This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars (V+GF): an easy recipe for soft, chewy cookie bars made from simple ingredients, bursting with juicy raisins and walnuts. Vegan and Gluten Free.
Cookie bars are the best, aren’t they? And my, have we come a long way since our younger days, when we may or may not have been very distrusting of oatmeal raisin cookies. Just sayin’.
If you have no clue what I’m talking about, or you’ve loved oatmeal raisin cookies from the start, read this and everything will make sense.
In any case, when I was a kid, I had a lot of zany ideas about things. But that was half of the fun, ya know? When you’re a kid, anything can be real. Anything is possible. Back then, I spent a lot of time tinkering around the house by myself because my folks were off working and my sisters were busy collecting neon stickers and listening to Vanessa Williams. Yes, they will kill me for revealing this to you.
Since I’m in trouble anyway, I might as well tell you that they also listened to Michael Bolton. Can you imagine, seven-year-olds listening to Michael Bolton?
*Raises eyebrows*
Before they come and get me, let’s talk about some of these youthful kitchen shenanigans. Quick, before it’s too late! Alright, so you might’ve already heard about my childhood fear of peanut butter. That evil TV was always leading me astray, let me tell ya!
Well, when I was seven or so, I saw this incredible infomercial for this neon green device that could do, like anything. Yes, anything! Well, at least the important anythings. Consider this: this small, compact-sized tool was battery-operated, and, wait for it…
A travel-friendly whisk.
And (yes and) a mini fan.
Dude. Just… DUDE.
Literally, one second during this infomercial, the presenter person would be drenched in sweat, ready to pass out, holding this bright green device near his face, enjoying the cool breeze. The next second, this magical device was in a big glass bowl, happily whipping its way through eggs.
What the?!? I mean, if you’re a kid that believes becoming a Firefighter Astronaut Figure Skater Gymnast one day could happen, you’re not gonna be super astounded by much. And did I mention that was just the day job?
But THIS. This battery-operated, bright green… thing… it was clearly the answer to everything. I mean, what one thing can solve profuse sweating and non-aerated eggs in one fell… whip? This. This travel-friendly whisk/mini-fan hybrid.
Can you imagine?
So there I stood, in my fruit-print jumpsuit, with shiny purple buttons I’d asked my mom to sew on (to match the grapes, of course), eyes big as saucers, staring/wanting/wishing/hoping for this fan whisk. Oh, the food I could make with this whisk; the sweat I could dry! The possibilities were endless.
But before I could even think about asking my mom to buy it for me, I just had to make my own version. To test it out, of course. So I rifled through all of the cabinets, til I found the straws from McDonald’s. I grabbed a scissor, snipped it off in a way I thought was very clever (see: purple grape-matching buttons genius), then I stuck a chopstick on the other end. I cracked some eggs into a bowl, removed the yolks, and rolled the chopstick/straw/”whisk” vigorously between my two palms.
I held my breath, waiting for the magic to happen. I rolled and rolled til I, funnily enough, got pretty sweaty.
A few bubbles started to form. But no whip. Now, sweating profusely and completely unaware of the meaning of irony, I rolled again. Could I simulate the magic fan whisk? Could I make these eggs fluffy with my self-made prototype?
No. I couldn’t. The experiment failed. But. Isn’t there always a but? I brought the sad bowl of bubbly eggs to my mom and showed her anyway.
After she got done yelling at me for wasting food, she waited for an explanation. I told her at once how my home experimenting and color-matching cleverness was reason enough to hear my case. The thing is, my chopstick straw whisk didn’t work because I didn’t have the exact infomercial product. Duh!
That infomercial was not to blame for me wasting eggs. In fact, it should’ve been given extra shiny gold star stickers for turning me into an engineer. Or something. A food scientist? Who knows! All I knew was that those words sounded important and might lead to me getting that magic toy.
And guess what? 4-6 weeks later, it arrived in the mail.
And I whipped egg whites like it was no one’s business. Then, I rinsed it off, because eggs can be really, really gross. Especially on your face. Then I fanned myself… then climbed up my special step stool and fanned my mom. Because, she rocked. And she was sweaty.
