These rich and sweet Vegan Strawberry Jam Oatmeal Bars are gooey in the middle and crispy on the top, making for a delicious snack or breakfast on the go.
Let me tell you a story about two loopy, jet-lagged girls who thought they were going to die.
I was skyping with my sister the other day (the same day I made these amazing Vegan Strawberry Jam Oatmeal Bars) and we were reminiscing about the backpacking trip we took to Ireland back in 2013. We had dreamed of taking a trip to Ireland together since we were little and it finally was happening. We were pretty stoked. Since she was living in Virginia and I was living Florida at the time, we met up in Atlanta for our flight to Dublin. It was a red-eye and we ended up watching the movie About Time instead of sleeping. When we arrived early the next morning we were pretty exhausted, but we had a long bus ride to catch that would take us to our first destination. We got some coffee, found our way to the bus station, and snoozed off and on during the long bus ride to Kilarney.
We got into Kilarney (our favorite city in Ireland) at around 3 or 4 in the afternoon. We were already pretty exhausted, but we knew we had to stay awake for a while longer to get our bodies on track with Ireland time. We found our B&B, dropped off our backpacks and then made our way outside to walk around in the fresh air and explore a little. We returned to our B&B around 6 and sat on our bed talking and using the internet for a while.
Before we knew it, we were passed out.
A couple of hours later we were jolted awake by a loud, blaring alarm. I mean, I’m talking LOUD! Thinking that our B&B was on fire, my sister groggily leaped out of bed and started pulling out all of our chargers from their sockets, thinking that our charging phones had started an electrical fire. Still in a panic, we both rushed to put our clothes on so we could run out and see what was happening. When I walked out of our room, I expected to see all the other guests congregating in the hallways for direction or rushing to the exit, but there was no one in sight. Everything, except for the alarm blasting, was calm. I started peeking down the different hallways, looking for someone who could tell me what was going on. Finally I found the owner of the B&B. In as calm of a voice as I could muster I asked her, “Uh, what’s that noise. Should we be worried?” She responded in the most relaxed tone, “Oh, someone just set off the fire alarm. It’s nothing.”
Back in the room, after gaining a little more consciousness, but still very loopy, my sister and I laughed until our bellies ached and tears streamed out of our eyes. We couldn’t believe the fear we felt over something so uneventful. We also couldn’t believe how quickly our bodies went into survival mode, even when we were half asleep. We probably laughed for fifteen minutes straight. I’ve never had a better gut-busting, eyes-rolling-to-the-back-of-my-head laugh in my life.
We still laugh about that moment and probably won’t ever forget it. It was fun to talk about it the other day when we skyped, right after I made these amazing Vegan Strawberry Jam Oatmeal Bars.
About These Vegan Jam Bars
Guys, I know I keep saying it, but THESE bars really might be my new favorite recipe on the blog. They are so fruity and sweet and have a rich, oatmeal crumb base and topping. When they bake the strawberry jam gets all gooey and binds the oatmeal and shredded coconut topping together. After Brett took his first bite he said he wanted to eat 6 more. We can’t get over how delicious these bars are and they are incredibly simple to prepare. They make for a great snack or even a quick breakfast on the go.
I really hope you guys give this recipe a try! If you do, I’d love to know your thoughts! Leave a rating and review or take a picture and tag #theconscientiouseater on Instagram!
Vegan Strawberry Jam Oatmeal Bars
These rich and sweet Vegan Strawberry Jam Oatmeal Bars are gooey in the middle and crispy on the top, making for a delicious snack or breakfast on the go.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup quick cooking oats
- 1 1/4 cup spelt flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 10 oz. jar of strawberry jam (280 grams)
- 1/4 cup shredded coconut
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F/180C and grease an 8x8 baking dish and set it aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the first four ingredients. In a small sauce pan, melt the coconut oil. Then add it, along with the maple syrup and vanilla extract to the oat mixture and stir until a moist dough forms. Reserve about 3/4 cup of the oat mixture for topping.
- Press the remaining mixture into the bottom of your prepared baking pan. Spread the jam over the top to within 1/2 inch of the edge.
- Add the shredded coconut to the reserved topping and then sprinkle it over the jam. Press down slightly to get the crumb topping to stick into the jelly.
