I made this Very Berry Breakfast Bars Recipe with SPLENDA® Sweeteners as part of a sponsored post for Socialstars #SplendaSweeties #SweetSwaps
Oh breakfast…I definitely have a love/hate relationship with breakfast! While my daughter and I both love breakfast foods, we are rarely hungry at the traditional breakfast time. I tend to make smoothies for our breakfast because they’re portable and she can take them to school to drink at her leisure, and I can sip on mine throughout the morning – but what about those times when we’re in a rush and don’t have time to make a smoothie? Well, that’s when I rely on a pre-made breakfast! This Very Berry Breakfast Bars Recipe is perfect for making ahead of time and sticking in the refrigerator so that there is always a delicious breakfast option for those busy mornings…or when you just get tired of smoothies. It’s made with the SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend from SPLENDA® Sweeteners, so you can enjoy this yummy breakfast bar without worrying about added sugar and those extra pesky calories! This might be one of my favorite Sweet Swaps yet!
SPLENDA® Sweeteners offers the sweetness of sugar, without all the calories, so that you can still satisfy your sweet tooth without a ton of extra calories and added sugar. It’s a great way to sweeten up your favorite recipes without the guilt – I mean, do we really want to start off our day with a ton of unnecessary sugar in our systems? This is especially important for kids, because too much sugar in the morning can lead to a serious crash during their school day!
The SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend is a great alternative to regular brown sugar in making breakfast dishes, it’s what they call a “Sweet Swaps” – you just swap SPLENDA® Sweeteners for regular sugar varieties in your everyday cooking, baking and beverage making so that you can enjoy your favorite things without the guilt!
Guys, this Very Berry Breakfast Bars Recipe is probably one of the best breakfast recipes I’ve ever made – it’s light and fruity, just the right hint of sweetness, and the bars are soft and crumbly. And I love that it has not only strawberries and blueberries, but applesauce too – it’s like a hidden serving of veggies!
Very Berry Breakfast Bars Recipe
- 1½ cup quick cooking oats
- 1½ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup fresh strawberries, chopped into tiny pieces
- ½ cup SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup strawberry preserves or jam
- 1 cup blueberries
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and spray a 8x8 inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Mix SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend, oats, flour, butter, applesauce, salt and baking powder together large bowl. Your "batter" will be rough and crumbly - that's perfect! Then stir in the chopped strawberries.
- Divide the mixture by half and pour into your baking dish. Pat down flat.
- Spread your strawberry preserves or jam - whatever you're using - over the surface of the mixture. Layer blueberries on top of the jam.
- Drop remaining "batter" mixture on top, it's okay if it doesn't completely cover the surface of the jam and berries. It's pretty if a little color pokes through!
- Pat down so that the surface is even.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Let rest on counter or in the fridge for 10 minutes before cutting.
What I love about this recipe is that it not only great for grabbing and eating on the run, but it’s a great alternative to those snack bars and breakfast bars you find in the store, which often have a ton of sugar in them – as well as bunch of other stuff that I can never pronounce – that can’t be good for us or the kids! The ingredients are very simple – there aren’t even any eggs in this breakfast bar recipe, and I’ve reduced the butter called for in the original by substituting unsweetened apple sauce. I always buy jelly and jam with no added sugar, so keep an eye out for those varieties.
You can make a quick batch or two of these on the weekend and put them in Ziploc bags in the fridge, and let the kids grab them on their way out the door to school on those really busy mornings. I’m hoping that I can get Angeline to start taking these with her to the gym so that she’s not ravenous when she gets home after a workout with her friends.
SPLENDA® Sweeteners are so versatile that is can be used in your favorite baked goods recipes, everyday cooking, and all of your beverage mixing!
This Very Berry Breakfast Bars Recipe with SPLENDA® Sweeteners is the perfect way to introduce Sweet Swaps into your cooking and baking! You can check out more Sweet Swaps ideas here.
Tips for Cooking & Baking with SPLENDA® Sweetener Products
You can use SPLENDA® Sweetener Products for all kinds of cooking and baking, but especially when used to sweeten in recipes. Just make sure to follow the conversion instructions, as it does not always convert cup-for-cup for sugar. For instance, in the original recipe that I used to create this Very Berry Breakfast Bars Recipe, the recipe called for one cup of sugar.
It works really well with citrus to enhance the flavors and does a great job in baked goods like cookies and cakes!
Get Social With SPLENDA® Sweeteners!
Like SPLENDA® on Facebook / Follow SPLENDA® on Twitter / Follow SPLENDA® on Instagram
And of course, follow SPLENDA® on Pinterest for more Sweet Swaps recipe inspiration!
Can you use regular brown sugar vs the Splenda brown sugar? Looks like a great recipe but I’m allergic to splenda
Yes, if you use regular brown sugar, use 1 cup!
Love that your recipe uses applesauce instead of oil or butter. This looks like something that needs to happen this summer! Pinned!