Homemade Aussie Bites (Costco copycat)

Aussie Bites 5

Homemade Aussie Bites (Costco copycat)

Have you ever tried something so yummy and thought, I need to figure out how to make these at home so I can devour them whenever I want?  When I first tasted the Aussie Bites at Costco a while ago I immediately fell in love.  More samples?  Yes, please!  Not only are they sweet and chewy, just like the way I love a good oatmeal cookie, but they are full of nature’s best ingredients:  oats, flaxseed, chia seeds, apricots, raisins, quinoa and a lot more.  I studied the ingredient list and wanted to find a way to recreate them.


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I was excited to find a great copycat recipe online at The Stay At Home Chef food blog.  I tweaked it a bit to make it original and here it is. You might appreciate that this recipe does not use eggs, flour or added salt.  They’re sweetened with honey and agave nectar along with dried apricots and raisins.  I use half butter and half unrefined coconut oil for moisture or you could use all coconut oil if you wish.

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Part of the oats are pulverized in a food processor and then all the dry ingredients are blended in.  The wet ingredients are added last and processed just until combined.  Bake them at 350 degrees F for 10 to 12 minutes while the sweet aromas fill your kitchen.  Additional flavorings like cinnamon, almonds or pecans can be added or substituted as desired.

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The bite-size portion is just the right size for a quick energy snack or an after-dinner sweet hit.  Store in a zip-lock container or freeze a few for safe keeping if you’re not going to eat them all  .  .  . but believe me when I say to hide them well because if discovered, they won’t last long.

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Homemade Aussie Bites (Costco copycat)

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 24 mini bites

  • Homemade Aussie Bites
  • 1 3/4 cup rolled oats, divided
  • 1/4 cup dried apricots
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
  • 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1/4 cup cooked quinoa
  • 2 Tbsp chia seeds
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup agave nectar
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup unrefined coconut oil, melted
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat two 12-count mini muffin pans with cooking spray and set aside.
  2. Place 1 cup of rolled oats into a food processor. Process for about 1 minute until oats are pulverized. Add in the remaining 3/4 cup rolled oats, dried apricots, raisins, flax seed, sunflower seeds, coconut, quinoa, chia seeds and baking soda. Pulse until apricots and raisins are in small bits.
  3. Pour in honey, agave nectar, melted butter, coconut oil and vanilla extract. Pulse just until combined.
  4. Divide batter among the prepared muffin pans. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.
  5. Remove pans from oven and let cool in pans on a wire cooling rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool completely on the wire rack.
  6. Store in an airtight container for up to 4 to 5 days. Can also freeze for up to 2 to 3 months.
https://karenmangum.com/homemade-aussie-bites-costco-copycat/

 

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51 Comments

  • Mimi

    This recipe looks delicious and i can’t wait to make it! Can I sub the agave nectar for honey? I have a huge jar of honey and I’d prefer not to buy another sweetener unless it may change the texture. Thanks!

    • Karen

      I don’t see why you couldn’t use all honey. It will change the flavor just a bit but I don’t think it will affect the texture. Let me know how it turns out.

    • Sarah

      I am just finding this and am wondering how substituting worked? I don’t want to guy agave nectar if I don’t have too.

      • Karen

        Hi Sarah: I did not hear back from Mimi about whether she used all honey instead of half honey and half agave as the recipe calls for. Why don’t you give it a try? I don’t see why it would make a big difference. Let me know how it goes. Personally I love having agave nectar on hand for a quick dissolving sweetener for salad dressings, smoothies, BBQ sauce, granola recipes. It is very shelf stable as well.

    • Keri

      I made a batch with agave, and my friend used all honey. Hers worked fine but were definitely sweeter than mine.

      • Karen

        Honey is much more concentrated than agave so will be sweeter. Glad you both experimented and shared your outcomes. Either way these little Aussie bites are the best!

  • Sue

    Hi Karen,
    Would love to try making Aussie Bites but wonder are your measurements in American or Australian cups please. Will be converting to metric (as I’m in the UK) so want to get in right!

    • Karen

      Hi Katy: These are one of my favorite snacks! So full of whole grain goodness, dried fruit, oats, flax. The only thing I can think of is to make sure you press the mixture into each of the muffin pans. I probably need to emphasize this in the recipe. Be sure to let them cool in the pan for 10 minutes before cooling completely on a rack. You also might try chilling them before removing from the pan to allow the oils and butter to harden a bit.

