These EASY Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars make a quick on-the-go breakfast or snack option that are dairy-free with zero refined sugar and drizzled with a delicious cream cheese frosting! 

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

Who says you can’t eat cake for breakfast?!

I am all about breakfast (or snacks) that I can easily grab on-the-go which is why these carrot cake bars are EVERYTHING you didn’t even know you needed.  They are the perfect combination of chewy yet moist and the cream cheese topping is literally the icing on the cake 😉  See what I did there.

These bars are also lightly sweetened with maple syrup and vanilla along with my favorite spices cinnamon and nutmeg.  No need for any added sugar!  Plus if you love oatmeal for breakfast then this is the perfect recipe for you!

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

Having “cake” for breakfast probably doesn’t seem like the healthiest choice, but I’m hoping this recipe changes your mind!  These oatmeal bars are made with ingredients like rolled oats (the old fashioned kind!), shredded carrot, coconut oil, pure maple syrup as a sweetener, along with Silk Protein Nutmilk!  I always try to add extra protein to my breakfasts because it’s such a great way to start my day which is why I love Silk’s plant-based Protein Nutmilk.  Not only are there 10 grams of protein in every serving, but this nut milk is extra creamy making it the perfect addition for these carrot cake bars!

Silk Protein Nutmilk is made from a delicious blend of almond and cashew milk with a great source of plant-based protein from 100% peas.  It’s also dairy-free, lactose-free, gluten-free and soy-free with zero saturated fat and 80% less sugar than dairy milk so you know you can feel good about this product!  For this particular recipe I used the creamy vanilla flavor, but this nut milk would also taste delicious over cereal, in smoothies, or even on its own in a glass!

I also highly recommend using delicious Silk Protein Nutmilk as a dairy-free coffee creamer because of how thick and creamy it is!  Trust me you’ll thank me later on this one.

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

Making these bars are actually really simple to throw together and take about 35 to 40 minutes in the oven.  I like to make them on Sundays when I have time to spend baking and always enjoy one fresh out of the oven before saving the others for the rest of the week!  The other great thing about these bars are that they taste great after being stored in a sealed airtight container in the fridge for a few days, but I do prefer warming them up just a bit in the microwave – just my personal preference!

I also highly suggest adding in your favorite nuts to these too if you like a good crunch!  I mean chopped pecans or walnuts would taste amazing….just saying 😉

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

If you haven’t noticed on my blog already, I’m pretty much in love with cream cheese frosting as seen here, here and here.  It’s just so easy to whip up and tastes AMAZING on any and all cakes, bars, desserts, bagels, I mean you name it!  A little drizzle of this cream cheese frosting was just the right amount to add to these carrot cake bars, but feel free to go crazy and spread frosting all over the top if you want to enjoy these as a dessert!

Don’t worry I’m not judging.

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

As I said before, these carrot cake oatmeal bars are soft and chewy with a delicious outer crunch that make these one of my new favorite snacks.  You can make these with your kids or the next time you have people over, either way they are bound to be gobbled up in no time!  I personally enjoy them for breakfast, but these bars make great after school treats or a quick snack in the middle of the work day.  I mean this recipe is literally for everyone!

Print

RECIPE

Carrot Cake Breakfast Bars

These EASY Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars make a quick on-the-go breakfast or snack option that are dairy-free with zero refined sugar and drizzled with a delicious cream cheese frosting! 

Yield: 16 Servings 1x
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 35 mins
  • Total Time: 40 mins

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups rolled oats
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp. sea salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup Silk Protein Nutmilk (or milk of choice)
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
  • 1/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1/2 cup grated carrots

For the Frosting:

  • 1/2 cup (4 oz) less-fat cream cheese, softened (use vegan cream cheese if dairy-free!)
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and sea salt. Set aside.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg, milk, coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla and stir until well-combined.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined then fold in the shredded carrots.
  5. Pour oat mixture into a prepared 8×8-inch baking dish and bake in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  6. Let the carrot cake bars sit for 5 minutes then remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
  7. While the bars are cooling, mix together cream cheese, maple syrup and vanilla and whip until smooth. Feel free to add a teaspoon of milk if you like a creamier frosting!
  8. Slice the bars into 16 pieces and drizzle the cream cheese frosting over top, enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:

  • Serving Size: 1 bar
  • Calories: 125
  • Sugar: 4.8 g
  • Sodium: 66.8 g
  • Fat: 5.9 g
  • Saturated Fat: 3.6 g
  • Carbohydrates: 16.2 g
  • Fiber: 1.7 g
  • Protein: 3.3 g

* Please note that all nutrition information are just estimates. Values will vary among brands, so we encourage you to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

If you make this recipe, share a photo on Instagram and tag it #EatYourselfSkinny . I love seeing what you made!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

As a self-proclaimed foodie and fitness enthusiast, I have a passion for cooking and a huge desire to show that living a healthy lifestyle can actually be easy and fun!  Feel free to use the meal guide above to find your new favorite meal ideas or the dietary guides to the right to narrow things down even more!

Related Recipes

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

51 Comments

  1. Stacey says:

    I made these – I substituted 1 cup oat flour based on reviews AND because I saw it at the grocery store – they turned out perfect! Cut perfectly – my 6 year old loves them! I did add a bit extra maple syrup to the frosting because I knew my kids would eat them if they were a bit sweeter. I may add some crushed pineapple just to try. These are amazing and will be a go to in our house! Thank you!!

    1. Cristina Chillem says:

      Did you substitute 1 cup oat flour for the 1 1/2 cups rolled oats, or you did 1 cup oat flour and 1/2 cup rolled oats? Thank you!

  2. R.F. says:

    I’m sorry to say that these were a disaster. The ones in your photos clearly have some kind of flour in them, so it’s not possible for someone to follow your recipe and get the same results as depicted in your photos. That’s really unkind to your readers.

    I followed the recipe exactly. Mine came out looking like granola, and crumbled like it too. After cutting them into squares with a very sharp knife, an entire bar’s worth of oats had fallen onto the cutting board. There’s too much cinnamon and not nearly enough carrot. There’s no way to tell when they’re done baking; of course a toothpick will come out clean because there’s no batter to stick to it, so the bars passed the toothpick test at 35 minutes but were clearly underbaked in the middle once I cooled and cut them. Of course there was no way to fix it at that point.

    If I were going to try to rescue them, I’d reduce the cinnamon, double the carrot, replace 2/3 of the rolled oats with quick oats, and add at least 1/4 cup flour and more if needed for the batter to properly cohere. But at that point I might as well just go find another recipe.

    Please be honest with your readers and post your real recipes and process photos. This is just setting people up for disappointment.

    1. Kelly says:

      I’m sorry to hear these did not work out for you, but I assure you I have NEVER posted photos of a recipe that were not the exact ingredients used. I do agree a bit of flour would help with the binding and I’m happy to revisit this recipe and adjust as-needed, but I have a feeling the bars may not have been cooled completely before cutting into them which would cause them to fall apart. I have never had this issue and I apologize that this recipe was a failure for you. I’ll test this recipe again and make the necessary adjustments and I do appreciate your feedback!