chia seeds. I think I like the chia seed better. Thanks for posting this!

    Reply