I don’t have that otherwordly, uber magical multitasking invention of the century anymore, but I do have a great, great love for experimenting in the kitchen. And I still have a mom that’s always willing to root for me. And support me in all of my kitchen “experiments.”
So join me, would ya? Whip up this super simple, whisk/fan-not required oatmeal raisin cookie bars goodness. Spoiler alert: this kitchen experiment is gonna work. 😉
These Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars are made full of love and…
- super easy to make
- vegan and gluten free
- chewy, soft and satisfying
- packed full of raisins, oats and walnuts
- made of the simplest ingredients
- whipped up by a color-matching genius
Try it out and let me know what you think! And while you’re at it, perhaps you’d like to check out these amazing gluten free lemon bars from Noshtastic. To make ’em vegan, swap the eggs for flax eggs and use organic sugar! Or, if you’re in the mood for chocolate, you could whip up these Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars from My Gluten-Free Kitchen. Just be sure to use dairy-free butter, dairy-free cream cheese, vegan chocolate chips and flax eggs to make them vegan. Back to what I was saying… 😉 whether or not you have your own fruit-print jumpsuit (with matching buttons), you’ll have tons of fun whipping up these cookie bars in the kitch.
☀︎Click below to Pin ☀︎
☀︎ Did you make this recipe? Take a pic and share it on Instagram with the hashtag #beamingbaker and tag @beamingbaker. I would love to see it! ☀︎
Oatmeal Recipes We Love
- Oatmeal Raisin Energy Bites
- Dairy Free Oatmeal Cookies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Vegan Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
- Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars (Vegan, Gluten Free)
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
- ¼ cup unsalted, natural almond butter
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup gluten free rolled oats
- ¼ cup gluten free oat flour
- 2 tablespoons ground flax
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Add-ins
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8×8 pan with parchment or greased foil. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: coconut oil, almond butter, maple syrup, coconut sugar and vanilla.
- In a large bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients: oats, flour, flax, cinnamon and salt.
- Pour the wet mixture over the dry mixture. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, fold until well mixed. Fold in raisins and walnuts.
- Pour this mixture into your baking pan. Using a rubber spatula, spread into an even layer.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes. Keep in mind that the bars will harden as they cool.
- Allow to cool on a cooling rack. Slice into 16 bars. Enjoy!
Notes
If you love oatmeal raisin cookie bars, try out my No Bake Oatmeal Raisin Granola Bars (Vegan, Gluten Free).
Breakfast just got so much happier. Try my Good Morning Breakfast Cookies (Vegan, Gluten Free).
More Oatmeal Raisin Recipes
I’ve totally been eyeing these Gluten Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies with Irish Cream Icing from Fearless Dining! Don’t they sound amazing?
In case you’re feeling more like a no bake bite, try my No Bake Oatmeal Raisin Bites! They’re deliciously vegan and gluten free. 🙂
What inspires you to cook?
I can’t wait to hear your responses.
These are amazing! Perfect amount of sweetness. Thanks for sharing this great recipe.
Woohoo! So happy that you enjoyed them, Abby. 🙂
Delicious and addictive but maybe I did something wrong. I followed the recipe exactly but I’m not sure how you get 16 bars from it. Unless they are tiny morsel bitesize of “bars”. What did I do?
Great recipe!!
Hi Lee-Anne, I’m so glad you enjoyed the oatmeal raisin bars! If you want larger bars, try cutting them into 9 bars instead of 16. Happy baking! 🙂
That’s a great idea!! That’s what I ended up doing. But I was just wondering if I did something wrong or if the 16 bars were actually suppose to be so small. Regardless, I’ll be making them again. Definitely delicious regardless of size.
ohh my. i just made these and they are absolutely, insanely, DELICIOUS! i’m always cautious when trying a recipe for the first time so i made a half batch, but now i’m so wishing i made double. thank you so much! these will become a staple, i’m sure.
