‘Nutella’ Fudge Oat Bars are thick, intensely chocolatey slices with a gluten-free rolled oat base and a gooey, fudge-like homemade hazelnut-chocolate filling. They’re rich, satisfying and perfect for packing into lunchboxes, serving with coffee or offering at a market stall.
I’m excited to share that I’m returning to my local cake stall after maternity leave. I’ll be back at Stroud Green Market on Sunday 6th October, selling an assortment of gluten-free layer cakes, loaf cakes, bars and other sweet treats. For now I’m keeping things local while I ease back into baking with the kids in tow — the market has a friendly, community atmosphere that I love, and it feels like the right place to relaunch.
While I’m focusing on market baking, I’ve stepped back from making preserves for the moment. That’s been a hard choice — I enjoy jams and chutneys — but with two little ones to care for, something had to give. I do expect to bring out a few seasonal preserves toward Christmas, like mincemeat or cranberry sauce, but my day-to-day baking will concentrate on cakes and bars that showcase great gluten-free ingredients.
Even while I’ve been on leave from the stall, I’ve kept the blog active and used the time to develop and update recipes. I’ve been revisiting older bakes and adapting them to be entirely gluten-free, improving both ingredients and technique where needed. These ‘Nutella’ Fudge Oat Bars are an example: the original recipe was posted back in 2014 with basic photos. I’ve refreshed the images and rewritten the recipe to remove store-bought Nutella in favor of a homemade hazelnut-chocolate filling that delivers a deeper, cleaner flavor without the palm oil and excess sweetness.
The filling is essentially a homemade Nutella-style fudge made by combining natural hazelnut butter with melted dark chocolate, cocoa powder and a touch of brown sugar. A little evaporated milk folded in at the end turns the chocolate-hazelnut mix into a glossy, spreadable fudge that sets into a luscious layer inside the oat bars. The base and topping are a buttery, crumbly rolled-oat dough studded with chopped hazelnuts and chocolate chips — because more chocolate is always a good idea.
These bars have a satisfying texture contrast: a crumbly, nutty oat crust, a silky, fudgy centre and a slightly crisp, golden top. They’re made with straightforward gluten-free flours and ingredients, and they cut neatly once fully cooled, making them ideal for selling by the slice or packing up for picnics and gifts.
I can’t wait to bring these ‘Nutella’ Fudge Oat Bars to the stall — they represent the sort of bold, flavour-first gluten-free baking I love to make, using quality ingredients and simple technique.
SHOP THE RECIPE
8″ Square Baking Tin
If you like this recipe then you may also like…
- Black Sesame Peanut Butter Brownies {gluten-free}
- Blackberry Cheesecake Hazelnut Oat Bars {gluten-free}
- No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Crispy Bars {gluten-free}
‘Nutella’ Fudge Oat Bars {gluten-free}
Ingredients
- 100 g sweet white rice flour
- 40 g tapioca flour
- 240 g gluten-free rolled oats
- 100 g hazelnuts, roughly chopped
- 240 g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 185 g soft light brown sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 180 g hazelnut butter (natural)
- 100 g dark chocolate
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons soft light brown sugar
- 75 ml evaporated milk
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 50 g dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160°C (fan) and grease an 8 inch (20 cm) square baking tin.
- Whisk the sweet white rice flour and tapioca flour together until combined.
- Add the gluten-free oats, chopped hazelnuts, butter, brown sugar, baking powder and ½ teaspoon salt. Rub the mixture together with your hands until it forms a light, slightly crumbly dough.
- Press half of the dough evenly into the base of the prepared tin to form the bottom crust.
- Prepare the hazelnut-chocolate filling: melt the dark chocolate, hazelnut butter, cocoa powder and 2 tablespoons brown sugar together in a double boiler (or gently in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water), stirring until smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in the evaporated milk to create a glossy, spreadable fudge. Taste and add a pinch of salt if needed.
- Spread the hazelnut-chocolate mixture evenly over the pressed base.
- Mix the chocolate chips into the remaining dough, then crumble this on top of the chocolate layer. Press down lightly so the crumbs adhere — it doesn’t need to be perfectly even.
- Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the top is golden and the filling is set around the edges.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for at least an hour before turning out. Transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely before cutting into bars.
Nutrition
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