Vegan Milk & Cereal Bars
Your favorite childhood grab-and-go breakfast just went vegan. Introducing: VEGAN MILK AND CEREAL BARS! 😍🙌🏻
Is it just me, or did every millennial eat those Milk & Cereal bars growing up? I know we did in my family, and my God, did I love them. They came in a bunch of different cereal flavors and had a decadent creamy filling that was the perfect addition to really get you hooked.
When I looked up the ingredients to create this recipe, I can totally see why: There’s a craaazy amount of sugar in there, man! I mean, this totally made sense to me, given I found them a little too sweet even as a kid, but I knew I had to find a way to recreate these, not only vegan (that was the easy part) but also, they needed to be a little healthier if my adult (and much more sugar-sensitive) self was going to enjoy them!
Misson: Vegan Milk and Cereal Bars
My main issue was figuring out how to reduce the amount of powdered sugar needed for the filling in these vegan milk and cereal bars. I wanted to find something that would thicken and bulk up the filling like powdered sugar would…without actually being powdered sugar…or, you know, tasting gross.
Annnd, this is where I got stuck and put this recipe on the back burner for a while.
Then one day, I was walking around my kitchen and had an idea: VANILLA PROTEIN POWDER!
And just like that, I got to work. I was tentative at first but shocked when I tasted the finished product: SPOT-ON! These vegan milk and cereal bars taste amazing and every bit as tasty as the ones I remember but with MUCH less sugar and vegan, baby! 🙌🏻
I love these vegan milk and cereal bars so. much.
In addition to being a tasty and nostalgic treat, these vegan milk and cereal bars are no-bake and very freezer-friendly. They’re also easily made gluten-free with your favorite gluten-free/vegan cereal.
Other sweet vegan breakfast ideas:
So, whether you’re going to make these for your kids or just the kid in you, you gotta try these vegan milk and cereal bars! And when you do, we totally want to share in the excitement. Be sure to rate the recipe and leave a comment below, or tag us in your photos on Instagram! We’re @theplantpowercouple with the “the”.
Enjoy!
Vegan Milk & Cereal Bars
Ingredients
- 4 cups vegan-friendly cereal
- 1 cup oats ground into a rough flour
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 cup refined coconut oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp natural peanut butter
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
For the filling:
- 2 Tbsp refined coconut oil
- 1/4 cup plain soy or almond milk
- 1/4 cup vegan vanilla protein powder unsweetened
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the cereal, ground oats, and salt. Stir to coat completely.
- Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and add the coconut oil, peanut butter, and maple syrup. Stir until both are melted and runny. Turn the heat to medium-low and stir in the coconut sugar until completely dissolved. This can take 2-4 minutes. Pour this mixture over the cereal mixture and toss to coat everything evenly.
- Line a 9x9 casserole dish with parchment paper or plastic wrap and use your hands to gently press half of the cereal mixture into the bottom of the pan. Place the dish in the freezer and set the other half of the cereal mixture aside while you make the filling.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the coconut oil and non-dairy milk. Add the protein powder and use a hand or stand mixer on low to combine. Add 1/4 cup of the powdered sugar and mix again. Repeat with the last 1/4 cup of powdered sugar and mix until everything is well-combined and nice and thick.
- Take your casserole dish out of the freezer and use a rubber spatula to carefully spread a thick layer of the filling over the cereal. Pour the remainder of the cereal mixture on top of the filling and use your hands to gently even it out and press it into the filling. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- When you're ready to slice them, use the parchment or plastic lining to pull the block out of the casserole dish and place on a large cutting board. Use a large knife to gently cut the block into 8 equal bars. I like to freeze these in large freezer bags, wrapped individually. Enjoy!
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