These strawberry oatmeal bars are a delicious combination of fresh and fruity with a decadent yet wholesome, naturally gluten-free oat-based crust and crumb topping. Best of all, this strawberry crumble cake is dairy-free, low-fat, can be made oil and butter-free, and uses unrefined sugars only!
Healthy & Vegan Strawberry Crumble Cake
Strawberry oatmeal bars are decadent enough to be served as a dessert while remaining fresh and healthy enough to enjoy as a grab n’ go breakfast – that’s enough to consider me hooked. Combine that with the fact that this recipe ditches all the fat, dairy, and regular flour found in most strawberry crumb bars (including the ones my mother made for me as a child that I loved!) – I’m obsessed!
They’re now a usual in my breakfast rotation alongside gluten-free carrot cake bars, chocolate granola bars, and vegan coffee cake (with a streusel topping!) – because who says you can’t have cake for breakfast?!
These healthy strawberry oatmeal bars combine oats and almonds to create a naturally gluten-free cookie-style dough as a crust and crumb topping, filled with a fresh strawberry, chia, and maple syrup-based filling. Not only are these bars perfect for enjoying during strawberry season, but you can also use frozen strawberries any other time of the year! The result is a treat that is soft, tender, chewy, fruity, and delicious!
Plus, all you need is just ten ingredients and 20 minutes to prepare this healthy strawberry crumble cake – no food processor/blender needed! Just one bowl, one pan, and a baking tray!
Best of all, this recipe is also ridiculously versatile. You can easily use different fruits based on what’s in season (and in your kitchen), substitute the flours, starch, chia, binding ingredient, etc. – this truly is a pantry-friendly vegan strawberry dessert/ breakfast!
The Ingredients and Substitutions
For the dough:
- Oats: I use a combination of oats and oat flour (ground oats) for this recipe. Make sure to use certified gluten-free oats if necessary.
- Almond flour: You can buy this or make it at home by grinding blanched almonds into a fine floury consistency. Substitute this with any ground nut/seed of your choice (e.g., hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, etc.) You could even use unsweetened shredded coconut instead.
- Banana: Use an overripe banana or applesauce. For a flakier/buttery crust, you could use a combination of 40 g banana/applesauce and 40 g vegan butter (or margarine). 2 flax/chia eggs should also work.
- Maple Syrup: Or another liquid sweetener.
- Coconut Milk: I use canned coconut milk as it’s thick and creamy. Alternatively, you could use oat cream or soy cream. If you use dairy-free milk, you’d need to add 2-3 tablespoons of oil to make up for the fat and moisture.
- Baking Powder: This will help leaven and provide a little lift to the oatmeal bars crust.
For the strawberry filling:
- Strawberries: Find the ripest, juiciest strawberries that you can. I love to buy strawberries in season and store them in the freezer. Fresh or frozen strawberries will work.
- Maple syrup: Or the liquid sweetener of your choice, i.e., agave or a sugar-free option.
- Citrus: You can use lemon or lime juice based on what you have.
- Chia seeds: Chia seeds will thicken and help make a jam-like consistency with the strawberries (as well as add protein!). You could alternatively use flaxseed.
- Starch: Potato starch or cornstarch will work for this recipe and is needed to help thicken the strawberry filling. Arrowroot or rice starch may also work.
For the full ingredients list, measurements, complete recipe method, and nutritional information, please read the recipe card below.
How To Make Strawberry Oatmeal Bars
Step 1: Prepare the strawberry filling
- First, clean and dice the strawberries.
- Then, add all the ingredients for the strawberry filling to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and allow it to cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once ready, set it aside for a few minutes to cool while you prepare the crust.
Step 2: Prepare the almond oatmeal crust
- If you’re using a banana, first mash that well.
- Then, combine all the dough ingredients in a bowl and mix well either with a hand mixer or spoon.
If the dough looks pretty crumbly still, add a little additional vegan butter or banana; if it seems a little too ‘wet,’ then add a little extra oat flour (just 1 tsp at a time).
Step 3: Assemble the strawberry crumble cake
- Use 2/3 of the crust dough to press into a greased baking dish and smooth down with the back of a spoon or something similar. I used one that’s 7×11-inches (18x28cm) – a 9×9-inch square dish would also work.
