Carrot Cake Snack Bars Recipe
If you’re a carrot cake lover, allow me to win you over with these quick and easy, yet just as satisfying, carrot cake snack bars! Made with a touch of sweetness, naturally gluten-free, lightly spiced, and perfectly moist, it’s the perfectly delicious treat your whole family will love!
Be Sure To Try My Gluten-Free Scones Next!
What Are Carrot Cake Snack Bars?
Quite simply, they are the best travel snack, breakfast, dessert, or anytime treat! We love to make them in spring around Easter, but really, they’re perfect any time of year. If you want something sweet, but not overly decadent, this is the ticket item. My recipe intentionally does not include frosting because we treat these bars like granola bars in our home. Something healthy to munch on! I individually wrap them so the kids can grab them as a snack, lunchbox treat, or breakfast-to-go. If you’re a fan of carrot cake, but don’t want to fuss with a full, layered cake, try these instead!
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Ingredients You’ll Need for Carrot Cake Snack Bars
You’ll find the recipe ingredients below. Many of these ingredients you will have on hand, but I always like to do an inventory of my pantry before I get started. There are some notable swaps. For example, I “grind” my own oats using a food processor; you could use store-bought oat flour to save a step. Coconut sugar can be swapped for brown sugar, but I recommend avoiding white sugar as it’s inflammatory and not part of a healthy diet. If you don’t have plain yogurt, try using a mildly flavored vanilla instead. Milk could be raw milk, almond milk, or any variety you have on hand. You can also experiment with adding dates or raisins, or both! Nuts and chocolate chips are also optional add-ins.
You can make this recipe dairy-free or vegan with just a few simple swaps!
The Benefits of Carrots
Carrots are root vegetables, known most commonly for their bright orange color (but did you know they also come in rainbow colors?)! They’re rich in beta-carotene, improve vision, cleanse toxins, support the heart, lower the risk of diabetes, and may prevent cancer. Carrots are also great for your skin! If you have been following my journey at all, you know I eat a carrot every single day as a cancer survivor. I always enjoy finding new ways to incorporate carrots into my everyday foods and recipes.
The Best Kitchen Grater for Shredding
If you love to save time in the kitchen, let me share my favorite rotary grater/mandoline slicer on Amazon. It’s an amazing kitchen gadget, and I use mine all the time! It’s easy to use and clean, and is super efficient. It works with fruits, vegetables, cheese, and even nuts. I never get overwhelmed with food prep since having this tool!
Purchase the Geedel Rotary Grater from Amazon here.
How to Make Carrot Cake Snack Bars
Step one is shred your carrots. You can use store-bought shredded carrots; however, I’ve found they tend to be firmer in baking. I shred mine at home for a fresher taste (see above!). Leave the skins on, but wash well for maximum benefits from the peels. This is also an opportunity to add in some “color” to your diet by using rainbow carrots!
After you shred your carrots, add your dry ingredients to a large bowl. Whisk them together until they are combined. Next, you are going to add your wet ingredients to your dry ingredients and incorporate with a spatula.
Then, chop your dates and fold them in. If you’re using nuts, chocolate chips, and/or raisins, fold them into the wet ingredients during this step. Fold the carrots in as well. Ensure everything is mixed well and no dry flour bits remain. Pour into a lined or greased baking dish and bake. Once your carrot cake mixture has baked and cooled, cut it into 12 bars with a clean, sharp knife. Store on the counter in an air-tight container for 3-4 days, or freeze individual bars.
Serving Suggestions
To serve carrot cake snack bars for breakfast, they can easily be made the day before. I like to wrap mine individually and send them with my kids to school. They also make the perfect after-school treat. It will curb their appetites, but won’t spoil their supper. To give off dessert vibes, you could top each bar with a fresh dollop of homemade whipped cream or serve it warm over ice cream! We enjoy these bars just as they are, but the possibilities are limitless!
I hope you’ll give them a try!
other recipes you might enjoy:
- Pumpkin Oatmeal Energy Bites
- 4-Ingredient Breakfast Bars
- Cinnabon Muffins with Oat Flour
- Healthy Reese’s Cups
Carrot Cake Snack Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups oats, old-fashioned or quick
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar, or brown sugar
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- dash of salt
- 2 eggs, or flax-eggs
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/2 cup milk, any kind
- 3 tbsp almond butter
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped dates, or 1/4 cup raisins
- 2 tbsp mini white chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Using a blender, blend the oats into a fine flour.
- Add oat flour to a large mixing bowl, and add the rest of the dry ingredients. Whisk to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.
- Stir together wtih a spatula.
- Once the batter is smooth and mixed well, fold in the carrots, dates, and chocolate chips.
- Grease, or line with parchment paper an 8X8 glass baking dish.
- Pour the batter into the dish.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Once cooled, cut into 12 squares.
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