After my banana oat protein bars became a favorite on my blog, I decided to make a carrot cake protein bar version that's chewy with 8 grams of protein for spring to go along with my other healthy easter snacks!
Most protein bars at the store have a carrot cake version, but I believe homemade always tastes better (I mean, it hasn't been sitting on the shelf for months...)! These are soft and chewy, with real carrots and a cream cheese drizzle, YUM.
Quick Look: Carrot Cake Protein Bars
- Time: 35 total minutes
- Serves: 16 bars
- Calories: 326 per bar
- Protein: 8 grams per bar
- Dietary Info: High protein, nutrient-dense
- ⭐ Why You'll Love It: A delicious chewy protein bar with carrots, whole wheat flour, almond flour, and a cream cheese glaze!
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I'm a huge fan of making bars as I believe it's more of a whip-up, bake, and walk-away approach when you just have a few minutes to bake, rather than rolling and pan-swapping healthy, easy cookies (which I do love...). But bars just feel simpler in this phase of mom life. These are the perfect mom snacks to prep for the week, along with quinoa egg bites and chocolate carrot muffins, in my opinion.
Ingredients needed
Things to note about some of the ingredients:
- Carrots: I don't usually peel these carrots; I scrub them and then grate them on a cheese grater.
- Flour: Whole-wheat or white flour can be used in this recipe; however, whole-grain flour contains more protein and nutrients, so use it if you have it.
- Almond flour: Using almond flour makes these bars dense and chewy. I really love the texture. I also use it because it is a great source of protein.
- Flax seeds: I choose to use ground flax seeds so the body can absorb more nutrition from the seeds. If you only have the whole seeds, you can grind them in a coffee grinder or blender until they are a powder. When doing it in a blender, I find doing 1-2 cups at a time works best.
- Hemp hearts: I add hemp hearts to everything I can! So, of course, they are in my protein bars!
- Sugar: Any sugar can be used for this recipe - brown sugar, white sugar, cane sugar, monk fruit, truvia; they will all work. I haven't tested this recipe with a liquid sweetener like honey or maple syrup. I usually use coconut sugar.
- Oil: I use coconut oil because I like the sweet flavor it gives. It must be melted if you use coconut oil.
Step-by-step photos from my kitchen
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175C). Place all the dry ingredients into a bowl: flour, almond flour, rolled oats, sugar, ground flax seeds, hemp hearts, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk together until everything is well combined.
Step 2: Fold in the grated carrots.
Step 3: Add the eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla. Stir until a thick mixture forms.
Step 4: Use a spatula to scrape everything from the bowl into a rectangular baking pan. Spread evenly into the corners. Bake until cooked, then cool and cut into bars.
Step 5: Glaze: Soften the cream cheese with a spatula in a bowl, then add the icing sugar - it will be very thick. Add the milk and stir until there are no more lumps. I place a small zip-lock bag in a cup to hold it while I pour the glaze in. Then once it's all in one corner, use scissors to cut the smallest hole.
Step 6: Drizzle the glaze over the cooled and cut carrot protein bars. The glaze will harden with time. Store in an air-tight container.
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If you are prepping these for the week ahead (like I do), you could make easy-peeling boiled eggs at the same time! If I still have some energy left after making those, I will make a batch of protein muffins with cottage cheese and chocolate chips and matcha energy balls too!
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Carrot Cake Protein Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups whole-wheat flour
- 1 ½ cups almond flour
- 1 cup rolled oats
- ¾ cup sugar (I use coconut sugar)
- ⅓ cup ground flax seeds
- ⅓ cup hemp hearts
- 1 ½ tablespoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
Glaze
- 1 tablespoon cream cheese
- ½ cup icing sugar
- 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°Fahrenheit (175°C). In a large mixing bowl, combine the whole-wheat flour, almond flour, rolled oats, sugar, ground flax seeds, hemp hearts, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk together until everything is well combined.
- Fold in the grated carrots, then add the eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Mix until the mixture is smooth and combined.
- Spread the batter into a greased or parchment-lined 9x13-inch rectangular pan, pressing it into the corners. Wet your hands slightly with water and use them to smooth the top. Bake at 350°Fahrenheit (175C) for 20-25 minutes, until they are golden brown; the middle may look a little less cooked, but it will become firm when it cools. Let the bars fully cool, cut them into rectangles, and cover with glaze.
- Glaze: In a small bowl, use a spatula to soften and spread the cream cheese. Add the icing sugar and stir together - it will be thick. Then add the milk and stir to get any lumps out. Place this cream cheese glaze in the corner of a small plastic bag. Use scissors to cut a very small part off the corner of the bag to drizzle the icing over the bars. The glaze will harden after a little while.
Notes
Nutrition
Danika Vanderpyl, C.H.N
I create snack recipes with healthy ingredients that are mostly already in your kitchen. I'm certified in Holistic Nutrition and I care about giving my kids real food. Let me share my nutrient-dense easy snacks with you.
Jennifer J Nelson says
I made these bars today and while the flavor is very good, they didn't rise and were too crumbly to be a bar that you can eat on the go. They were dense and bland in the middle. My husband and kids usually like all the snacks from your website but this one was just blah (and he loves carrots). If you think of a way to enhance these, let me know, I would make them again.
Danika Vanderpyl says
Hi Jennifer, thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. These bars can become crumbly if you bake them too long, be sure to watch them for the last few minutes, and you can take them out when the edges get cooked but the middle is still soft. Did you use a metal or glass pan? I found these bars cook much more even in a metal pan. For flavor, I'm sorry the fam didn't approve; sometimes cinnamon can lose flavor if it's been in the cupboard too long - but all you need to do is increase the cinnamon to 2 tablespoons or restock your cinnamon. I hope this helps.
Meagan says
These walk the line between snack bar and dessert! They are incredibly tasty and easy to make.
Danika Vanderpyl says
That's true, with the icing they can be either! Glad you like them!
Kelly says
These are amazing! I didn't have cream cheese so I made a glaze with molasses, icing sugar, and milk. I have made and love the banana version too.
Danika Vanderpyl says
Hi Kelly! Thanks for sharing what you thought! I'm glad you like both flavor!! That sounds like an awesome glaze too, love the idea of using molasses!
Andrew says
these are so delicious!!!
Danika Vanderpyl says
Glad to hear you enjoyed these bars!