When life hands you overripe bananas, bake up some Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars with Peanut Butter Oat Streusel. Whew, that’s a mouthful! A delicious, chewy, chocolatey mouthful.
No Such Thing as a Bad Banana
I cannot even look at these photos without my mouth watering. Friends, these Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars with a Peanut Butter Oat Streusel are everything. They’re sweet, chewy, dense, and y’all, I’m not even over here pretending they are a healthier version of anything 😂. Made with butter, brown sugar, and lots and lots of love, these snacks disappear as fast as you can serve them up.
It all began one morning with a bunch of very ripe bananas. Never one to let a squishy banana go to waste, I decided to whip up something new. Something dreamy. And these banana bread bars are a dream come true! So full of flavor!
Watch Me Make These Bars!
Step into the kitchen with me to make these Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars!
What Do I Need to Make Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars?
- Unsalted butter, softened
- Creamy or crunchy peanut butter
- Light brown sugar
- Vanilla
- Eggs
- Quick-cooking oats
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Mashed ripe bananas
- Chocolate chips
When is a Banana Ripe Enough for Baking?
First, a quick tip! People ask me all the time how they’ll know if a banana is ripe enough for baking. Do your bananas look gross? Like, really gross? Then they’re ready! The more ripe a banana, the sweeter the batter.
In a pinch, you can ‘ripen’ bananas in your oven. Simply place them on a baking sheet and then bake for 30 minutes or so in a 300°F oven. Keep in mind, though, that oven-ripened bananas don’t quite have the same sweetness to them.
How to Make Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars
- To make the batter, first, cream the butter, 1/2 cup peanut butter, and brown sugar together in the bowl of an electric stand mixer until light and fluffy. Next, add your eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then, beat in a teaspoon vanilla extract.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (oats, baking powder, and baking soda. Note there’s no salt in this recipe). Next, add the oat mixture to the wet ingredients in the stand mixer and beat on low to medium speed until well combined.
- Fold in the mashed banana and then 1 cup of chocolate chips.
- To make the streusel, first stir the peanut butter, brown sugar, and oats together in a small bowl with a fork until crumbly. Next, gently mix in 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
- After spreading the bread batter evenly into a prepared baking dish, sprinkle the streusel evenly over the batter. As always, you can line your baking pan with parchment paper for an easier clean. There you have it!
- Bake at 350°F for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Finally, let cool in the pan at least 30 minutes, cut the bread into bars and enjoy a bit of chewy chocolatey heaven. Supposedly, this recipe makes 24 servings, but I’ll let y’all be the judge of that. Serve and enjoy! Your crew will devour these treats before you can say, “Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars with a Peanut Butter Oat Streusel!”
Substitutions and Storage
Nut Butters: I haven’t tried it, but I bet this recipe would work well with whatever nut butter (almond butter, cashew butter, etc.) or seed butter you choose, if peanut isn’t your thing.
Gluten Free: There’s no flour in these banana oatmeal bars, but if you want to make sure it’s free of gluten, choose gluten-free oats.
Store at room temp in an airtight container for up to three days (they won’t last that long!). Or place in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to three months.
Craving More Sweet Banana Inspiration?
Try this Classic Banana Bread or one of my flourless banana bread recipes which are all easily made in the blender with minimal ingredients. You’d never believe they don’t have any flour, butter, oil or granulated sugar in them.
I hope you and your loved ones enjoy these Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars as much as we do. When you make them, be sure to snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @thebakermama so I can see! I just love seeing how inspired and creative y’all get with the recipes and ideas I share.
xoxo,
PrintPeanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars with a Peanut Butter Oat Streusel
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 24 bars
Description
When life hands you overripe bananas, bake up some Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Bars with a Peanut Butter Oat Streusel. Whew, that’s a mouthful! A delicious, chewy, chocolatey mouthful.
Ingredients
BREAD BATTER:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups quick-cooking oats
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 4 medium ripe bananas)
- 1 cup chocolate chips
STREUSEL:
- 1/2 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9″ x 13″ x 2″ baking pan with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.
