Vegan Protein Bars – Conscious Eaters

• Quick oats – Quick oats are always my go-to oatmeal to use in these vegan protein bars…or any no-bake energy bite recipe. Because they’re broken into smaller pieces than rolled oats, they stick together better, making for a more compact, portable granola bar.
• Crispy Rice Cereal – I usually eat Rice Krispies cereal, but I know that other brands of puffed rice can work as well. I basically just like the crunchy texture provides a little cereal.
• Vegan Protein Powder – I usually use a vanilla protein powder in this recipe because it’s more neutral in flavor, but you can use whatever protein powder you have on hand that you think would pair well with the peanut butter. Some of my favorite brands of vegan protein powder are Organ, Women’s Best, and California Gold Nutrition. If you use an unsweetened and unflavored protein powder, these protein bars will not be sweet.
• Flaxseed- Ground flaxseed helps bind these granola bars together. Plus, flaxseeds are packed with nutrients!
• Nut butter – I usually use my homemade peanut butter because it’s cheap and high in protein. You want to use natural, unsweetened, runny peanut butter. Do not use peanut butter with hydrogenated vegetable oils.
• Liquid Sweetener- The type of liquid sweetener you use may vary. I personally like to use a thicker sweetener like brown rice syrup or honey. You can also use maple syrup, agave, etc.

See recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantities.

replacement

🔀 Puffed rice cereal – Traditional Rice Krispies cereals contain malt which means they are not gluten-free. So if you want to make these protein bars gluten-free, swap out the Rice Krispies for a certified gluten-free puffed rice cereal or some other type of mix-in.

🔀 Nut butter – If you have a peanut allergy or can’t pack peanut products in your or your kids’ lunches, use a different type of nut or seed butter!

🔀 Vegan protein powder – You can use any protein powder you like or have on hand!

variety

Cookie Dough Protein Bars – To make a cookie dough flavored protein bar, use cashew butter instead of peanut butter and add some dairy-free chocolate chips. Yum!

Snickerdoodle Protein Bars – Use cashew butter or almond butter instead of peanut butter and a cinnamon flavored protein powder. Or just add cinnamon to the dry ingredients. You can even sprinkle some cinnamon and sugar on top of the bars for that classic Snickerdoodle flavor.

Chocolate Protein Bar – Use chocolate protein powder instead of vanilla. Add some chocolate chips to make the bars double chocolate.

Once you cut the dough into bars, transfer them to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Alternatively, you can flash freeze them on a baking sheet lined with some parchment paper and then transfer to a freezer safe container. They should keep in the fridge for up to 3 months.

My top tips

1. If the dough seems dry, you can always add a little more nut butter or sweetener to the dough until it holds together when pressed between your fingers. Just remember that if you’re using a sweetened protein powder, you probably don’t want to add too much liquid sweetener.
2. Use damp hands when you are pressing the dough into a rectangle.
3. Peanut butter adds the most protein to these vegan protein bars and is the cheapest, but if you’re allergic to peanuts, you can always use another type of nut or seed butter.

Recipe FAQs