So, I came up with another great way to use many of the fresh figs from the fig tree in my backyard! It’s by making these flourless healthy fig bars with oats, they’re SO SO good. You can have them as is, serve with some milk or yogurt of choice for breakfast, heat up and serve with ice cream for dessert…the sky is the limit.
You can store these fig bars in the fridge for about 3-4 days and I find they become better with time. They’re the perfect healthier dessert recipe that you can make with this often underrated fruit.
By the way, I know fresh figs are pretty high-sugar, which isn’t ideal with my spike-y glucose, but they’re super healthy and great for your heart and digestive health according to this article. So I’m allowing myself to have 1-2 a day. I even started making fig lemonade – basically lemon juice, water and a fig blended. It’s refreshing and I get to use my figs! Can you tell that’s my main goal right now?
What’s in The Healthy Oatmeal Fig Bars
To make these flourless oatmeal fig bars, you’ll need:
- oats – and you’ll need to grind them
- fresh figs
- vanilla (or vanilla sugar)
- pecans – these are for the crust, but I think even the filling will be interesting with some
- coconut oil or butter if you’re not dairy-free
- some water
- maple syrup, or you can use honey as well
- a pinch of salt
And that’s all the ingredients you’ll need to make this amazing fruit-based dessert!
How To Make Healthy Fig Bars With Oats
The first rule in making these healthy fig bars: do not talk about Fight Club. No, it’s to grind the oats. You can use old-fashioned, quick or fine oats, as you will be turning them into dust anyway.
I used the blender and I also added the pecans, since those need to be ground as well. You can also use a nut or coffee grinder if you don’t have a blender.
Combine this flour in a bowl with the wet ingredients – maple syrup, water and melted coconut oil. You will get a sticky, crumbly dough. Have a taste and adjust for sweetness with some maple syrup if you need to. The two tablespoons of maple syrup were more than enough in my opinion – remember the figs will add sweetness as well!
Preheat the oven to 350F/180C.
Then wash the figs thoroughly, removing any bad spots (if there are any). Cut into smaller chunks and combine with vanilla (essence, or ground natural bean or vanilla sugar will work as well). Let sit, while you’re preparing the crust for the fig bars. If you have more figs – you can saute them for 3-4 minutes with coconut and vanilla to “shrink” them. This is what I did for the updated bars.
Line a baking pan with parchment paper. I always make small batches, because we bake often at home, so I used this food container from IKEA – yes you can bake in it as well! (9×5 or 8×5 pan should work). You will need to separate the dough into two parts – one for the bottom and one for the topping. I used 2/3 for the bottom of the bars and the rest for the crumbs on top.
Press the dough firmly, spreading it over the bottom of the baking tray, and shaping the crust with your hands.
Arrange the figs on top of this layer.
Then shape crumbs with your fingers using the rest of the dough.
Cover the layer of figs with the crumbs, then bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
Let the bake cool down, then cut into bars. Enjoy immediately and store leftovers in the fridge!
More Healthy Dessert Ideas
I hope you enjoy these healthy fig bars with oats if you decide to give them a try! For more healthy dessert ideas, check out the recipes below:
Healthy Fig Bars With Oats
Use up the fresh figs you've got and make these tasty flourless healthy fig bars with oats, they're a great nutritious dessert idea!
Ingredients
Dough:
- 1 1/2 cup oats
- 1/2 cup pecans
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- Pinch of salt
- 3 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
- 2 tbsp water
Filling*
- 6 figs, chopped
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Grind the oats and pecans using a blender, a coffee or nut grinder.
- Combine this "flour" in a bowl with the wet ingredients – maple syrup, water and melted coconut oil. Mix until you get a sticky, crumbly dough.
- Preheat the oven to 350F/180C.
- Then wash the figs thoroughly, removing any bad spots. Cut into smaller chunks and combine with vanilla. Let sit, while you’re preparing the crust for the fig bars.
- Line a baking pan with parchment paper. I always make small batches, because we bake often at home, so I used this food container from IKEA – yes you can bake in it as well! (9×5 or 8×5 pan should work). You will need to separate the dough into two parts – one for the bottom and one for the topping. Use 2/3 for the bottom of the bars and the rest for the crumbs on top. Press the dough firmly, spreading it over the bottom of the baking tray, and shaping the crust with your hands.
- Arrange the figs on top of this layer.
- Then shape the crumbs using the rest of the dough and spread to cover the figs.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
- Let the bake cool down, then cut into bars. Enjoy immediately and store leftovers in the fridge!
Notes
*if you have more figs to use up, you can sautee them with some vanilla and coconut oil to make the bars. That's what I did when I updated the photos in 2025 - I had way too many to use up and cooking helped to shrink them. I have to say I do love the taste of the fresh figs in the bars a bit better. But this is a great option too!
Nutrition Information
Yield 6 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 264Total Fat 16gSaturated Fat 7gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 0mgSodium 25mgCarbohydrates 29gFiber 4gSugar 13gProtein 4g
Originally published in September 2023 and last updated in August 2026.