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Home » Recipes » Breakfast » Oatmeal » Banana Zucchini Oatmeal Bars

Banana Zucchini Oatmeal Bars

By Taesha Butler August 19, 2022 13 Comments

Servings9 bars
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Jump to Recipe
4.84 from 6 votes

These Zucchini Oatmeal Bars are perfect to meal prep for breakfast or for a healthy grab-and-go snack. Made with oats and flax, they are loaded with a cup of grated zucchini and naturally sweetened with banana and maple syrup. A few optional chocolate chips make these zucchini bars extra enticing to eaters of all ages!

A hand holding a banana zucchini oatmeal bar.  The rest of the bars are blurred in the background.

These Zucchini Oatmeal Bars were inspired by my oh-so popular Zucchini Blueberry Baked Oatmeal. Readers loved how easy it was to make, that it was veggie-loaded, and that it was (of course) delicious. However, many of them shared they needed a baked oatmeal recipe that they could grab as they walked out the door on those busy weekday mornings and eat as they head into their day.

I heard you all loud and clear and have been working to perfect portable oatmeal bars with different veggies and flavor profiles. And I have finally nailed the Zucchini Oatmeal Bar!

These Banana Zucchini Oatmeal Bars will be the easiest part of your weekly meal prep! Throw them together in 10 minutes and let them bake for 30 minutes. They are the perfect grab-and-go breakfast, quick snack, or healthy treat to throw in those lunch boxes (since they are nut-free, they are school friendly). Made with oats, ground flax, and naturally sweetened with banana, maple syrup, and a few optional chocolate chips, these oatmeal breakfast bars are held together with an egg and taste like you are eating the love child of zucchini bread and an oatmeal cookie for breakfast.

Naturally gluten free when you use certified gluten free oats, these bars are also dairy-free when you use dairy-free chocolate chips and are (of course) vegetarian. Make a batch today and store them in your fridge or freezer for when you need one most! You’ll be so grateful to have them on hand to make mornings easy, delicious, and veggie-loaded.

Grated zucchini in the middle of a paper towel.
A hand pressing down on grated zucchini wrapped in a paper towel.
The dry ingredients for banana zucchini oatmeal bars in a bowl with a wooden spoon.
A banana, egg and maple syrup in a blender before blending.

Suggested Adaptations

  • Use applesauce instead of banana.
  • Omit the chocolate chips to reduce the sugar.
  • Replace chocolate chips with raisins.
  • Add in chopped nuts if nut free isn’t needed. Walnuts, slivered almonds, or pecans would be a lovely additions to these Zucchini Oatmeal Bars.
  • Use grated yellow summer squash instead of zucchini. Little known fact, they are basically the same veg, just a different color. You can use summer squash as a sub for zucchini in any recipe.

How to store these oatmeal bars

Because these Banana Zucchini Oatmeal Bars are loaded with fruit and veg, they are moister than a granola bar. They are okay on your counter top for 24 hours, but to keep them fresh longer… I suggest slicing them and storing them in an air tight container in the fridge for about 5 days. If you stack them in a container, place a layer of parchment paper in between the layers to prevent sticking.

You can also freeze them after slicing and thaw each portion overnight in the fridge or on the counter.

Wet ingredients for Banana zucchini oatmeal bars being poured into the bowl with the dry ingredients.
The oatmeal mixture for the oat bars in a bowl with chocolate chips and drained zucchini on top.

More easy veggie-loaded breakfast ideas

  • Sweet Potato Banana Oatmeal Bars
  • Veggie-Loaded Breakfast Cookie Recipe
  • Zucchini Blueberry Baked Oatmeal
  • Sweet Potato Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
  • Veggie-Loaded Chocolate Protein Muffins
  • Healthy Morning Glory Breakfast Muffins
  • Peanut Butter Banana Spinach Smoothie
  • Crustless Spinach Sweet Potato Quiche

Loving this zucchini oatmeal recipe and are hungry for more?

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Banana zucchini oatmeal bars cut into squares on a cooling rack.
Print Recipe
4.84 from 6 votes

Banana Zucchini Oatmeal Bars

These Zucchini Oatmeal Bars are the perfect meal prep for breakfast or a healthy grab-and-go snack. Made with oats and flax, they are loaded with a cup of grated zucchini and naturally sweetened with banana and maple syrup. A few optional chocolate chips make these zucchini bars extra enticing to eaters of all ages!
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian
Keyword: banana, rolled oats, zucchini
Servings: 9 bars
Calories: 191kcal
Author: Taesha Butler

Ingredients 

  • 1 cup grated zucchini
  • 2½ cups rolled oats or quick oats not instant
  • 1½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ cup flax meal can sub chia seeds
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 medium ripe banana can sub ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • ⅓ cup maple syrup
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup mini chocolate chips optional