- Bake for about 25 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Cool in the pan on a wire rack.
- Cut into 16 squares and enjoy!
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Nutrition Information
Yield 16 Serving Size 1 barAmount Per Serving Calories 191Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 0mgSodium 59mgCarbohydrates 25gFiber 2gSugar 13gProtein 2g
Nutrition information is a rough estimate provided by Nutrionix and should be used for informational purposes only.
Donetta says
Great blog! Do you have any tips for aspiring writers? I’m planning to start my own website soon but I’m a little lost on everything. Would you suggest starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for a paid option? There are so many choices out there that I’m totally overwhelmed .. Any recommendations? Bless you!|
Faith VanderMolen says
Thanks Donetta! I suggest you check out all the posts my husband wrote on starting a blog. Maybe start here: https://theconscientiouseater.com/how-to-start-a-food-blog-post/ Thanks so much for your comment and good luck!
Brass says
I loooove the look of this recipe! Do you think that it would be possible to sub in homemade chia jam?
Faith VanderMolen says
Yes! That should work fine! Happy baking:)
Mary says
I made these to bring on a wilderness paddle for my breakfast. They are very satisfying and easy-to-eat alongside my morning tea. I will be baking them again for an upcoming backpacking trip.
P.S. I used a homemade plum jam which was a little tart and was a perfect combination w/ the sweetness of the bars.
Faith says
These would make the perfect outdoor breakfast…paired with tea…yum!! I’m so glad you liked them Mary and your choice of jam sounds perfect. Thanks for commenting!
http://thehistoryoflindbergincredibleglasse.blogspot.com/ says
After I originally commented I seem to have clicked on the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now each time a comment is added I receive
four emails with the exact same comment. There
has to be a way you can remove me from that service? Many thanks!
Faith says
Hi! I’m sorry that has been happening. That must be annoying! I wish I knew what was going on. I looked for your name/email in my subscription list and couldn’t find anything. I also didn’t see your name in any of the comments. Did you delete the original comment?
Mariah says
I just made these. Delicious!
Faith says
So glad you enjoyed the Mariah! Thanks so much for sharing!
Angela says
Hi Faith! I just wanted to let you know that your recipe was selected as Host’s choice for the Sunday Fitness & Food Link-up. I have included a link to your site along with a picture of the bars in my post. Happy Easter!!! 🙂
Faith says
Hey Angela! Wow, thanks so much! That’s exciting:) Happy Easter to you too..the best day of the year!
Rachel says
I was hosting a vegan for brunch and my daughter and I both have celiac, so the options to satisfy both are limited. By using gluten free oats and flour, I have FINALLY made something both vegan and GF that is amazing and doesn’t use FLAX as a binder, to which my vegan guest is allergic to. Hallelujah!
Faith says
Praises!! So so happy that this recipe worked for you Rachel. Thanks so much for sharing!
Shannon says
Geez what a story!!! 🙂 These bars look amazing!
Faith says
Thanks Shannon! I hope you were entertained by our ridiculousness:)
Melissa says
How many calories and protein in 1 bar?
Faith says
Hi Melissa! Thanks for your question. I actually don’t check the nutrition facts of my recipes. I’m sure you could use a site like cronometer to find out though! Thanks!
rachel @ Athletic Avocado says
Love that these are HEAVY on the crumble! Pinning these babies!
Faith says
Best part!! Thanks Rachel!
Liv @ Healthy Liv says
Haha what a story! The strawberry jam bars look so good! So happy that you have an oven now to whip up all of your delicious treats!
Faith says
Thanks Liv!! And man, I don’t know what I’d do without my beloved oven!!
Angela says
These sound amazing! I am definitely going to give them a try, Pinned 🙂 Also, love your story about your trip, I am hoping to make it to Ireland some day! Thank you for joining the Sunday Fitness Food Link-Up!!
Faith says
Thanks Angela! And glad you enjoyed our loopy-ness. Let me know if you enjoyed these bars!!
Courtney says
Yum! These look delicious.
