The banana flavor may be the highlight of these Nut Bars but the pools of melty chocolate that spreads throughout is the main attraction. These Chocolate Banana Nut Bars have an incredible banana flavor with a scrumptious bite of toasted walnuts and oats.
Of all the bars I’ve made, THESE chocolate banana nut bars are my newest fav! Super soft yet holds up well, is full of banana nut deliciousness, and has puddles of chocolate throughout. These bars are nothing short of incredible! I enjoy banana-flavored snacks like anyone else but have never loved it as much as these.
They’re so good, I had to share myself eating one on Instagram. And I plan to ship a batch to my grandparents back east. My grandmother in particular, LOVES banana nut bread and I’m sure she’ll love this too.
The trick to getting pools of chocolate is to use chopped chocolate rather than chocolate chips. Chocolate chips have a coating around the morsels to help keep them intact. Under high temperatures such as baking, they’ll melt but will remain thick much like what you can see in these Magic Bars.
The banana nut bars will still taste the same with either choice of chocolate used but know that, using morsels will create small pockets of softened chocolate rather than pools of melted chocolate. It’s not often I use chopped chocolate but my gosh, I’ve been missing out on this little trick!
On a separate note, this week I’ve been on a strong chocolate kick. Don’t know why, but I’m not complaining. With extra bananas on hand and a desire to follow through with my chocolate craving, I decided to adapt the banana walnut and cranberry bars. And I’m so glad I did!
Remembering how gooey the cranberry bars were, I changed the amount of oil from 1/2 cup to 1/4 cup in hopes the chocolate banana bars would be soft but not as gooey. This worked out perfectly! The oats bars remained thick yet incredibly soft and minus any greasy fingers. That’s a win in my book!
Much like the former recipe, these chocolate banana nut bars took its shape well and best of all, tasted amazing! By the way, it turns out, these bars are VEGAN! So to all of my vegan readers, this one’s for you!
My hope is to expand on these bars with different add-ins, flavors, etc. If you have any ideas of what bars to make next, I’d love to know, leave a comment below.
If you enjoyed this recipe, consider commenting & rating below. I love to see your feedback and help answer any questions. Don’t forget to check below for related recipes.
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Chocolate Banana Nut Bars
- Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes
- Yield: 16 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
The banana flavor may be the highlight of these Nut Bars but it’s the pools of melty chocolate that spreads throughout, is the main attraction. These Chocolate Banana Nut Bars have an incredible banana flavor with a scrumptious bite of toasted walnuts and oats.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (84 grams) chopped walnuts
- 2 overripe bananas (162 grams), mashed
- 1/4 cup (56 grams) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups (135 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 3/4 cup (90 grams) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 oz. (113 grams) vegan semisweet chocolate, chopped or 3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
- Heat oven to 200°F (95°C). Line an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) baking pan with aluminum foil leaving extra foil to hand over two opposite sides for easy removal. Generously coat the bottom and sides of the foil with baking spray with flour; set aside.
- Evenly spread walnuts over a small baking pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Transfer walnuts to a clean sheet of parchment paper to cool to room temperature. Increase oven temperature to 350°F (175°C).
- In a medium bowl, mix banana, oil, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
- In a large bowl, whisk together oats, flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and baking soda. Stir in the banana mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in the walnuts and chocolate. Be sure to not overmix. Spread mixture evenly into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow at least 2 hours to set and cool to room temperature before cutting. ENJOY!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cooling time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Bars
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: banana nut bars, chocolate banana bars, oat bars, vegan bars, vegan banana nut bars, dairy free bars
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Is that the actual baking temperature? 200°F (95°C)?
Usually we bake things at 350°F, so that’s really low…
Hi Monika,
The 200°F is to toast the walnuts for 8 minutes. Then, in step 2 you’ll increase the temperature to 350°F (175°C). Hope you’re able to make them. They’re SO good!
– Connie