You can measure the amount by weighing the dough if you want accuracy. However, I usually just do this by-eye, shaping all the dough into a ball and pulling away around 1/3.
- Pour the strawberry filling over the crust and smooth it out with a spoon.
- Finally, crumble the remaining 1/3 of the crust dough over the strawberry filling to create the strawberry crumble topping.
Step 4: Bake the strawberry crumble cake
- Bake the strawberry streusel bars in the oven for 20-25 minutes at 360F/180C until golden brown on top.
- Once baked, allow it to cool (the strawberry filling will thicken up as it cools). Then slice the strawberry oatmeal bars and enjoy immediately or save for later.
Enjoy a bar alone as a breakfast, snack, or dessert. You could also serve them warm or cold with a bit of cashew or coconut whipped cream, some vegan yogurt, or even a scoop of ice cream.
How to Store?
Store: The leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Allow the strawberry oat bars to cool completely before transferring the bars to an airtight container and freezing for up to three months. To avoid the bars sticking together as one, you can freeze them laid out on a tray with space in-between, then transfer them to a container/bag once solid.
Reheat: Reheat the strawberry breakfast bars individually in the microwave for 30-40 seconds until warmed through.
Recipe Notes & FAQs
- Omit the chia seeds: If you have no chia seeds, you can omit them and increase the starch by around 1 tsp to thicken the strawberry filling.
- Using other fruits: If you don’t have enough strawberries, you can combine or substitute them with other fruits like raspberries, blueberries, cherries, apples, etc.
- Can you use coconut flour instead of almond flour? Unfortunately not as coconut flour absorbs so much moisture and so it will dry out the strawberry bars.
- Make a glaze: To serve the strawberry crumb cake bars as dessert, you could make a quick glaze with powdered sugar (or Erythritol) with a little dairy-free milk and optionally some vanilla extract.
Other Healthy Strawberry Recipes
If you enjoyed this recipe for strawberry crumble cake/bars, you might also enjoy these other vegan strawberry recipes.
- Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecake
- Simple Strawberry Mousse
- Strawberry Compote Or Sauce
- Strawberry Sheet Cake With Pudding
- Strawberry Coconut Cheesecake Bars
Other Oatmeal Desserts and Breakfast
- Vegan Baked Banana Oatmeal
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars
- Vegan Apple Muffins With Streusel
- Homemade Nut-Free Granola
- Breakfast Granola Cups
- Oat Breakfast Bars With Chocolate
If you try this strawberry oatmeal bars recipe, I’d love a comment and ★★★★★ recipe rating below. Also, please don’t forget to tag me in re-creations on Instagram or Facebook with @elavegan and #elavegan – I love seeing them.

Strawberry Oatmeal Bars
Ingredients
Dough:
- 2 cups (205 g) oats gluten-free if needed
- 1 cup (120 g) almond flour (see notes)
- 1 cup (90 g) oat flour (ground oats) gluten-free if needed
- 1 small (80 g) banana mashed (see notes)
- 1/4 cup (80 g) maple syrup or agave syrup
- 1/4 cup (60 g) coconut milk canned (see notes)
- 2 tsp baking powder
Strawberry Filling:
- 3 cups (450 g) diced strawberries
- 1/3 cup (105 g) maple syrup or agave syrup
- 2-3 tsp lime or lemon juice
- 5 tsp chia seeds
- 3 tsp potato starch or cornstarch
Instructions
- I recommend using a kitchen scale for this recipe and measuring the ingredients in grams. The recipe has a video for visual instructions.Preheat the oven to 360 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius).
- Put the ingredients for the strawberry filling in a saucepan, bring to a boil, let it simmer for 5-10 minutes, and stir occasionally.
- Mix all ingredients for the dough in a bowl by either using your hands or a hand mixer.
- Press 2/3 of the dough evenly into a greased or lined baking dish. My pan measures 7 x 11 inches (18 x 28 cm).
- Pour the strawberry filling over the crust.
- Crumble the remaining 1/3 dough on top.
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
- Banana: Use banana or applesauce for a low-fat version. If you prefer a flaky/buttery soft crust, I would recommend using 40 grams banana (or applesauce) and 40 grams vegan butter (margarine).
- Almond flour: You can use any ground nuts/seeds of choice (e.g. hazelnuts, shredded unsweetened coconut) instead of almond flour.
