For deliciously nutritious energy on the run, grab a couple of your own homemade Protein Bars! These 5-ingredient protein bars couldn’t be easier. No baking needed, they keep well, and are deliciously satisfying!
No-Bake Protein Bars Recipe
Has anyone experienced garage sale mania? (I promise this relates to protein bars.)
Every year, we have a city-wide garage sale where every other house is hosting their own big sale. People save vacation time and take off work to hunt for bargains. Sale signs are everywhere, and roads are packed.
After years living here and witnessing all the craze, I decided to finally host my own sale this year. It turned out to be a worthwhile endeavor, despite leaving me with zero time to cook or eat a hot meal. That’s where these No-Bake Protein Bars come in.
Not only are these nutritious protein bars incredibly easy to make, they keep really well and are deliciously satisfying. Try this protein bar recipe for your pre/post workout fueling and on-the-go healthy snacking. Plus, they’re outstanding at taking the edge off hunger whether you’re garage sale-ing, working, commuting, or what not.
Homemade Protein Bars – only 5 ingredients
I probably won’t host another garage sale for a long, long time. It turned out to be way more work than I planned. I stayed up way too late every night trying to organize and set up. Hubby totally helped. He deserves this cake or these brownies on splurge day.
In the meantime, we’re loving the nutrient-dense yet simple ingredients that go into this tasty protein bars recipe. All you need are:
- whole rolled oats
- real peanut butter
- whey protein powder
- real honey
- milk
The dark chocolate drizzle is optional (or not.)
If you’re planning to stash these bars in your gym bag, backpack, or lunch bag, you can use dark chocolate morels in the bars themselves rather than melt/drizzle over the top. They’ll stay a lot neater that way.
Homemade Protein Bars = Budget Friendly and healthier
These no-bake, 5-ingredient protein bars are JUST the thing for a nutritious energy boost. I made a big batch, which came in SO handy for pick-me-up snacks. They’re even great for breakfast.
Making my own protein bars are much cheaper than the crazy price they go for at stores these days. Plus, they’re a million times healthier, because they have all natural ingredients – only 5 ingredients if you don’t include optional chocolate.
Not to mention these protein bars are rich, delicious, and completely satisfying. They keep extremely well at a mild room temperature, stored airtight, for up to a week.
Try these Maple Cinnamon Bake Oatmeal Bars, too:
5-Ingredient Protein Bars (no-bake!)
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 5 min
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: snacks, breakfast
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Description
These 5-ingredient Protein Bars are super easy, packed with good nutrition, and perfect for breakfast or snack on the run. Plus, they are a no-bake recipe! This one’s a keeper.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup milk (I use whole)
- 1 cup chunky peanut butter
- 2–3TB honey, plus more to taste
- 1 1/4 cups vanilla or chocolate whey protein powder
- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats, uncooked
- (Optional: Melted dark chocolate for drizzling)
Instructions
- In a medium heavy pot, combine milk, peanut butter, and desired amount of honey over low heat. Stir just until all ingredients are well combined and warmed through. Add protein powder and oats. Stir to combine well. (If mixture is too thick to stir, simply add a bit more milk.)
- Lightly grease an 8×8 pan. Press mixture evenly into pan, using enough pressure to compress mixture into desired bar thickness.
- Allow bars to cool completely.
- Cut into squares. If desired, drizzle with melted chocolate and let cool. Wrap in airtight container and store at moderate room temp for several days, or chilled in fridge for a week.
Notes
Protein powder is to be measured according to standard cups, not the scoops that come inside the tub of protein powder.
If you’re planning to pack these bars to go, you can opt to use about 1/2 cup dark chocolate morsels in the bar mixture itself, rather than drizzling on top.
Keywords: homemade protein bars
Here’s my favorite recipe for Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars, which the family loves!
These Peanut Butter Cereal Bars are such a delight! Crispy, perfect amount of sweetness, and packed with natural honey and peanut butter!
