Sometimes I really miss living in the country. When I was growing up, acquiring fresh blueberries was just a matter of walking outside and picking them from one of the bushes in our yard. Getting my blueberry fix these days takes a little more effort. For the past few summers, E and I have visited a local U-pick blueberry farm where we’d spend an hour or so in the sun and come home with a couple of gallons of blueberries, some to be eaten immediately and most to be frozen for later.
Well, this year “our” U-pick farm has gone out of business, and we haven’t succeeded in finding another. So we’ve had to make do with the next best thing: organically grown blueberries from the local natural foods store. When I saw them there a few days ago, I just had to pick up a pint; even though the cost was several times what I’d pay to pick my own, blueberries are such a part of summer to me that I couldn’t pass them up.
Besides, I really needed them to make these bars, which I’d been craving for a few weeks. You won’t believe how healthy they are: no refined flour, no white sugar, no added fat, no soy, and no gluten*. They’re not super-sweet, but they’re full of fresh fruity taste.
Blueberry-Oat Bars
(printer-friendly version)
If you prefer a sweeter bar, add more agave nectar, sugar, stevia, or your favorite sweetener to the blueberries as they are cooking. Or add a sugar glaze on top by mixing a little vegan powdered sugar with water until it’s the right consistency for drizzling.
1 pint blueberries
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup apple juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with enough water or juice to form a smooth paste
3 cups oatmeal* (regular, not instant)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces unsweetened applesauce
6 tablespoons (3/8 cup) agave nectar
6 tablespoons (3/8 cup) water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 375F. Oil an 8×8-inch baking dish.
In a small saucepan, combine the blueberries, agave nectar, and juice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When it boils, stir in the vanilla and the cornstarch mixture. Continue to stir as the mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat and set aside.
Put 1 1/2 cups of the oatmeal into a blender and grind it to a fine powder. Pour it into a medium-sized mixing bowl and add the remaining oatmeal, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Stir in the apple sauce, agave nectar, water, and vanilla, and mix well.
Spread half of the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing well to cover the bottom of the pan. Spoon the blueberry filling over the batter, and cover the blueberries with the remaining batter.
Bake for 30 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.
*Use gluten-free oats to make these gluten-free.
Makes 16 bars. Each contains 117 Calories (kcal); 1g Total Fat; (7% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 26g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 81mg Sodium; 2g Fiber. Weight Watchers 2 Flex Points.
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I'm SusanV, and I love good food. Join me as I create delicious dishes made with whole foods and without a lot of processed fat and sugar. 
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{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
Susan, I'm dying to make the blueberry bars recipe but I don't have a blender, and my food processor is broken. Could I use oat flour for the ground-up oats?
Sure, Gracie, if you have oat flour, that will work perfectly. Hope you enjoy them!
I tried this recipe last night since I had some leftover blueberries and I must say….WOW!!! I followed the recipe word for word but I did not put any powdered sugar as I felt they were great as is. I realized this is a great idea for diabetics since there is no sugar (agave nectar is an approved sweetener by the Diabetic Association due to its low glycemic index) or white flour in this recipe. I have already referred a friend to your site as we both have diabetic parents and also we are always looking for a healthier vegan treat
Please keep up the wonderful work and I look forward to trying more of your recipes!!!
Even my "I hate anything healthy" family loved these! Thank you!
They were great! Thanks for the recipe.
I made these the other night and they were delicious. For seconds, my husband and I had them with some chocolate cherry soy icecream which was also quite yummy.
I made these and they were delicious. Unfortunately I am on my own a lot so I gave most of it to some friends who have a big family and they all loved it and asked for more. Will definietly make them again.
I made these and they were absolutely delicious!
I went out and bought a pint of blueberries specially for these bars. I'm so glad I did! These bars turned out fantastic. I ended up using a blueberry-flavoured applesauce and they are so tasty. Thank you!!
Susan, I love love love your blog and these were amazing! Thank you so much for your work.
These were truly delicious!
I too had some trouble with the top layer, but as they say, practice makes perfect, so I guess I'll just have to cook this more often
these bars are amazing. in fact, this website in general is simply amazing!! so fantastic to find alternative recipes for health junkies! these bars satisfy even those with the sweetest tooths' cravings! i (non-vegan but self-diagnosed health freak) teamed these yummy bars with natural yoghurt and fresh strawberries – much more than a bar, more like a slice of crumble! fantastic – thanks!!
I have made these many times since discovering the recipe about three months ago, they are a huge hit around here with my 3.5- and 2-year-olds. My husband would probably like them too, but he's been too slow to partake and they all get eaten before he gets to them! They work well with raspberries in place of blueberries, or apples. Yesterday I made them with a no-cook pumpkin filling — 1 c pumpkin + 1/2 c applesauce + nutmeg — which I thought was great, but it was a little less popular with the kiddos…. I sub nutmeg for the cinnamon, and I'm going to try the lemon zest suggested by some people. I too found the filling a bit on the sweet side, so I tried using water instead of apple juice. Thanks for the great recipe!
These look delicious–I'm going to try them once I get some blueberries. Do you think you can post the sugar content for your recipes along with all the other nutritional information though? some recent studies show that sugar contributes much more to weight gain and aging than fat or anything else does, so I'm most concerned about the sugar content.
Thanks!
Susan, I agree with most of the ladies here that this recipe looks very simple and the bars look very nutritious and delicious.
I wanted to make this macrobiotic and would like to use Barley malt instead of Agave. Do you know what should be the proportion of Barley Malt that I should be using?
Thanks!
Deepti
My daughter and I made these yesterday for my diabetic DH. We all enjoyed it for a nice dessert. My 6 y/o DD especially LOVED it. Thank you
I just made this recipe and accidently left out most of the applesauce… and it was still delicious! I really love your blog, and every recipe I’ve made so far has been delicious. Thanks!
Thanks for this great dessert! It reminds me of blueberry cobbler. Susan, you haven’t failed me yet. Keep up the good work!
I made these back in 2008 when I discovered this site (which made it SO much easier to change from omnivore to low fat vegan — Thank you, Susan!). They tasted good, but I had to pick chunks of cornstarch out of the blueberries. How much water do you use to make the “smooth paste”?
Made these today – super easy and quick. Pretty tasty. I found the vanilla a bit overpowering, so I think next time I make these, I will reduce the amount. =)
I preferred these as a snack during exercise. Not too sweet, moist and packs well. I wrote about my experiences here: http://tastespace.wordpress.com/2010/08/23/blueberry-oat-bars/
These are awesome!!! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe.
I made this recipe and love it but my husband and daughter said they were not sweet enough! They are meat eaters, I am vegan. I love this website and have it listed on my favorites list.
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