- Coconut milk: You could use oat cream or soy cream instead of canned coconut milk.
- The recipe serves 10. Nutrition facts are for one serving.
Nutrition information is an estimate and has been calculated automatically
I can’t use almond flour can I double up on the oat flour or use cassava flour we can’t have any nut flours sadly
You could use ground sunflower seeds.
Can I use almond milk or regular milk instead of coconut milk?
TIA
You can, but the result won’t be as good.
Love his recipe and have made it several times! I have a friend coming over that cannot eat citrus. Will leaving out the lemon/lime juice make much of a difference?
Hi Laurie, you can leave it out. 🙂
I’ve made these in the past and they are great! I’m looking to make again and entering if I could use my homemade date paste instead of syrup? I know slight loss of liquid is result but can I just add little more milk or water? By the way thus is great recipe for using up overripe fruit!
Hi Bill, happy you like them. And yes, I think that should work fine by adding slightly more milk. 🙂
Hey Ela,
I just gave a try to this delicious recipe, perfect for breakfast as well as a snack.
I followed the recipe and the result is 100% a success!
Thank you so much 🙂
You are so welcome, Nabila! Glad you like the recipe. 🙂
I just pulled these out of the oven and they are lovely. Not overly sweet, easy to make, and a great breakfast or mid day snack.
How do you recommend storing them?
Hi CB, I am glad you like them. Thanks for your feedback! Please read the section “How To Store” in the post. 🙂
So sorry! I looked all over the recipe card and just found instructions in the blog post🤦🏻♀️
Please don’t worry! 🙂
Dear Ela❤️
Your recipes are amazing. Every time I bake something from your menu it is always a success.
I have read through the comments, with so many questions yet you are always so polite in replying even if it means repeating yourself.
So on behalf of anyone that has ever cooked one of your recipes – THANK YOU; YOU are AMAZING ????
Also I must say this is one of my favourite recipes, I think I have just about made it for all of my friends now ????????
Aww, you are very kind, Trishee! Thanks so much for the love! I really appreciate your comment, and I am so happy you like my recipes. 🙂
Yet another amazing recipe from Elavegan! Thank you! So so tasty and easy to make.
I’m fairly new to vegan lifestyle AND I am a terrible cook but when I follow your recipes, the meals always turn out great!
That’s such a great compliment, Hannele! I am so glad you like my recipes. 🙂
Another amazing recipe! I was thinking of add a scoop of protein powder to the crust, do you think it will work? Maybe I should decrese the amount of oat flour by 30g, and add 30g of vegan vanilla protein?
Thank you so much for all your recipes!
Yes, that sounds like a great idea. I think it should work fine, as you suggested. 🙂
Hola Ela!
ya he hecho 2 veces la receta de las barritas de avena i fresas i es espectacular i muy saludable
ya no puedo pasar sin tener siempre alguna receta hecha para desgustar sus recetas. Muchas felicidades por este gran blog!!
Hey! Thanks so much for your great feedback. 🙂
I feel like it’s missing a touch of salt, but otherwise delicious.
Thanks for your feedback, Elly. 🙂
We made these bars today with the last of the frozen raspberries and wild blueberries we had. They are delicious and my teens love them! Another great recipe Ela! Thank you.
That’s awesome, Tara! I am so glad you loved them. 🙂
Love your blog and all the delicious recipes you share. wanting to try this tomorrow and just had a question if you think these would do well in the freezer? and how long it might last? thank you for sharing you talents with us
Yes, that should be fine. I would store them in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Happy you like my recipes. 🙂
This is my first time making this and I added some blueberries I had in my fridge, because I did not want the blueberries to be thrown out and I did not have enough Strawberries for the recipe. I followed the directions to the “T” and all went great.
Thanks for the recipe. Breakfast for the week.
Sounds awesome! I bet it tastes so delicious with blueberries. Thanks for your feedback Maddie. 🙂
Hi, really want to make these but right now all I have is frozen strawberries, would that be okay in this recipe? Thank you!
Yes, that should be fine. 🙂
Delicious, thank you! I used shredded coconut instead of almond flour, and served it with cashew whipped cream. Yum!
Sounds so yummy with cashew whipped cream! Happy you loved the cake! 🙂