Say goodbye to sad packaged granola bars and hello to these easy homemade snack bars. The best part of these Chocolate Oatmeal Trail Bars might be the topping: crunchy trail mix pressed into a layer of chocolate and tahini that adds texture, flavor and just the right amount of salty-sweet balance. Paired with the chewy oatmeal base, they make an incredibly satisfying homemade snack made with simple wholesome ingredients.
This post was updated from the original that was published December 4, 2017.
Ingredient Notes
- Nuts and seeds: I tested this in various combinations and it always worked best when there were some small seeds like chia and hemp that filled in the gaps between the larger nuts like walnuts, pistachios and almonds, and stuck to the melted chocolate and tahini.
- Dates: the bottom bar layer really needed moist dates (buy them with the pits in and remove them yourself) to hold it together.
- Dry ingredients: I love the nutty combination of almond flour and oats but you could go grain-free and use all almond flour or another ground nut.
Step by Step
Preheat oven to 350 and line square baking pan with unbleached parchment.
Place oats, almond flour, cacao powder, dates, tahini, maple syrup and salt into the bowl of a food processor.
Process until crumbly. Scrape down sides and continue to process until oats and dates are ground and mixture will stick together when pinched between thumb and finger.
Transfer bottom layer into a 8″ square pan that’s been lined with unbleached parchment paper. Pro tip: use paper clips to hold the parchment in place until you fill it, then remove them before baking.
Push mixture down and out so it’s compact and evenly dispersed. I use the back of a dry measuring cup to help do this with an even result. Bake for 10 minutes.
While the oven is on, place your nuts and seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet and let them toast, undisturbed for 10 minutes.
When base layer is finished, turn the oven off, sprinkle the chocolate chips onto the oatmeal layer and put back into the oven for 4 minutes.
Use an offset spatula to spread the melted chocolate across the entire base.
Use a spoon to blob the tahini onto the chocolate.
A knife or a toothpick will work well to gently incorporate tahini into the melted chocolate.
Add the dried cherries to the toasted nuts and seeds and sprinkle onto the tahini mixture. Add a pinch of flakey sea salt, if desired and pop it into the fridge for at least 30 minutes to set.
Gently lift the parchment out of the pan and place the oatmeal trail mix onto a cutting board.
Start by cutting in half both ways and then continue to cut those smaller pieces into halves until desired size.
Trail Mix Bars are best stored in the fridge for 2 weeks, or freeze for 3 months in an airtight container. Enjoy them cold or at room temperature.
Debra’s Pro Tips
- NUTS: buy raw nuts where possible and toast them yourself. If your nuts are already toasted, skip the 10 minutes in the oven.
- Yes, you can eat these straight from the freezer. Do it!
- Press down and compact the base layer as much as you can before baking. This is crucial for it to hold together.
- You will be able to cut into bars of any size once the entire thing has set, so don’t skip putting it into the fridge for awhile to chill.
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📖 Recipe
Chocolate Oatmeal Trail Mix Bars
Equipment
- 8 inch square baking pan
Ingredients
Bottom Layer
- 6 medjool dates
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
- ¼ cup tahini
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup old fashioned oats.
- 1 cup almond flour
- 2 Tablespoons cacao powder
Second Layer
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips about 6-oz.
- 3 teaspoons tahini
- ¼ teaspoon flakey sea salt I use maldoon
Topping
- 3 Tablespoons raw pistachios
- 3 Tablespoons sliced raw almonds
- 3 Tablespoons cup raw walnuts
- 2 Tablespoons raw pepitas
- 2 Tablespoons raw sunflower seeds
- 1 Tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 Tablespoon hemp seeds
- 1 Tablespoon unsweetened and unsulfured dried cherries chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 and line a 8 x 8 square baking pan with parchment paper
- Make bottom layer: Put all ingredients of bottom layer into food processor and process until crumbly. Scrape into pan and use fingers to pat down evenly. Bake for 10 minutes.
- Place all ingredients (except dried cherries) onto baking sheet and add to oven for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, turn oven off. Remove nuts/seeds to cool. Sprinkle chocolate over bottom layer and put back in oven for 4 minutes. Use offset spatula to spread chocolate evenly. Glob tahini onto chocolate and use a toothpick to swirl it into chocolate. Sprinkle with sea salt and then the nut/dried cherry mix.
- Let cool in fridge for 30 minutes for chocolate layer to harden before cutting into squares. Store in fridge for two weeks or in the freezer for up to 3 months—if they last that long!
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
Renee
These look seriously delicious and oh, so healthy!! Yummy!
Debra Klein
All of the above for sure!
Mary
Thanks for the ideas! Will definitely try the Trail Bars with friends.
Your mother’s Nevada friend, Mary Bobbett
Debra Klein
Awesome Mary…..maybe you can share some with my Mother!!
Elly McGuinness
These look amazing! I have lots of delicious slice recipes but they are really not suitable for the trail because they need to be in the fridge or freezer (they fall apart at room temperature). I will definitely try these because the healthy ones on the market are usually very pricey. Thanks Debra!
Debra Klein
You’re welcome! We absolutely LOVE these…..great options when trail mix alone isn’t enough!
Alyson Morse Katzman
Haven’t made these in a long time and was so pleased with how yummy they are. The only problem was that they were really crumbly when I cut them…. what did I do wrong?
Debra Klein
I’m not sure…but my first guess would be that your tahini was on the dry rather than drippy side. It’s important when you first open a new jar to mix THOROUGHLY so it has a uniform consistency. So, it’s possible your bottom layer was a bit too dry.