This Yogurt Honey Dip is perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth quickly and nutritiously. My friends love this one!
I love the no-bake idea, and this is definitely a energy snack, thanks! 🙂
Totally! Enjoy, and thanks for coming over today 🙂
Do U think rice protein powder would work instead of whey?
Rebekah, I’ve never tried rice protein powder, but you sure can give it a try! These bars are pretty forgiving! Hope you enjoy it 🙂
Hi! What’s the nutritional values/content of these protein bars? Thanks in advance!
Hello please help
For some reason they will not set
Been in fridge for hours
Did add more protein powder but
I added bit more milk to get to get nice mixture but will not set grrrrrrr
Hi, Tony. The peanut butter and honey should help it to set when chilled. Be sure you do have enough oats, if your mixture needs more solids. If you added more milk, that could have caused a higher liquid-to-solid ratio. Hope that helps!
Can I switch out the peanut butter for almond butter?
I don’t see why not :). Just adjust the amounts if you need to, since almond butter is sometimes drier than PB. Enjoy!!
This sounds wonderful! And I really love the fact that it’s all natural. I have a few questions. May I use creamy peanut butter in lieu of the chunky? Also, did you use chocolate or vanilla, whey protein powder? I want to use what you used.
I buy organic, to stay away from GMOs. I’m assuming the whey protein is NON-GMO. I’ve never bought that.
Thank you so much, and I look forward to trying this. What a great feeling to know you made such a healthy snack and it’s NOT Frankenfood, like so many “healthy” or “all natural” snacks on the market today.
Beth
Hi, Beth! Yes, you can use creamy PB. I used vanilla whey. There are so many brands available, I’m sure you can find the one you want :). Enjoy!
I’m going to try this soon! I already know I’ll love it. And thank you for sharing your recipe.
Beth
Thank you very much for sharing this recipe.I have one question, like when i made it it was where sticky so not able to eat properly all sticked around teeth. Kindly help me . Thanks in advance
Gargi, I’m not sure why you got stickiness, but perhaps if you chill the bars (covered) for awhile, it will resolve that 🙂 Enjoy!
Do you know approximately how many grams of protein are in each bar? And how many bars does this recipe yield? Thanks!
Hannah, the grams of protein will vary, depending on the size of your bar and the brand of whey protein you used, too. Generally, there’s about 8 grams of protein per 2 TB of peanut butter. Most protein powders probably have at least 20 grams of protein per scoop, but again, there’s variation of ingredients in each brand. As for how many bars, that got me thinking to how big/small I cut mine. It can be 8 – 16 bars, depending on the size you cut them. I hope that helps? Thanks for stopping by, Hannah 🙂
Can you freeze these?
Mike, I don’t see why not 🙂 I’d wrap them tightly and freeze them probably up to a few weeks at most. Let them come to room temp before enjoying. Way better than spending a ton on store bars; I can never get myself to justify the cost. Enjoy! 🙂
Hello, I was wondering what 2-3 TB honey meant? Thank you
Hi, Kat! It means 2 to 3 tablespoons. Hope you love it! Thanks for being here today 🙂
1 and a fourth cups of protein powder or just the scoops that come with the container?
Good question, Dina. Yes, it’s actually referring to cups, not the scoops. Thanks for checking 🙂
Has anyone tried these with dairy free milk? I was wondering if almond milk could be subbed in. Thanks!
Hello.
In regards to the Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars, can we substitute the butter with anything else?
Thank you 🙂
I haven’t tried, Ana, but my first thought would be to try coconut oil. But you’ll have to tweak it to get the right texture/consistency 🙂
Hello, do you know what the nutritional value of these are? Even if it’s only rough.
Hi, Rachel! I currently don’t use a nutritional software, so I can’t give you truly accurate #’s. But for a rough estimate, here is a similar protein bar I’ve found that might give a very rough idea. Note that my recipe will probably be less in calories, as mine does not have commercial cereal in it. http://www.caloriecount.com/homemade-high-fiber-protein-bars-recipe-r859586
Can I substitute peanut butter for say almond butter, sunflower seed butter, etc?
