No-Bake Oat Fudge Bites or Bars (vegan)

Oatmeal has become my thing – savory, sweet, baked, raw, overnight oats, energy bites – I mean, really, ALL things oatmeal are my current jam. I can’t get enough!

These no-bake oat fudge bites are no exception…and they combine two of my all-time favorites — chocolate and peanut butter — along with my new oat obsession for an easy, quick, and satisfying treat that’s healthy enough to eat for breakfast! Yes, chocolate for breakfast is way-ok in my book

You can make bars instead of the individual cups if you’d prefer to slice and serve. I tend to lean towards mini versions of everything – if you can’t tell from my Chunky Monkey Frozen “Cupcakes”, No Bake Mini Chocolate Pudding Tarts, and Blackberry Banana Coconut Muffin Bites. The bar version is even quicker since you don’t have to divide up the crust/topping and chocolate layer into individual portions.
Funny story, when I was making these…it was late…like real late at night. (Quick disclaimer: when it’s past midnight, I go on autopilot and I don’t always pay attention to little things.) I reached into the cabinet to get my vanilla bean sea salt flakes to crumble and sprinkle over these fudge bites…But I was only paying half attention to what I grabbed. It was a small bag, dark in color, and I thought I read “vanilla bean salt” on the bag. Nope. it was Mexican dried oregano…hmmm, so a couple of these little dudes got a savory sprinkle, oopsi! I even tried to use my tweezers to remove the oregano, ha!

The sea salt isn’t required, but it certainly adds that “wow factor” in my mind! Just don’t use oregan,o and I think you’ll love these filling and fudge oat treats! If you can’t tolerate nuts, feel free to substitute coconut butter for an equally delicious option!

No-Bake Oat Fudge Bites or Bars

Prep Time 10 mins

Rest Time 30 mins

Total Time 40 mins

Cuisine: American

Courses: Desert, snack

Difficulty: Beginner

Description

These chewy, chocolatey no-bake oat fudge bites (or bars) are a delicious vegan treat made with wholesome ingredients—perfect for an energy boost, dessert, or lunchbox snack.

Ingredients

For the "Crust and Topping"

1 1/4 cup pitted dates
2 cups + 1/2 cup gluten-free quick oats
1/8 tsp vanilla bean powder
3 Tbsp (or more) non-dairy milk (or coconut oil for richer option)

For the Fudge layer

3 1/2 oz allergen-friendly dark chocolate chips or chopped bar (Enjoy life chips, homemade chocolate, Lily's for sugar-free etc)*
3 Tbsp chunky or creamy peanut butter, nut butter or seed butter (for nut free, use coconut butter)
1 tsp coconut oil
1/8 tsp sea salt (I used vanilla bean sea salt flakes)

Instructions

1
1. In a food processor, add dates and process until a ball is formed.
2. Add in 2 cups of oats and vanilla and process until powdery and combined. It will look dry. Drizzle in milk or oil and process until mixture forms a dough.
3. Add in remaining 1/2 cup oats and pulse a few times (this will make the dough have a nice texture with the pulverized and whole rolled oats). Remove from food processor and refrigerate for atleast 30 minutes to firm up.
4. Remove from fridge and either press all but heaping 1/2 cup of dough into a parchment lined loaf pan OR press roughly 1 1/2 Tbsp (large spoon) of dough into silicone mini muffin pans until forms a little flattened disc or crust.
5. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine chocolate chips/chopped chocolate bar and coconut oil. Stir often until almost melted then add in peanut/nut/seed butter or coconut butter and stir until completely melted.
6. For loaf pan/bar preparation, pour chocolate over date mixture. For mini-muffin pan preparation, pour about 1 1/2 Tbsp of chocolate mixture over each crust.
Crumble the remaining 1/2 cup dough over the chocolate mixture evenly. Sprinkle with sea salt (if desired but I love how it brings out the chocolate flavor). Refrigerate until chocolate firms up, slice into bars (with loaf pan variation) or pop out the fudge bites and enjoy!!!