Chocolate Oatmeal Snack Bars (ZBar Copycat Recipe)
A while back I stopped buying snacks at the grocery store for my kids. Most of the kids snack options these days are loaded with processed sugar, seed oils, and dyes! The healthy options can get expensive too. Ever since we made the change to homemade snacks, I’ve been experimenting with copycat recipes of popular kids snacks, but made healthy. This chocolate copycat ZBar recipe has been one of our all time favorites! They are so easy to make and my kids absolutely love them.
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What are the Ingredients in Chocolate Zbars?
While the Clif “Chocolate Brownie ZBars are better than some kids snacks on the market, there are a couple things that I don’t love. Take a look at the ingredients:
OAT BLEND* (ROLLED OATS*, OAT FLOUR*, OAT FIBER*), TAPIOCA SYRUP*, CANE SYRUP*, FIG PASTE*, CANE SUGAR*, COCOA*, UNSWEETENED CHOCOLATE*, SUNFLOWER AND/OR SOYBEAN OIL*, NATURAL FLAVORS, COCOA BUTTER*, SALT, BAKING SODA, SOY LECITHIN*, VANILLA EXTRACT*, MIXED TOCOPHEROLS (ANTIOXIDANT).
The main concerning ingredients are soybean oil, and “natural flavors”. Natural Flavors is used as an ambiguous term for a chemical flavoring. The other thing to note is that each bar has 10 grams of added sugar.
Ingredients in Homemade Chocolate Copycat ZBar Recipe
This homemade clif bar recipe uses simple, healthy ingredients you probably have in your kitchen! Instead of soybean oil or vegetable oil, this recipe uses coconut oil, and instead of refined sugar just raw honey. I also used dates in place of the figs, mostly because they are easier to find. And in my opinion these homemade clif bars are just as good as the real thing!
For copycat chocolate zbars, you will need:
The Bars
- 2 Cups Organic Oats – I like to use certified organic old fashion oats, organic meaning that the oats were not grown with dangerous pesticides like glyphosate
- 1/2 Cup Pitted Medjool Dates (About 5 large dates)
- 2 Tb Organic Raw Cacao powder
- 1/4 Cup Raw Honey – To make sure your honey is actually raw, buy it from a local source that you trust.
- 1/2 tsp Salt – My favorite salt is redmonds real salt
- 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Tb Melted Coconut Oil
- 1/8 Tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 Cup Water
For The Chocolate Drizzle
- 2 Tb Dark Chocolate Chips
- 1 tsp Coconut Oil
Other Supplies You Will Need
- Food processor or blender
- Cookie sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Spoon or Spatula for spreading batter
How To Make Chocolate Oatmeal Snack Bars (Chocolate Copycat Zbar Recipe)
1. Preheat the oven to 350, and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In your food processor or blender, combine 1 cup of the oats, and the rest of the bar ingredients. Blend until smooth.
3. Add the remaining cup of oats, and blend again until smooth.
4. Using a large spoon or rubber spatula, spread the mixture onto the parchment paper. Wet your spatula often to prevent sticking. Make a large rectangular shape, about 1/3″ thick.
5. Bake the snack bars for 20 minutes
6. Allow the bars to cool for about 10 minutes, and while they are cooling prepare the dark chocolate and coconut oil for drizzling.
7. Cut the rectangle into 12 equal pieces, and gently drizzle chocolate over the top of the bars with a spoon. You could also use a ziploc bag with the corner cut as a piping bag.
8. Once completely cool, store in an airtight container in the fridge for a week! You could also wrap individually in plastic wrap for a grab and go option.
How To Store Oatmeal Snack Bars
These snack bars will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for about a week. Or, you could freeze them for a couple of months. To freeze, wrap them individually in plastic wrap and put them in a freezer bag or airtight container in the freezer.
My kids have been loving these copycat zbars, and I hope yours do too! The next time I make them, I’m going to try adding some protein powder for a version of protein bars. Peanut butter or almond butter would also be a delicious addition! You really can’t go wrong with these oatmeal snack bars. Try your favorite variations, and let me know what you think!
Chocolate Oatmeal Snack Bars (ZBar Copycat Recipe)
Equipment
- 1 Food processor or blender
- 1 Cookie Sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Silicone spatula or spoon
Ingredients
For The Bars
- 2 cups organic oats
- 1/2 cup pitted medpool dates about 5 large dates
- 2 tbs organic raw cacao powder
- 1/4 cup raw honey
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbs melted coconut oil
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup filtered water
For The Chocolate Drizzle
- 2 tbsp dark chocolate chips
- 1 tsp coconut oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350, and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- In your food processor or blender, combine 1 cup of the oats, and the rest of the bar ingredients. Blend until smooth.
- Add the remaining cup of oats, and blend again until smooth.
- Using a large spoon or rubber spatula, spread the mixture onto the parchment paper. Wet your spatula often to prevent sticking. Make a large rectangular shape, about 1/3″ thick.
- Bake the snack bars for 20 minutes
- Allow the bars to cool for about 10 minutes, and while they are cooling prepare the dark chocolate and coconut oil for drizzling.
- Cut the rectangle into 12 equal pieces, and gently drizzle chocolate over the top of the bars with a spoon. You could also use a ziploc bag with the corner cut as a piping bag.
- Once completely cool, store in an airtight container in the fridge for a week! You could also wrap individually in plastic wrap for a grab and go option.
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