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Carrot cake in the morning? Yes! My Carrot Cake Millet Breakfast Bars are vegan, gluten-free, oil-free, and only 94 calories per big square. Your morning grab & dash is going to be delicious!
Table of Contents
- Try Millet for Breakfast in Place of Oats
- Health Benefits of Millet
- Ingredients for Vegan Carrot Cake Millet Breakfast Bars
- Step by Step Directions Millet Breakfast Bars
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Storage of the Carrot Cake Millet Bars
- Tips for Success
- Related Recipes
- Carrot Cake Millet Breakfast Bars Recipe
Try Millet for Breakfast in Place of Oats
I cannot live by oats alone. Despite being so handy and delicious, sometimes the breakfast grains need some mixing up.
So, let’s give millet a shot. Specifically in the form of Carrot Cake Millet Breakfast Bars!
They are, quite literally, handy. And most definitely dandy. They also happen to be easy to make, vegan, gluten-free, high-fiber, and frugal. If you are in the midst of a New-Year’s resolution reboot (you can do it!), you will also be happy to know that these have a measly 94 calories per big square.
Health Benefits of Millet
First, in case you do not have any in your pantry, you will need to acquire some millet. You will love it! It is super-versatile (make it like pilaf, polenta, breakfast porridge, or toast it to use as a nut-substitute in baked goods), and relatively inexpensive, too.
It is also:
- gluten-free
- easy-to-digest
- high in B vitamins
- high in fiber & protein
- one of the only grains that is alkalizing to the body
Ingredients for Vegan Carrot Cake Millet Breakfast Bars
The exact amounts of each ingredient are indicated in the recipe card at the end of the post. Toggle between US Customary (volume) and Metric (weights) for preferred measurement option.
- uncooked millet
- nondairy milk (e.g., almond milk, oat milk)
- shredded peeled carrots
- flaxseed meal
- raisins
- coconut sugar
- pumpkin pie spice (or ground cinnamon)
- vanilla extract
The recipe also calls for water and (optional/adjustable) salt.
Step by Step Directions Millet Breakfast Bars
Note that the complete directions are also in the recipe card below.
- Pulse the millet in a food processor or blender until the mixture resembles a course meal. Place in a pan with the nondairy milk and water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 17 to 20 minutes, whisking frequently. The millet should be soft and thick.
- While millet simmers, line a 9-inch (22.5 cm) square baking pan with foil or parchment. Spray the sides (otherwise the bars will stick to paper/foil).
- Preheat oven to 375F (190 C).
- To the saucepan of cooked millet, stir in the remaining ingredients.
- Pour and spread into prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown and firm at the center.
- Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely. Remove from pan and cut into 9 squares. Serve cooled, chilled, or rewarm in the microwave for 15 to 45 seconds, as desired.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Can I Omit the Flaxseed Meal? No. It is the flaxseed meal that holds the bars together.
- Is There an Alternative to the Flaxseed Meal? Yes. You can substitute 1/4 cup (52 g) of ground chia seeds for the flaxseed meal.
- Can I Make the Bars without Raisins? Yes. Omit them or sub with another variety of chopped dried fruit, such as dried cranberries, apricots or prunes. You can also substitute an equal amount of nuts, seeds, or miniature chocolate chips.
Storage of the Carrot Cake Millet Bars
Once cooled, these bars will keep, in an airtight container, for
- five days in the refrigerator
- six months in the freezer.
Tips for Success
- Weigh the millet. For the most accurant results, weigh the millet (180 grmas).
- Chop the millet before cooking. Be sure to process the millet first, as directed. This breaks down the millet grains so that it cooks in a much less time than whole millet.
- Cook millet completely. Cook the millet until it is thick and soft, like porridge, before adding the other ingredients and baking.
The carrot cake bars are stellar straight up, but you can also gild the lily with additional toppings, such as a generous schmear of vegan cream cheese.
Let us eat cake!
Related Recipes
- Flourless Apple Millet Muffins
- Vegan Millet Kale Quiches
- Millet Apricot Energy Bars (no-cook, 5 ingredients)
- Toasted Millet Banana Muffins
- Curried Millet with Raw Apple Relish
Carrot Cake Millet Breakfast Bars
Equipment
- 1 9-inch (22.5 cm) square baking pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked millet
- 1 cup nondairy milk, e.g., almond milk, oat milk
- 2 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups shredded peeled carrots, (lightly packed, about 3 medium carrots)
- 1/2 cup flaxseed meal , see notes for options
- 1/4 cup raisins, chopped (options in notes)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice , or cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pulse the millet in a food processor or blender until the mixture resembles a course meal. Place in a pan with the nondairy milk and water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 17 to 20 minutes, whisking frequently. The millet should be soft and thick.
- While millet simmers, line a 9-inch (22.5 cm) square baking pan with foil or parchment. Spray the sides (otherwise the bars will stick to paper/foil).
- Preheat oven to 375F (190 C).
- To the saucepan of cooked millet, stir in the remaining ingredients. Pour and spread into prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown and firm at the center. Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely.
- Remove from pan and cut into 9 squares. Serve cooled, chilled, or rewarm in the microwave for 15 to 45 seconds, as desired.
Can I substitute sorghum or finger millet in this recipe
HI Margaret,
I think finger millet should be fine. Sorghum will not work since it is a much bigger grain than millet an takes much longer to cook. If you cooked the sorghum separately, though, you might be able to make it work. Cheers.
Yummy! Perfect for my toddler (and for me!). I soak my millet overnight before using to make it easier for my little one to digest.
That’s lovely, Mieko, glad you and your toddler both like the recipe! And thank you for sharing the soaking tip 🙂
These are delicious. I love being ble to get some vegetables into my breakfast, this makes it easy.
I am so glad you like the recipe, Laila!
Can you use xylitol in your recipes in place of coconut sugar? or date syrup in place of maple?
Thank you!
Hi Regina,
In general, YES, xylitol can be used in place of sugars (such as coconut sugar) in a 1:1 replacement. It does not act just ike sugar in recipes, though. Sugar adds moisture to baked goods, so you may need to add a small amount more liquid when you sub with xylitol. Xylitol also does not caramelize the way that sugar does, so the end results may be more pale, (depending on what you bake). Regarding date syrup: yes, it can be used as a substitute (1:1) ratio for maple syrup in most recipes. Cheers!
I have precooked a batch of millet how much should I use for this recipe?
Hi Stephanie! I think you can use about 2 cups of the cooked millet. 🙂 Skip the first steps regarding cooking the millet, proceed from there.
I made these after browsing your site. So moist! I think it would be a nice little cake to serve with tea.
Trina
As a fellow tea aficionado, I concur 100%, Trina 🙂 Glad you like the recipe!
Since I am on lectins free diet, I am using a lot millet. It’s never took me so much to cook it. I am cooking it like spaghetti, with a lot of water with a little salt. Adding the millet to the boiling water and cook them for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes I pour the millet with the water into a fine sieve for half an hour. That’s it. From there I can take it to sweet or savory.
Try this method, easy and quick.
Sounds brilliant, Yael! I am going to try that asap 😊
These are wonderful. I make the millet in my instapot. I’ve made these with zucchini , too. Thank you!
I made the bars for the first time and they turned out well. The house also smelled great! I doubled the chopped raisins because I wanted to make sure the recipe was sweet enough for me and it was. Next time I might increase the carrots slightly to the same 1 1/2 cups but firmly packed. I made my own pumpkin spice after searching the web for recipes. For one batch, I used 3/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp allspice, and 1/8 tsp cloves. Thanks for the creative recipes!!