Also will it be ok to use almond, hemp, or other type of milk?
Absolutely, Joel! I sometimes do that for friends who have peanut allergies…almond butter, sunbutter, even cashew butter…all good 🙂 And yes for other type of milk as well, though you might get a bit of texture differences with the milk sub. Enjoy and thanks so much for coming over today! 🙂
One of the questions leaves me more confused! I assumed from the recipe that it was 1 1/4 CUPS ~ as in a standard measuring cup. A reader asked if you meant the scoop that comes in the protein powder. Is it 1 1/4 scoops or cups???
Terry, yes, it’s referring to cups. Not scoops. Thanks for finding us today and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Hello! These look great, but I’m really curious on the nutrition values. I’m new to all this so I don’t know how to calculate it when it’s cooked, so do you have any idea to how cooking it effects the nutrition values or how I could calculate it?
Thanks!
Hello, Ari! 🙂 The minimal amount of stovetop time should not affect the nutritional values at all. These are great for pre-post workout fuel. I typically just use https://www.myfitnesspal.com/ for plugging in some values and getting a general idea 🙂 Hope you love these, Ari.
Hi,I love the sound of this recipe. I’ve just recently tried to make my own protein bar with all organic ingredients (that’s my edge) but they seem to have gone terribly wrong :(I was wondering whether I’d be able to incorporate bananas into this particular recipe as my protein powder is Banana flavour. Could you suggest any changes id have to make or any advice really. Id appreciate it! 🙂
I think you’ll have great success with these bars, Hannah! 🙂 As for incorporating bananas, you can try banana chips or some version of dried bananas. I wouldn’t recommend fresh bananas, as the texture would change and the bars would have a much shorter shelf life. Have fun playing with the flavors!!
How moist are these? they look pretty dense and was thinking of making them for a crossfit competition.
Chrissy, these are relatively dense and moist enough to take along with you – they shouldn’t be crumbly or dry out on the road. If you’re making a batch for a lot of people, you can cut them into smaller bite-size squares and they’ll go a long way. We really like them for tough workouts!
hi
wondering whether normal cooking butter can be used for making proteins bars if nut butters are not avilable
thank you in advance
LOVE this recipe! Very easy to make and so delish!
Yay, Joann! I’m so so happy you love it 🙂
You had me at no bake. Since I promised myself to pick healthier food this year, I am going to make these protein bars to snack on instead of chips. Thanks for the recipe. I will make some this weekend.
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Yay, Kristine! 🙂
I used to make these all the time. I just love them. They are so tasty.
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So happy you love these, Ashley! They really are tasty 🙂
These sound yummy! Our go to ‘power snack’ is homemade granola bars. Will have to try this recipe next. Thanks!
oh, my goodness! I would love to try this for sure. Thanks for sharing.
I love the recipe and love the chocolate toppings! I am sure this is a perfect dessert for my Chinese new year party.
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My kids swim for a club and these would be perfect for snacks during a gala
These look so easy and yummy! I’ll have to give them a try!
Thank you for this easy and healthy protein bar! I went grocery shopping today and forgot to buy protein bars; I made these instead. Glad I made these instead!
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Oh, awesome, Susana! So happy you liked these bars 🙂 🙂 🙂
Hi, I have digestive issues due to several surgeries done at abdominal area and also have a bolted colon.
Would like to know what can I replace the oats with for easy digestion. Also, can maple syrup replace honey?
Many thanks.
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Tricia, would it help to use quick-cooking oats, with the finer texture? Otherwise, maybe try using some rice crispy type cereal (dry) …and yes, maple syrup can be used 🙂
Hi,
I tried this yesterday and they taste very good! Unfortunately I think I put a little bit too much milk when I was mixing it (I don’t like my oak too dry) so the final bar is a bit soft. Can you share a picture of the mixture’s consistency so that I can roughly tell if mine have enough water?
Thank you!!!
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