Pumpkin Spice Flaxseed & Oat Bars | No Added Sugar

It’s that pumpkin spice time of year again.

We are always looking for recipes for healthy everyday cakes, and these tasty little cakes are just perfect with a midweek cuppa.

Ground flaxseed, oats and pumpkin purée are all superstar good foods. They contain the kind of fibre your gut biome loves, helping your gut bacteria produce helpful short-chain fatty acids like acetate and butyrate.

Pumpkin spice flaxseed oat bars are substantial enough to satisfy at elevenses, but without the usual naughties, and are a rich source of good things: omega-3, soluble and insoluble fibre, and plenty of satisfying whole-food goodness.

That puts them firmly on your side if you are trying to lose weight, keep blood sugar or cholesterol levels in check, or keep your digestion happy — so you can enjoy one with a clear conscience.

Pumpkin Spice Flaxseed & Oat Bars | No Added Sugar

Soft, satisfying pumpkin-spice bars made with oats, ground flaxseed, dried fruit and almond butter. Naturally sweet from the fruit, with no added sugar and no added oil.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Servings: 8 slices

Course: Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: Healthy

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 300 g 3 cups Flax Farm Fruity Porridge (any flax farm porridge or muesli*)
• 212 g just under 1 cup pumpkin purée, approximately half a 425 g tin
• 35 g 2.5 tbs almond butter or peanut butter or Flax Farm Flaxseed Oil
• 2 tsp pumpkin or mixed spice or make your own from 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon. ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• and 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg - or spices to taste
• Pinch of salt optional

Equipment

• Mixing bowl, spoon, scales or cups, baking dish 21cm x 14cm, an oven, air fryer or microwave
• Servings: 8 bars
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 30–40 minutes
• Total time: 40–50 minutes

Method

 

1. Heat the oven to 170°C fan / 190°C conventional.
2. Put the pumpkin purée and almond butter into a bowl and mix until combined.
3. Stir in the cinnamon, ginger, mixed spice and salt, if using.
4. Add the Fruity Oat Porridge Mix and stir thoroughly. Leave for about 10 minutes to allow the flaxseed and oats to absorb some of the moisture.
5. The mixture should be very thick and sticky rather than like cake batter. Press it firmly into a lined baking tin or dish, to approximately 1.5–2 cm thick.
6. Bake for 25–30 minutes, until set and beginning to colour around the edges.
7. For firmer, more flapjack-like bars, reduce the oven to 140–150°C fan and bake for a further 10 minutes.
8. Allow to cool completely before cutting into 8 bars. They become firmer as they cool.

Notes

*Use any Fruity Flax Porridge Mix or muesli. If using plain Flax porridge, replace 75g with any dried fruit. The almond butter helps make the bars more satisfying

These bars contain no added sugar, although they do contain naturally occurring sugars from the dried fruit and pumpkin.

Approximate Nutrition Per Bar

Energy: 186 kcal

Protein: 5.9 g

Fat: 7.8 g

Saturated fat: 0.8 g

Carbohydrate: 22 g

Sugars: 7 g

Fibre: 6.1 g

Omega-3 ALA: approximately 2.2 g

Omega-6: approximately 1.6 g

Pumpkins and Flax have unexpected goodness

Pumpkin puree is the sweetener of choice because it is high in fibre, low in sugar, low in calories, and a rich source of fibre and antioxidants.  Read more

Flax is rich in nutrients; perhaps the less well-known ones are lignans. Lignans can have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and hormone-regulating effects beneficial to health.  Read more