- To make the bread batter: in the bowl of an electric stand mixer, cream the butter, peanut butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the oats, baking powder and baking soda. Add the oat mixture to the ingredients in the stand mixer and beat on low to medium speed until well combined. Fold in the mashed banana and then 1 cup chocolate chips.
- Make the streusel: in a small bowl, stir the peanut butter, brown sugar and oats together with a fork until crumbly. Gently stir in 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
- Spread the bread batter evenly into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the batter.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before cutting into bars.
Notes
In this recipe, peanut butter can be substituted with almond butter or cookie butter.
Hello! This is our first time using this recipe. I had to go outside while it was baking, and I walked in the house to this aroma… I was amazed! Of course we couldn’t wait for 30 minutes after it came out 😆
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. It’s a keeper!
Hi, Carol! It makes my kitchen smell so good! I’m glad you enjoyed that amazing smell, too. Thank you for sharing!
Can you substitute the quick cooking oats as I have the large flakes
Hi, Cara! Do you mean you have old fashioned oats? If so, yes! The texture will be a little more dense and chewy, but still delicious! Hope this helps! Enjoy! ❤️
Always searching for a good GF recipe that my husband can enjoy with us. My whole family loved these. I only had old fashion oats on hand so that’s what I used.
Curious to know what changes by using the quick cooking oats?
Hi, Mari! Yay! I’m so happy y’all enjoyed them. The quick cooking vs old fashioned oats is simply a matter of texture preference. You would have gotten a chewier bite with old fashioned oat. The texture is just a little bit finer with quick cooking, but delicious either way! Hope this helps. Enjoy!❤️
I am an avid baker and almost all recipes work out for me, but this recipe is not good. It is far too sweet and both my husband and I love sweet treats. The texture was also really off. If the sugar was lessened, omitted the crumble and the oats pulsed for the base…it might have been okay. Sorry, but I would not recommend even trying this recipe.
Hi Crystal! Thanks for your feedback and opinion. It sounds like this just isn’t the recipe for y’all as there are a lot of people out there that make and enjoy these bars often, including myself.
hi there! I am Type 1 diabetic momma. I was wondering what the nutrition values and serving size are in this recipe. My T1d son is super picky and I would love to make these for him. So if it isn’t too much could you please post them for me.
Hi Heather! I don’t provide nutritional information at this time. I would recommend plugging the ingredients you use into a free online recipe nutrition calculator like: https://whisk.com/recipe-nutrition-calculator/ Hope this helps. Enjoy! ❤️
can i use old fashioned oats in the recipe????
Hi, Miriam! YES! The texture is just a little bit finer with quick cooking, so expect it to be a bit chewier with old fashioned, but delicious either way! Hope this helps. Enjoy!❤️
OMG these bars made my house so….. wonderful when I was baking them. I made them for the P.T. staff where I go, I know they will love them. Thank you so much for sharing you recipes.🤗💕🤤❤️
Hi, Mona! Don’t they smell amazing? I’m so glad you enjoyed them and I hope everyone else does, too!
Just made these today! Very good, but I only tried it warm so far. The taste is wonderful. I did sub rolled oats ( pulsed in a blender twice as mentioned in previous comments) and sub apple sauce for oil… It came out so good! Thank you.
Hi, Edwa! Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
these are super yummy! I used dark chocolate chips in the batter and left out the added chocolate chips in the streusel topping, which I found to be perfect for my taste. I think sweeter chips would have made it too sweet for my liking. I also added coconut flakes in the batter, which turned out so good!
Hello, can you use natural Peanut butter?
Hi, Estrela! Yes! You may need to adjust the salt or sugar to your taste, if your peanut butter is unsalted and unsweetened.
Do you have the nutritional values?
Hi, Donny! I don’t provide nutritional information or calorie counts at this time. I would recommend plugging the ingredients you use into a free online recipe nutrition calculator like: https://whisk.com/recipe-nutrition-calculator/ Hope this helps. Enjoy! ❤️
I make these A LOT! We make them in muffin cups and they are a quick and easy breakfast.
I’m so happy to hear, Elizabeth! I love the idea of baking the recipe in muffin cups. Perfect portions. Thanks for sharing!