by 
These Applesauce Oatmeal Bars are a delicious easy-to-make dessert. With more than 150 Five-Star reviews and 200,000 shares on Pinterest, these oat bars are one of my most popular recipes.
Delicious Homemade Oatmeal Bars
This recipe first came about when I had a surplus of my home canned applesauce in my pantry. I adapted a favorite recipe for raspberry oat bars and used the applesauce instead of raspberry jam. The result is a delicious apple pie tasting bar!
My kids have always been my official taste testers and I know I have a winning recipe when they keep coming back for more. These bars disappear in no time at all.
Oatmeal Bars Recipe Ingredients
This section reviews the best ingredients and substitutions for this recipe. For an exact list of ingredients and quantities, check the recipe card below.
- Butter - salted butter
- Brown Sugar
- Flour
- Oats - old fashioned oats
- Applesauce - sweetened or unsweetened works fine
You can use any type of oatmeal you have on hand. I prefer to use old fashioned oats in these bars rather than instant or one-minute oats. The old fashioned variety is thicker and adds great texture to the bars.
How to make Baked Oatmeal Bars
In this section, I share step-by-step photos, cooking methods, techniques, and a general overview. For detailed instructions, temperatures, and timing, check the printable recipe card below.
- Place butter, flour and brown sugar into a food processor. Pulse until mixture becomes coarse crumbs.
- Add oats and cinnamon. Pulse just until mixed. The mixture will be dry and crumbly.
3. Add half the mixture to the bottom of a greased pan. Press down firmly with your hands
4. Mix additional cinnamon with applesauce. Add on top of flour mixture in pan
5. Sprinkle on the remaining flour mixture.
6. Bake in a 325° oven for 40-45 minutes
7. Allow bars to fully cool before slicing
Oatmeal Bar Recipe Tips
- Use salted butter that is softened. The butter should be soft enough to spread easily on a slice of bread
- Use old fashioned oats, which are a bit thicker than a quick oat.
- Allow bars to cool before slicing
- Store any leftover bars in a covered container
What if I don't have a food processor?
I mixed this crust in a food processor, but if you don't have one I have a few options for you:
- First, you can place the crust ingredients in a bowl and mix using a mixer with beaters. Make certain the butter is very soft, but not melted.
- Second, you could mix with your hands. Place ingredients in a bowl and use your hands or your fingers to mix. This may be a bit messy, but your hands are really a great kitchen tool. Simply use your fingers to mash butter into the flour and oat mixture.
Oatmeal Bar Recipe FAQs
The bars will last for 2-3 days. Store covered at room temperature.
You may use any type of applesauce in these bars. I use my homemade applesauce but store-bought works great too. Use sweetened or unsweetened applesauce.
Yes, these can be frozen. However, the bars are soft so it’s best to cut the bars and remove them from the pan. Then layer them in a freezer-safe container with sheets of parchment paper or waxed paper between each layer. Best used within 3 months.
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Oatmeal Bar Recipe
Equipment
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter (cut into small pieces, at room temperature)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 cups flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup oats
Filling
- 1½ - 2 cups applesauce
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325° and spray a 9 x 13" baking dish with a non-stick spray .
- In a food processor bowl, add butter, brown sugar and flour. Pulse until mixture forms small, pea sized crumbs.1 cup butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 2 cups flour
- Add cinnamon and oats. Pulse just until incorporated.1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon, 1 cup oats
- Place half the oat mixture into prepared baking dish. Press mixture down with your hands.
Filling
- In a small mixing bowl combine applesauce and cinnamon.1½ - 2 cups applesauce, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pour filling on top of oat mixture. Spread evenly over oat mixture.
- Sprinkle remaining oat mixture over applesauce.
- Bake in a preheated 325° oven for 40 - 45 minutes.
- Allow bars to fully cool before slicing into 12 equal pieces.
Notes
- Use salted butter that is softened. The butter should be soft enough to spread easily on a slice of bread
- Use old fashioned oats, which are a bit thicker than a quick oat.
- Some people prefer not quite as much applesauce filling. You can use 1 ½ cups instead of the 2 cups.
- Allow bars to cool before slicing
- Store any leftover bars in a covered container
- First, you can place the crust ingredients in a bowl and mix using a mixer with beaters. Make certain the butter is very soft, but not melted.
- Second you could mix with your hands. Place ingredients in a bowl and use your hands or your fingers to mix. This may be a bit messy, but your hands are really a great kitchen tool. Simply use your fingers to mash butter into the flour and oat mixture.
Nutritional Disclaimer:
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and should only be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. To obtain the most precise nutritional information in a provided recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the exact ingredients you are using when preparing the recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in February 2018.
Lauren says
Could you halve this recipe and cook it in a smaller pan, maybe an 8x8? If so, how long would you bake it for?
Kathy says
Hi Lauren,
You could halve this recipe. I think I'd start by reducing the baking by about 25 minutes and check the bars. You are looking for some browning on the top and edges. After you check, you might cook for 5 more minutes if needed.
Let me know how they turn out.
Chuck says
These are so awesome. Getting ready to make more. Love them!!! Thanks !
Steff says
Delicious! Great with coffee... not too sweet and so easy to make! Thanks
Kathy says
Thanks, Steff! 🙂
Crista says
I love this recipe. Kinda like apple crisp but easier, finger friendly, and a great way to use leftover applesauce. Thanks!
Kathy says
Thanks, Crista! It's one of our favorites too. 🙂
Nicole J says
Thank you for the recipe! Do you think I could prepare this and then freeze it? Should I completely bake and then just warm up, half bake, or not bake at all? Thanks!
