Pumpkin Spice Oat Bars

Tis the season of pumpkin spice and we'd have to argue that pumpkin spice is the epitome, the very essence of the fall season. Touché? While we love a warm, cozy bowl of oatmeal, a warm slice of pumpkin bread, we thought why not coalesce the two! These Pumpkin Spice Oat Bars are everything you love about oats and muffins, baked into one delicious fall treat.

When it comes to the ingredients, they are simple, nutrient-dense, gluten free, dairy free, and naturally sweetened with Joolies date syrup. These oat bars are thick and chewy from the oats, yet still remain soft and fluffy from the flour, for the perfect balance. If you're looking for more protein, feel free to add in your favorite protein powder or collagen peptides!

Other than these pumpkin oat bars being absolutely delicious, another thing we love about them is how ridiculously easy they are to whip up (or add to your meal prep)! All this magic happens in ONE mixing bowl--no sifting, no mixing dry ingredients before, none of that--so even clean up is easy😉 

Ingredients in these oats:

1. 1. Gluten-Free Oats
      
      • We recommend using quick or rolled oats to achieve the desired texture. Some of our favorite gluten-free oat brands are Thrive Market and Bob's Red Mill
   2. Joolies Date Syrup 
      • The only natural sweetener needed, made with one simple ingredient: medjool dates! Plus, you still maintain all the nutrient and health benefits of a medjool date in the syrup form.
   3. Pumpkin Puree 
      • Pumpkin is rich in Vitamin A and antioxidants to help boost your immune system!  Make sure you grab 100% pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling 🎃
   4. Coconut Flour
      
      • A few tablespoons of coconut flour helps absorb extra moisture so our bars do not end up an ooey gooey mess!
   5. Eggs
      • This adds structure to the bars and helps to bind everything together. We recommend using pasture raised eggs so you get that beautiful golden yolk that is full of healthy Omega-3s, choline, and good cholesterol 🍳
   6. Coconut Oil
      • To keep it dairy free, we used refined coconut oil in placement of butter. Be sure to melt it and let it cool before adding it in to the mix. Note: refined coconut oil has zero coconut taste while unrefined does have a coconut taste.
   7. Pumpkin Pie Spice 
      • These add that "pumpkin spice" favor we all love!
        
   8. Baking Soda
      • This small, but mighty ingredient is essential to getting the bake up!
   9. Vanilla + salt
      • Both of these help compliment and accentuate the other flavors.
   10. Dark Chocolate Chips
       • Adding some chocolate in is totally optional (or is it😉?), but if you are a chocolate lover like we are, this addition is a must! If chocolate isn't your thing, throw in some walnuts or chopped medjool dates instead!