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8×8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • Take grated zucchini and wrap in paper towels or a clean dish towel. Press down to help draw out moisture and set aside while you prep the other ingredients.
  • In a large bowl, combine oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, flax, and salt. Stir together. Set aside.
  • In a blender combine banana, maple syrup, egg, and vanilla. Puree until smooth.
  • Pour wet banana mixture into the bowl with the dry oat mixture. Stir to combine. Add drained zucchini and chocolate chips (if using) and mix again.
  • Spread mixture evenly into your prepared baking dish. Top with more chocolate chips, if desired. Bake for 30 minutes or until slightly golden brown on top and edges look dry.
  • Let cool in pan for at least 15 minutes before slicing. The cooler the bars, the better they will slice. I find chilling them in the fridge for a bit helps.
    Slice into 9 squares and enjoy or let cool and store in an air-tight container for up to 5 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 191kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 21mg | Sodium: 152mg | Potassium: 237mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 78IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 2mg

The nutritional information is provided as an estimate only and may vary based on the product type, servings and other factors. If you are following a diet, please consult with a professional nutritionist or your doctor. Stay healthy!

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Filed Under: Dairy-Free, Desserts, Gluten-Free, Meal Prep, Nut-Free, Oatmeal, Snacks, Vegetarian

Previous Post: « Roasted Eggplant Dip
Next Post: Creamy Cauliflower Banana Peach Smoothie »

Reader Interactions

    Leave a comment & rate this recipe Cancel reply

    Did you make this recipe? So good, right? It would mean the world to me if you left a comment and star rating so that more people can see how delicious veggie-loading can be. Plus, it helps me to see what recipes you are all loving so I can make more like them.

    Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback.

    Recipe Rating




    Comments

  1. Carri

    August 23, 2022 at 4:20 pm

    5 stars
    These are so delicious! My 5yo and I made them (along with two of Taesha’s amazing muffin recipes!) and enjoyed all of it at our own little tea party. These came together so easily – and I didn’t use a blender for the banana/egg, just mixed very well in a bowl. These were so good that my daughter asked to keep the bars out for camp for the week, versus her usual go to muffins! Definitely will make these again.

    Reply
    • Taesha Butler

      August 24, 2022 at 7:30 am

      I am so glad you all enjoyed these as much as we do! The wet/banana mixture can totally be done in a bowl if you don’t mind some small chunks of banana or are a thorough patient masher (I am not 🤪). Thanks for sharing, Carri! I always love when you make a TNN recipe.

      Reply
  2. Candy

    August 25, 2022 at 1:57 am

    This would be a great school snack!!! Will this work omitting the egg? Or can I sub a flax egg or will that be just too much flax?

    Reply
    • Taesha Butler

      August 25, 2022 at 7:17 am

      Hi Candy! I really think these bars need a binding agent. I haven’t tested them with a flax or chia egg, but I have a hunch they would work. If you give it a go, please share how they turn out!

      Reply
  3. Lindsay Maielli

    August 31, 2022 at 12:33 pm

    4 stars
    Yum! I’ve been looking forward to making these. They were yummy! My kids preferred eating them like a baked oatmeal on a plate with a fork. I ate it like a bar. Another yummy veggie loaded recipe for the whole family!

    Reply
    • Taesha Butler

      August 31, 2022 at 3:59 pm

      So glad they were a success, Lindsay!

      Reply
  4. Johanna Wulff

    September 1, 2022 at 3:41 pm

    5 stars
    These were amazing like most of your recipes. Didn’t have banana so switched to apple sauce. Only used 1/4 maple syrup and ended up perfect.

    Reply
    • Taesha Butler

      September 2, 2022 at 11:30 am

      So glad you enjoyed them and were able to make them work for you! Thanks for taking the time to share, Johanna!

      Reply
      • Johanna Wulff

        September 2, 2022 at 12:17 pm

        5 stars
        No problem. Also I didn’t mean to write “most of your recipes”. All of your recipes I’ve tried have been great!

        Reply
  5. Chelsea

    September 5, 2022 at 8:43 pm

    Made these for my almost 12 yr old & 6 yr old’s school snacks last week. They liked them but also asked if they could be made into a muffin? Anything different in the cooking time?

    Reply
    • Taesha Butler

      September 6, 2022 at 9:01 am

      Oh I like how your kids think! I haven’t tried, but I’m guessing they could. They wouldn’t be the same consistency, but if they are happy with “oat cups”, it would probably work portioning out the mixture into a lined muffin tin and then baking same temp for 20ish minutes. Again, haven’t tried but if you give it a go, please report back!

      If your kids want a true muffin with the same sort of flavors, try this one on for size! https://thenaturalnurturer.com/chocolate-chip-zucchini-muffins-gluten-free-dairy-free/

      Reply
  6. Brandon C.

    December 5, 2022 at 11:00 am

    Do these freeze well?

    Reply
    • Taesha Butler

      December 5, 2022 at 4:47 pm

      I find they freeze very well after baking!

      Reply

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Hi! I'm Taesha! I help busy people fall in love with healthy eating with my simple, family-friendly, veggie-loaded recipes. I believe vegetables can and SHOULD be delicious. Here, let me show you how!

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