Danish Raspberry–Cottage Cheese Soft-Baked Oat Bars
Summer-ready soft-baked oat bars with creamy cottage cheese, fresh raspberries and a crunchy oat crumble.
Best for High-protein, fruit-forward breakfast or snack
Bright, fruit-forward bars inspired by Danish baking: a tender, protein-rich oat base enriched with blended cottage cheese and Greek yogurt, studded with fresh raspberries and finished with a buttery oat crumble. They bake soft — slightly custardy in the middle — so they're perfect warm for breakfast or chilled as a portable snack. The recipe leans on whole oats and dairy for extra protein and staying power, keeping added sweetener modest for a summer-fruity finish.
Ingredients
- 250 g rolled oats , reserve 80 g to pulse into oat flour and 70 g for the crumble; remaining ~100 g for the batter
- 250 g small-curd cottage cheese , cold
- 120 g Plain Greek yogurt , 2% or whole for creamier texture
- 2 large eggs , room temperature
- 60 g honey , can substitute maple syrup
- 5 ml Vanilla extract
- 1 Lemon zest , zest of 1 medium lemon
- 50 g whole wheat pastry flour
- 6 g Baking powder , about 1 1/2 tsp
- 3 g fine sea salt , about 1/2 tsp
- 220 g fresh raspberries , gently rinsed and patted dry
- 70 g Unsalted butter , cold, cut into small cubes for the crumble
- 30 g Light brown sugar , for the crumble
Instructions
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1
Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Line a 20×20 cm (8×8 in) square pan with parchment, leaving an overhang for easy lifting and butter or oil the sides lightly.
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2
Make the oat flour: place the reserved 80 g of rolled oats in a food processor and pulse until very fine (about 30–45 seconds); measure out 80 g of the resulting oat flour (you'll need approximately that amount). Set aside.
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3
Prepare the oat crumble: in a medium bowl combine the reserved 70 g rolled oats and 30 g brown sugar with a pinch of salt. Cut the cold cubed butter (70 g) into the oat-sugar mixture with a pastry cutter or two forks until pea-size clumps form and some larger crumble clusters remain. Refrigerate the crumble while you make the batter so it stays cold.
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4
Blend the wet base: in a food processor or blender, pulse the cottage cheese until smooth. Add Greek yogurt, eggs, honey, vanilla and lemon zest; blend until fully combined and smooth (about 30–60 seconds).
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5
Combine dry ingredients: in a large bowl whisk the oat flour you made, the remaining rolled oats for the batter (~100 g), whole wheat pastry flour (50 g), baking powder (6 g) and salt (3 g).
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6
Fold batter together: pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spatula until just combined. Fold in the fresh raspberries carefully — reserve 8–10 raspberries to press on top if you like pretty visible berries on the surface.
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7
Transfer to pan and add crumble: scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula. Scatter the chilled oat crumble evenly over the batter and gently press a few reserved raspberries lightly into the top.
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8
Bake until set: bake at 175°C (350°F) for 30–35 minutes — the edges should be golden and the center set but still slightly soft (a toothpick will come out with a few moist crumbs). Rotate the pan once halfway through baking for even color.
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9
Cool and slice: let the bars cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then lift out using the parchment overhang and cool another 20–30 minutes for cleaner slices. For a softer, custardy bite serve warm; for firm bars chill 1–2 hours before slicing into 9 squares.
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10
Storage: store cooled bars in an airtight container in the fridge up to 4 days, or freeze individually wrapped for up to 1 month; thaw in the fridge or microwave briefly to serve warm.