These banana peanut butter bars are ideal for a satisfying snack, packed with both flavor and good nutrition. The bars are lightly sweetened and made with a mixture of almond flour and oat flour. They’re easy to make in one bowl, and are great to prep on a Sunday and snack on over the next few days. Perfect for adults and kids alike.
Ingredient Notes
Here’s a photo of all the ingredients you’ll need, along with selected ingredient notes:
- Bananas – Use ripe bananas with ample brown spots for this recipe. They will be easier to mash and offer a sweeter flavor for the bars.
- Peanut butter – Natural peanut butter, which is made with just peanuts and salt, is best for this recipe. Its drippier texture combines easier with the wet ingredients.
- Almond flour – This flour serves two purposes: it contributes satisfying healthy fats to the recipe, and it keeps the bars tender and moist.
- Chocolate chips – Obviously this blog is fully dairy free, so if you follow that diet, you’ll want to choose a dairy free chocolate chip. (If you’re not dairy free and just stumbled across this recipe, feel free to use whatever you’d like). My favorite chocolate chip options are Enjoy Life dark chocolate morsels and Nestle Allergen Free Morsels.
Instructions
You’ll find the full recipe amounts and instructions in the recipe card below, but here’s a helpful overview with photos and tips.
Start by mashing the banana in a bowl, then adding the peanut butter, sugar, almond milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. Stir it until it’s well mixed.
Add the oat flour, almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir it all together.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
Pour the batter into a greased 8×8 baking dish. Pop that in the oven for about 23-26 minutes at 350 degrees.
Let it cool, then slice into squares and dig in!
Recipe FAQ
Here are some common questions that may come up as you’re preparing this recipe:
Cover the pan with plastic wrap or tin-foil, or store in an airtight container, for up to 3 days.
Sure. Cut into squares and flash freeze on a parchment lined baking sheet, then transfer to a ziptop bag for long term freezer storage. Use within 3 months for best quality.
Definitely! Chopped nuts, dried fruit, or shredded coconut are all great additions. Keep the add-ins to ½ cup total regardless of which you’re using.
Yes. This recipe is already egg free and dairy free. The only change you need to make for a vegan option is to ensure the sugar you use has not gone through a bone char filtering process. You can use organic sugar, beet sugar, or coconut sugar for this purpose, rather than traditional granulated sugar.
Allergens in this Recipe
Disclaimer: Always double check ingredients and labels yourself prior to making a recipe. While I try to check all ingredients for allergens, there’s always the chance I may miss something, or manufacturer formulations can change.
As written, this recipe is dairy free and egg free.
While this recipe is wheat free by ingredients, note that some brands of oat flour have cross contamination risk with wheat. As long as you choose a brand that reduces this risk, the recipe should be wheat free. If you are gluten free, look for a certified gluten-free oat flour.
This recipe may contain soy depending on your choice of chocolate chips. If you can’t have soy, just choose an appropriate option that fits your needs.
This recipe does contain peanuts (in the peanut butter) and tree nuts (in the almond flour and almond milk).
If you can’t eat tree nuts, you can substitute additional oat flour for the almond flour, and use another milk alternative in place of the almond milk.
More Banana Recipes
If you’re looking for more ways to use up those browning bananas on your counter, be sure to give one of these a try:
- Peanut butter banana freezer pie
- Banana pancakes (dairy free and egg free)
- Almond butter banana muffins
- Olive oil banana muffins
- Dairy free banana bread
I hope you enjoy these! My kiddo – who has become quite picky lately, what’s up with that?! – really likes them. If you get a chance to try them, please leave a recipe rating or comment below.
Banana Peanut Butter Bars
Ingredients
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- ½ cup natural peanut butter
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup almond milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup oat flour (certified gluten free if needed)
- ½ cup almond flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup dairy-free dark chocolate chips (i.e. Enjoy Life)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8 baking dish.
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In a large bowl, combine the mashed banana, peanut butter, sugar, almond milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. Stir until well combined.
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Add the oat flour, almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir until well combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
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Pour the batter in the greased baking dish and spread evenly into the dish. Bake on the center rack for 23-26 minutes, or until a toothpick pulls clean from the center. Let cool fully in the dish and then enjoy.
Recipe Notes
- If you try to cut into these before they’ve fully cooled, they may crumble.
- These bars are naturally soft and are a best eaten with a plate and fork – they are not designed to be eaten by hand.
Nutrition analysis (approximate per serving): 255 calories, 14.5 g fat, 3.5 g saturated fat, 215 mg sodium, 28.5 g carbohydrate, 3.5 g fiber, 17 g sugar, 5.5 g added sugar, 6 g protein, Vitamin D: 0%, Calcium: 4%, Iron: 5%, Potassium: 5%
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