Faith says
Thanks Courtney! We’re obsessed with them:)
Yo Mama says
Your father and I were chatting with some men in the shop the other day and we told them the story of your conversation with Ruth concerning PANTS on that same trip. They got a chuckle out of it 🙂
Faith says
Haha yes! I wonder how many times I’ve said the wrong things here in China without even knowing!
Laura @ Sprint 2 the Table says
Love that story. My sister and I went to Ireland together a fews years ago too. We had SO much fun… we’re about to take of to Thailand together next month!
Love these bars… they may have to be plane snacks. 🙂
Faith says
Sisters in Ireland together are the best!! I so hope one day my sister and I can go to Thailand together. I’m excited for you guys!! Next month is coming so soon!!
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
These jam bars look great! And that they are vegan too. Definitely want to try these out.
Faith says
They’re our new favorite! I hope you can try them out Thalia!! Let me know if you do and what you think:)
Ruth says
Love that we have that memory….doesn’t get old reliving that story hahahaha. Getting spelt flour this weekend and gonna make me some oatmeal jam bars!
Faith says
It really is one of my fav memories with you…although I have TONS! Also, when I sent you this recipe over skype it didn’t include the maple syrup so just use the recipe from this post! Just made another batch…they’re so good!!!
Kerri Mcgrail says
Oh my goodness- I am so happy that you commented on my blog because I am in love with your recipes! I can’t wait to follow your blog and check out more recipes! These bars look amazing! I love oats with fruity jam, so this is right up my alley!
Faith says
Ah, Kerri you’re so sweet!! Thanks so much for stopping over and connecting with me! I hope you can find some other recipes you like! And these bars really are amazing…I just made my third batch;)
Alyssa @ renaissancerunnergirl says
That’s the greatest kind of travel story – rather like my friend’s idea of “second degree fun”. First degree fun is Disney World. Second degree is hiking and scrapes and making it to the mountaintop and thinking you’re going to fall off a cliff, but surviving and laughing and remembering for years to come 🙂
Faith says
Haha that’s awesome!! I’m officially a fan of “second degree fun” then! I’m going to start using that, especially because that kind of fun seems to be most prevalent in my travels…whoops!
Hanna says
Looks amazing! A local bakery sells oat bars like these and I’ve been wanting to find a recipe to duplicate them!
The directions call for maple syrup, but it is not added in the ingredients list?
Thanks!
Faith says
Hey Hanna!! Another person just let me know about he maple syrup and I just fixed it. Should be good to go! I hope you can make these and get your local baker fix:)
Hanna says
Thanks again for the recipe! I made them yesterday and they were awesome!
I did make a few changes though (and sure they would be even better if I made them as is!) I used ground oats instead of spelt flour, used 1/2 cup coconut oil, and only 3 TBS maple syrup. For the jam, I made my own: ~2 cups fresh blackberries, 1 TBS maple syrup and 1 TBS chia seeds. They were still rich (thanks to the coconut oil and flakes!) but not super sweet (I don’t care for things that are too sweet.) Nice and crumbly!
Faith says
Yum!! So glad to know that oat flour worked for you instead of the spelt. Thanks for sharing Hanna!!
Leah M @ love me, feed me says
Crumbly oat bars have such a special spot in my heart (so much so that I have 4 different variations on my blog hahah!) and these ones look so perfect!! I also love them extra because they could be breakfast or topped with ice cream for dessert 😉
That story is too funny!! I can’t even imagine how scary it must have been to wake up to that!!
Faith says
Ah, brilliant Leah!! These could totally double for a strawberry crumble for dessert. Done and done!
Jessie @ The Acquired Sass says
Yum! These sound delicious. I always have oats on hand, but I may sub some double berry jam that was homemade by a friend, I bet that would manage to make these even tastier!
Faith says
Thanks Jessie! And yes, definitely use your favorite jam or whatever you have on hand. They’d be delicious!!
Kiki says
You mention maple syrup in the instructions but there isn’t any in the ingredients list. Would you please fix it for us? Thanks !
Faith says
Thank you so much for letting me know about that mistake!! All fixed! I hope you can make these…they’re delicious!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
I can see why they’re a new favorite! They look fantastic! Soft and sweet and so perfect for SPRING!
Faith says
Thanks Rebecca! I’ve made a couple batches already and they’re so good!!