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Healthy Carrot Cake Bars

Healthy carrot cake bars are vegan and made with a raisin and date puree, shredded carrots, peanut butter and oats. This delicious carrot cake oatmeal bars recipe makes for a family-friendly snack any time of year and tastes just like carrot oatmeal raisin bars!

overhead shot of carrot cake no bake bars topped with shredded carrots on parchment paper

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Whether you enjoy carrot cake for Easter or not, these vegan carrot cake oatmeal bars are healthy and worth enjoying as a snack any time of year.

As a dietitian, I preach to my clients to rely on easy, healthy snacks when needed. Healthy no bake snacks come in handy when energy is low but you want something quick. 

Similar to no bake carrot cake bites, these easy oatmeal carrot bars only require a handful of ingredients, probably ingredients that you always keep stocked in your pantry

Why You’ll Love Healthy Carrot Cake Bars

  • No oven required – Don’t we all love no-bake recipes for that reason? Easy and quick, and you can eat the batter as you go!
  • Quick and easy – Carrot cake snack bars are quick and easy. Once you process everything, let them rest in the freezer, in which case you can work on other meal or snack prep.
  • Kid friendly – Healthy carrot cake bars are my favorite spring recipe for kids! Kids love them because they are slightly sweet, chewy and they can even help you make them.
  • Veggies included – Don’t we all love recipes that showcase veggies, especially for those picky eaters? Carrots add a nice natural sweetness and a slew of nutrition!
  • Wonderful taste of carrot cake – Get the delicious taste of carrot cake without the indulgence through these healthy carrot cake bars.

Ingredients For Carrot Oat Bars

Have you ever tried the carrot cake lara bars? I was inspired to make my own after instantly falling in love with them!

You’ll be pleasantly surprised how easy these carrot oat bars come together. Here’s what you’ll need:

  • oats – Rolled oats or old-fashioned oats will work
  • shredded carrots – I love to use this as a vegetable shredder.
  • raisins – A dried fruit that adds lots of nutrition and natural sweetness.
  • coconut oil – A nice neutral fat that helps these stick together and provides structure.
  • peanut butter – Peanut butter can be substituted with another nut butter. It helps add flavor and structure, while helping these carrot oatmeal bars stick together.
  • dates – impart a natural sweetness along with the shredded carrots.
  • spices – I used ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt to amplify the carrot cake oatmeal flavor.
ingredients in clear bowl for carrot cake oatmeal bars

I’ve always been jealous of people enjoying the typical carrot cake. Carrot cake is typically made with walnuts, and I’m allergic to walnuts – so these tasty oatmeal carrot bars are made without walnuts.

And as you probably could have guessed, since there is no baking (or eggs) involved, you can enjoy these vegan carrot cake oatmeal bars as you go.

How to Make Carrot Cake Oatmeal Bars

To process these healthy carrot bars, you will need a food processor or at the very least, a mini food processor.

This recipe is unique in that we’re upgrading the typical date puree to a raisin-date puree, which really sets these healthy carrot cake oatmeal bars apart.

I pureed dates and raisins together to combine natural sweeteners and then added the other dry ingredients.

food processor with raisin and date puree
Add softened dates to food processor and pulse until softened. Add in raisins and carrots.
dates, raisins and oats pureed in food processor
Add part of the rolled oats, coconut oil, peanut butter, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt to processor.

HOT TIP

If the dates are too tough, remember to soften them in warm water, if need be.


Then, you’ll add in the rest of the ingredients and pulse until combined. Transfer it to a baking pan with parchment paper and put it in the freezer to firm up. 

And, that’s that. Let them rest in the freezer for about 45 minutes, and then cut into individual carrot cake snack bars!

9x9 baking pan with healthy oatmeal carrot bars

Easy Kid Friendly Snack

These carrot oat bars work perfectly as a kid-friendly snack, especially when paired with my favorite yogurt pouches for toddlers.

There are no added sugars, and the natural sugars come from dates and raisins. They are also high in fiber, and get healthy fat and protein from peanut butter. There’s nothing not to love!

carrot cake oatmeal bars on parchment paper for serving

I like offering these carrot cake oat bars to my toddler daughter because she can eat them as we go along, and it’s a new way for her to eat carrots.

These bars also make for road trip snacks for toddlers. 

Plus when she hears healthy carrot cake bars, the cake part gets her excited – just like with healthy banana oatmeal cookies.

We typically don’t shred carrots much otherwise, so this is a fun new way to present (new) vegetables – a key tip to get toddlers to eat veggies!

healthy no bake carrot cake bars cut into squares on gray plate with gold lining and raisins on plate

FAQ

How do you store carrot cake oat bars?

Just store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days. You can also keep them in the fridge (for up to 7 days) or freezer (up to 3 months).

Can you freeze them?

Yes, they are good in the freezer for up to 3 months! I like to just take them out of the freezer and let them thaw for 10 minutes before enjoying them. Slater with peanut butter or greek yogurt.  

Can you add icing?

Totally! If you wanted to add a vegan icing, you could mix powdered sugar, vegan butter, vanilla extract and a plant-based milk. Here’s a run down of how to make it

You may enjoy some of these other recipes!

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Yield: 12 bars

Healthy Carrot Cake Bars

overhead shot of carrot cake no bake bars topped with shredded carrots on parchment paper

Carrot Oatmeal Raisin Bars are a delicious carrot cake bars recipe made with a raisin and date puree, shredded carrots, peanut butter and oats. They make for a family friendly snack any time of year!

Prep Time 5 minutes
Additional Time 45 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup pitted dates (soaked and softened)
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 1 cup shredded carrots (about 2-3 medium carrots)
  • 2 ¼ cups rolled oats, divided
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • ¼ cup drippy peanut butter 
  • 1/8 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • ½ tsp salt

Instructions

  1. Soak dates in water to soften them, if needed.
  2. Add softened and pitted dates to food processor and pulse until chopped and combined. Add raisins and shredded carrots and pulse a bit more.
  3. Add 1 ¼ cup of rolled oats, coconut oil, peanut butter, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt to processor.
  4. Pulse for 2-4 minutes, or until all ingredients are mixed and well combined.
  5. Transfer to bowl and mix with the remaining cup of rolled oats until oats are soaked into date and raisin mixture.
  6. Line 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper. Transfer mixture to pan and push down evenly.
  7. Transfer to freezer for 45 minutes to firm up.
  8. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 160Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 131mgCarbohydrates: 27gFiber: 3gSugar: 12gProtein: 4g

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  1. This is such a tasty recipe and another way for me to enjoy the delicious flavor of carrot cake!! Thanks, Sarah! 🙂

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