Kathy says
Hi Nicole,
You can freeze these bars. I would fully bake and then after fully thawed you could reheat in the oven or serve at room temperature.
Enjoy,
Kathy 🙂
Darianna says
Made this using vegan butter and unsweetened applesauce, and cut them into bite size squares. My nieces and nephews loved them, thanks for the easy snack recipe. Look forward to trying more.
Linda Catanzariti says
These were delicious! Only thing I changed was to use plant based butter for the vegans in my family. Worked perfectly
Kathy says
Wonderful! Thanks so much for your comment!
A says
Do you think these will work with steel cut oats? I’m new to baking and am not sure if I would need to alter the recipe?
Kathy says
This will not work with steel cut oats. The oats will not soften while cooking.
Jessie Simon says
I broke the first rule of baking and didn't read the instructions before I started. My mixture wasn't mixing in the food processor so I ended up dumping everything in it at once. Also, I was short 1/2 cup of applesauce. I sliced an actual apple, thinking I would throw it in too, but I didn't. I poured out the concoction into the pan, placed the apple slices on top and baked for 30 minutes. Although it was completely wrong, it still tastes really good. We are enjoying it in the mornings with coffee. Not sure I need to make it the right way next time.
Kathy says
Oh my goodness! I think this is how great recipes are created - by making mistakes! I think this turned out just perfect! 🙂
Alissa Jourdan says
You know this will be good with 2 sticks of butter in the recipe! I made these today. My husband and I really liked them, but my two youngest not so much. I’m betting they’ll be good warmed up in the microwave and served with ice cream. Reminds us of Apple Crisp, so I feel it’s more like a dessert than a snack. I cut them up into bars and stored them in a container. I’m wondering if I should have put them in the fridge though, or at least put parchment or wax paper between the layers because the bars are mushing together now. I thought I had let them cool all the way first, but perhaps not. I will be trying more recipes from this site. Many sound good.
Kathy says
Hi Alissa,
This recipe calls for 1 cup of butter which is equal to two sticks of butter. 🙂
Have fun trying more recipes!
Kathy
Kelly says
My family loved them they were soft and full of flavor
Kathy says
Hi Kelly,
I'm so glad they all loved them! You'll be making them again and again! 🙂
Jasmine says
I have made other versions of oatmeal bars where I just melted the butter instead of pulsing it into the mixture. How do you think that would impact this recipe?
Kathy says
Hi Jasmine,
I haven't tried melting the butter when making this recipe so I don't know what the results would be. If you don't have a food processor, you could always use a hand mixer for making the oat mixture.
Kathy
Wendy says
Came out great! Did half the recipe since it’s just me and my daughter. Only had a pie dish so used that. Thank you so much! So lucky I had everything needed. With this quarantine I have been trying to find recipes with the things I have.
Kathy says
Wonderful! Thanks for letting me know. These are tough times and I'm glad you found something delicious you could make! Stay safe!
KHam says
I didn’t have a food processor so I crumbled it by hand. The topping stayed too powdery and gave a major flour taste. Not sure if it’s because I mixed by hand or what. Would be tasty otherwise.
Kathy says
I believe the butter didn't get incorporated fully into the mixture. That would cause the crumbly, floury taste.
Emily Covarrubias says
I made these yesterday using store-bought unsweetened applesauce (still naturally sweet, especially after adding the cinammon 🙂 ). I served them to my kids for breakfast this morning and they were a big hit! Question: the recipe calls for 2 c flour, 1 c oats. To make them more oatmeal-y, do you think that could be switched? 1 cup flour to 2 cups oats? Just curious!
Thanks!
Kathy says
Hi Emily,
I'm so glad everyone loved them. I don't if the crust would hold together if you adjusted the oats and flour ratios. You could give it a try. It nothing else, they could eat it with a spoon instead of like a bar. Let me know how they turn out.
Kathy
Debby says
Is this a cookie that could be put in the freezer?
Kathy says
Hi Debby,
I haven't ever tried freezing these bars. My guess would be that they would freeze well, but I need to give a try to be certain. Let me know if you try freezing them.
Kathy 🙂
Eydie says
Delicious and SO Quick & easy to make, I added a bit more cinnamon, because I love cinnamon & used unsweetened applesauce.
One thing though. They turned rather soggy overnight, I let them cool thoroughly & covered the dish, but I took them to work & put them back in the oven for maybe 20 minutes & still delicious👍 I had made them on Sunday just for the purpose of treating my coworkers
As a single person next time I may make 1/2 recipe and keep them for myself in the refrigerator
Kathy says
Thanks! Great tip about reheating in the oven. Ours usually don't last long enough to have any leftover!
Jackie says
I have to go purchase applesauce to make this recipe, any recommendations for store bought? Sweetened vs. unsweetened vs. cinnamon applesauce? Thanks!
Kathy says
Hi Jackie,
I usually use my homemade applesauce which is lightly sweetened. You can use any type of applesauce - so pick your favorite!
Enjoy! 🙂
Kendra says
Do you think coconut oil would work instead of butter? We are almost out of butter but have all the other ingredients and my kids want to bake!
Kathy says
Hi Kendra,
I think you could use coconut oil instead of butter! It's time to get a little creative when we start to run out of our basic ingredients. Let me know how they turn out!
Happy Baking,
Kathy
Ashley says
I can not wait to try these. I defrosted some applesauce the other day and we arent going through it as quickly. So this will help!!