Figuring out what to eat on busy weekday mornings will never go down as one of my favorite pastimes. For us, we are getting kids dressed and ready and making sure lunches are packed, so usually there isn’t enough time to cook breakfast. In those moments, we need to lean on easy and hopefully healthy options. In addition, it’s nice to get some protein in, and they have everyone enjoy it. That’s a tall order…
As you all know by now, instead of buying pre-packaged food from the store, I like to make our own so we know the ingredients are clean! Enter these homemade Chocolate Chip Banana Breakfast Bars. They only take a few minutes to prep, a little time to bake and cool, and can help jumpstart your day with a better option than Lucky Charms or Eggo waffles!
Let’s walk through a few of the key ingredients and cooking tips to help you crush this meal and be the dinner time hero:
- Bananas – I cannot stress this enough, but a major key to the success and taste of the recipe is using very ripe bananas. They should be almost to the point where you would consider tossing them because they are soft. That will make them easy to mash, and also they will have a much stronger ‘banana’ flavor.
If they are yellow or firm in any way, wait a few days before making these. You will enjoy them much more if you do!
- Syrup or Honey – Whichever you prefer, you can go with. I usually lean towards honey when I make these, but have tried both, and both work.
- Add a little Protein – This step is completely optional, but it’s an easy addition that can help give these breakfast bars a little boost! I am a huge fan of adding, and if you use the right flavor and brand, no one will know!
See below for full measurements and cooking instructions!
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Baking dish
Ingredients
- 3 ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1/3 cup syrup or honey
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1½ cups oats
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- Peel your ripe bananas, discard the peel, and add them to a large mixing bowl.
- Using a fork, mash the banana until most of the lumps are broken apart and the remaining ones are small.
- Add in the peanut butter, honey, and vanilla extract and mix well.
- Add the oats, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, chocolate chips, and protein powder (if desired).
- Give everything one final mix.
- Line a 9×9 baking dish with parchment paper.
- Pour in the banana mixture and spread evenly throughout the dish.
- Bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Let cool for 10-20 minutes, then slice and serve!
- Enjoy!