Hi Emily! 🙂 What a fantastic comment to see on a Monday morning! 🙂 I’m SO happy that you enjoyed these! Isn’t one of the best parts the smell of the batter when you’re preparing it? I completely understand your caution, for sure. Thank you for taking the time to let me know how you liked these. Happy Baking and Happy Monday to you! 🙂
Best. Story. Ever. Although I gotta say, I was a little sad not to see a picture of you in that outfit with the whisk! I will console myself by making your perfectly delectable, non-whisked oatmeal raisin bars! 🙂
LOL. Thanks so much Kate! If only I had a pic of my in the jumpsuit WITH the whisk. Wouldn’t that be something <-- that could give us a good laugh during a bad day. 😉 Thanks my dear!
Oh my goodness, Demeter!! You are hilarious! & this whisk/fan sounds like such an awesome invention!! But not nearly as cool as these cookie bars 🙂 I have to set aside time to try these – what a perfect healthy treat!
Thanks so much Megan! 🙂 Okay, if you think these cookie bars are cooler than the whisk/fan, let me just say… THANK YOU!!! 😉 🙂 Let me know you like them if you do. Thanks M. 🙂
LOL…LOL… LOL… I was imagining you in that jumpsuit running around for that whip magic. That sounds the Food scientist in you. Thanks for the great laugh i had now reading this post. Every failed experiment or curiosity is a lesson and i had quite a lot in kitchen too. Thanks again dear.
I was reminded of my childhood experiment of making a cakes with biscuits and how it was a great flop show. i ended wasting a few buscuit packs with whole lot of mess in the kitchen top. My granny came yelling at me. Poor granny, she had to clean all those mess. Result was a running biscuit flour mix which went straight to the waste:)
Yup! You have it exactly right Smitha, as usual. 😉 Do food scientists get to wear jumpsuits? One can only hope… Haha. I’m so happy that you had a good laugh over this post–it’s official, my work is done here. 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing your own childhood experiments with me. Well, considering how well you cook and bake now, I’d say your granny’s work paid off! xo
Awwww, so adorable! I mean, the 7 year old in the fruit print jump suit that was obsessed with the whisk/fan (?) AND the mom that ordered it for her. My heart is melting. And if that whisk/fan had any influence on your love for baking, then even better! Love these cookie bars. My college boyfriend would sometimes bring home oatmeal raisin cookies that his grandma mad and I was obsessed with them. I ate way more than my fair share of them (because I am a lady). But I don’t think I have ever made them myself, so I’m glad I now have your recipe!
I’m so, so happy that you enjoyed this post, Meghan. 🙂 Especially the heart-melting part. Can I just say that my heart melted back? <3 Woah, I cannot even fathom how amazing your bf's grandma's cookies were! I'm drooling just thinking about it. Hey, let's be ladies with REAL appetites together, shall we? 😉 Thanks Meghan!
These bars looks gorgeous. I love the combo and every single ingredient used in the recipe. Can’t wait to try this out. Bookmarked!
Thanks so much Kushi! Let me know you like it when you do. 🙂
I didn’t know about Michael Bolton, but now I know — thanks to you! I love food in bar forms and so much yes to these oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars. Your bars are super stunning and super adorable. Love how easy to make these soft and chewy cookie bars. Also love them because they super easy to make +vegan and gluten free too. Wish you a lovely week ahead. 🙂
Haha… glad to spread the knowledge! 😉 Oh yes, food in bar form is just a whole new treat, right? 😉 Thanks so much Anu! Hope you have a wonderful week as well. xo
So I have a confession to make…actually two to be precise. First of all, I didn’t know who Michael Bolton is. I might have actually googled him. Yes, I’m embarrassed now too, especially when I saw that he is the famous guy who sang “When a Man Loves a Woman”. Moving on to my second less embarrassing confession: Your pictures are so darn pretty that I sometimes come here just to gaze at them. Let’s be honest, not everybody can make oatmeal raisin bars look so stunning and appealing. It’s literally candy for my eyes. These really look delicious!!
Two confessions… woah! No need to be embarrassed at all, Natanja. It was actually meant to be kind of embarrassing for my sisters and I because little kiddos don’t usually know who Michael Bolton is. In sum, you are WAY cooler than us. Lol. 😉 Gazing: Aww… okay, I’m just seriously blushing right now. <--there's my "coolness" (read: dorkiness) shining through. Thanks so much Natanja. 🙂
Haha thank you Demeter! Let’s agree that we are both cool (read: dorky) 😉