This Protein Bar Recipe with only four ingredients is the perfect peanut butter and oat bar with added protein that you need for an energy-packed snack. Make large batches of these bars and slice into portions to carry with you for snacks, or to grab for a high energy protein-packed snack before you exercise.
Homemade Protein Bar Recipe
Need a grab and go breakfast on hand for when you oversleep or just don’t feel like your normal eggs and oatmeal? This one is perfect! It will literally only take you a few minutes to prepare. After you are done, throw them in the freezer! That’s why I love them so much!
The recipe truly takes only 4 items you probably already have in your pantry. While I use vanilla protein powder, you could easily mix things up by using peanut butter, chocolate, or even the recent popular cake batter flavors. Wondering which protein powder to choose? Here’s our review of our favorite clean eating protein powders.
How to Store Homemade Protein Bars
This recipe doesn’t make a large amount of these homemade protein bars, but it does make enough that you will need to store them. Since it contains a few ingredients that can spoil if left out on the counter, you should put these into the refrigerator until ready to eat.
I prefer cutting them into squares and stacking into an airtight container. You can separate layers with a piece of parchment paper or wax paper to prevent them from sticking to each other.
If you plan to make a large batch to freeze, you will want to separate or wrap each bar just like you would if refrigerating. You can then label the container or bag with the name of the recipe and the date they were made. When you wrap them individually, it makes it easier to just grab a few at a time to thaw and eat throughout the week.
More Great Protein Snack Recipes
There are tons of protein packed snacks and breakfasts that will add variety to your daily menu. I love these protein bars, but know that these peanut butter banana protein bars are another excellent choice if you are looking for an easy grab and go option. If you like a little chocolate, then you will love these no-bake chocolate peanut butter protein bars. There are so many ways to add these bars to your daily routine. You can even sub in alternative nut butter if peanuts are an allergy.
Four Ingredient Protein Bars
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Description
This Protein Bar Recipe with only four ingredients is the perfect peanut butter and oat bar with added protein that you need for an energy-packed snack.
Ingredients
- 2 cups Gluten Free Quick Cooking Oats
- 1/2 cup Natural Peanut Butter
- 4 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder
- 1/2 cup of Water or Unsweetened Almond Milk
Instructions
- Line an 8″x8″ Glass Baking Dish (we use Pyrex) with wax or parchment paper.
- Mix all ingredients by hand in a medium size mixing bowl.
- Press mixture down into dish using a spatula to flatten.
- Freeze for approximately 30 minutes. Cut into six bars. Refrigerate.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Snack
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: easy
Whitney Carlson says
COMMENTS FROM PREVIOUS WEBSITE (ADMIN):
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Thx for the great recipe u have been making these weekly!
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I added a 1/4 cup of raisins to this recipe – it added the perfect amount of sweetness and texture.
Thanks!
-Kim
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Made these with vanilla veggie protein and old fashioned oats….eating one right now as I’m typing this. So good!!!
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The original recipe was very dry and barely stuck together, so I added more almond milk. That helped, but then I noticed the recipe doesn’t yield enough to even cover the bottom of a 9×13 pan unless super thin. I froze for what it said, then checked and they were super soft and didn’t stick together. So I froze them all night. This seemed to help a lot. I ate one frozen, was awesome. Then I refrigerated as recipe says, and they mostly crumbled again. They tasted good. I’d like to try again, but what to add to make a thicker bar that actually fills up the pan and holds together? I assume you can use any nut butter: almond, sunflower, etc. I used cookies and cream protein powder, but I’m sure any flavor is cool. I will try it again, like the simplicity of them.
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Sharing my story making these … when mixed what I thought was all the ingredients it was still quite crumbly. I still put it in the freezer with hopes it would become more solid. When it didn’t ‘magically’ become bars I came here to ask why. Then I read the ingredients again … I forgot the milk! They are much better now. Yummo! A little sticky but I think that’s because I put in an extra splash of milk just to be sure. I’m glad I did review the comments to get ideas on how to change them up.
I did want to report that the crumbly mixture wasn’t bad either if you’re looking for something that isn’t as perishable. Just measure it out and put in ziplock. My back up plan if I couldn’t make it into bars 😉
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I used Almond butter instead – also super yummy!
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I have made them like the traditional recipe called and they were great but I wanted to switch it up so I wouldn’t be eating the same thing and get sick of it. This time I made it with Chocolate Peanut Butter protein powder, added prob 1/4 c chopped walnuts and 1/3 c finely chopped reduced sugar cranraisins
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This was my first attempt at “baking” and clean eating. The LoveOfMyLife is a fabulous cook so about all I do is boil my own eggs and mix my own protein shakes. 😉 This was SO easy and good! Thanks for sharing! Cross posted to Facebook as today’s status, credit your website, of course.
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Just had a crazy peanut butter craving, made these and had about half the batch (before throwing them in the freezer. Just plain peanut butter, oats, almond milk and protein powder.) My craving’s completely killed, and these ingredients are a delicious combination!! I’m planning on making a batch of these weekly now.
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I just made these with almond butter, almond milk, the recommended protein, and the steel oats and they are so good. My husband and I just had one for “dessert” with some fat free whip cream and chocolate syrup and could have sworn we were eating cookie a la mode 🙂 So good! Great to be able to make these to know what we’re putting into our bodies, thank you for sharing! 🙂
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I just made these, pulled them out of the freezer and stole a taste of the crumbs. Oh my! I love these!! I’m making some for my kids as well. I want to start them eating clean as well. Thanks for the recipe.
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I made these with chocolate protein powder and almond butter and they were delicious!! Definitely going to be a recipe I make regularly. So easy!!
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I just made these for my boyfriend who happens to be at school all day and needs healthy snacks. He needed something to keep fresh, taste good and of course have lots of protein. So this was a good solution and he really loves them. I think next time I will use some banana and fresh ground peanuts. (Which freshly made peanut butter is really creamy and good!!) And I will try almond and cashew butter too. I will let you know the results when I make them. Thanks for posting the recipe!
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I made these & they really were super easy & tasted great! I love knowing exactly what is in them! I even made a batch for my kids but I added chocolate chips & peanut butter chips to the mix…they loved them!!
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I just made these and they are great! I used old fashioned oats and it worked just fine. Thank you so much for posting this recipe.
★★★★★
Rachel says
Has anyone used powdered peanut butter in the recipe?
Whitney Carlson says
Hi Rachel, I have never used that before in this recipe. I don’t know if the test or texture would be the same but if you do try it please let us know how it turns out. 🙂
Christina Desjardins says
Excellent bars and easy to make! Thank you!!
★★★★★