  • Nancie

    ….good recipe…yes crumbly…read the comment/hint to “press batter” into each cup AFTER I made them. Also a bit sweet for my taste, going to omit one of the sweeteners next time. Thanks for AWESOME recipe!

    • Karen

      Sorry you had the same “crumbly” problem, but if you press them into the muffin cup a bit more firmly I think you’ll have better luck. They’re not like cookies that come together with heat. I love all the whole grain goodness. Certainly feel free to reduce the agave nectar or honey amounts if it’s too sweet for you. There is plenty of sweet from the chopped dried fruit.

  • Bobby

    Amazing, thanks for sharing! Saw these at Costco and was going to buy them buto my wife took one look and said don’t waste the money you can totally make these at home. Found your recipe, don’t want to bother with the store bought now!!
    ** I subbed cranberries for rasins!!

  • Jennifer

    I had the crumbly issue too….of course that was before I read the comments. I did tap them down, guess not hard enough to pack it in.
    Tastes delicious! I even nibbled them raw 😊
    Can’t wait to try making them again.

  • Andrea

    These are so yummy. Cab I sub out the butter to make them a but healthier? What would you use instead?

    • Karen

      I’m so glad you love these. I’m craving these right now!! You could use all coconut oil instead of butter or even part canola oil but I think they’d be too dry if we didn’t use some form of oil/fat. Let me know what you think if you try a different oil combination.

  • Lindsay

    Made these last night and I loved them! I used uncooked quinoa and the added crunch is nice. I also used all agave syrup and no honey. Next time I’ll add some flax seed (not ground). I have a vitamix and found that it chopped the dried fruit too much (even with just a short blend time) so I added some more and chopped them finely by hand. Husband and toddler approved too. Will definitely be making these again!

    • Karen

      Lindsay: I would not have thought to use uncooked quinoa; that might be a little hard to digest? Let me know on that one. But I like how you can adapt the recipe to your preferences. I’ve not used my Vitamix so thanks for the heads up on too much power; I’ll stick with my food processor. So glad the whole family can enjoy them!

  • Christine

    These are ah-mazing and just the kind of recipe I love to try. I used only honey because I had no agave, i’ll reduce it next time I make these.

  • Mandy

    Made my first batch this morning and I’m making my second batch now! The family loves the and says they taste just like Costco. I followed your advice about pushing the batter down before and after baking and waiting 10 minutes before removing them from the pan. I had NO issues with them crumbling. You’re right, as the oils cool, they firm up nicely. I did have to substitute honey for the agave and dates and tart cherries instead of raisins and apricots because that’s what I had on hand. I used whole flaxseeds instead of milled, as well. They’re perfect! Cannot wait to try the recipe as it is written once I’ve gone to the store. THANK YOU for posting this. We are a gluten free and natural sugar family and as much as we loved the Costco Aussie bites, I didn’t like the white sugar. They were just too sweet. Now, I can “have my cake and eat it too” without regret!

    • Karen

      Mandy: Such a great response. This is one of my all time favorite recipes on the blog. Thanks for sharing your experience and all your substitutions that worked just great. The recipe is obviously very versatile and will accommodate what you have on hand.

  • Betty

    So good..have made them several times…I use butter and coconut oil, honey only, and added almonds. Let them cool and they should not crumble. Hint, I also used some almond extract plus the vanilla. Why do we cooks tweak a perfect recipe? Ha.

    • Karen

      I love your modifications. I do the same thing to other perfectly wonderful recipes because there are multiple versions of perfect! Your comment inspires me to make these again. So full of amazing goodness! Thanks for your comment.

  • Kim

    I just made a recipe almost exactly like this one and didn’t care for the overpowering taste of the sunflower seeds. Could those be left out? Or maybe use less? I didn’t have ground flax seed so I put them in my coffee grinder and it worked great. I am going to try your recipe next using the agave nectar and coconut oil! I also did not cook the quinoa as that recipe said it wasn’t necessary, but I think I will cook it the next time.

    • Karen

      Of course you can omit the sunflower seeds or just switch to something else like pumpkin seeds. This recipe is so versatile; you can switch oils, sugars, seeds or grains. I believe the recipe calls for cooked quinoa, otherwise it would be too crunchy. Although I’ve used uncooked quinoa in recipes like in The Best Homemade Granola Ever. Thanks for sharing your experience.

  • Jackie

    I followed most the recipe: I added protein powder and mixed nuts. I replaced quinoa with Kashi 7 Grain Whole Puffs. I replaced agave nectar with maple syrup.
    I want to replace the agave nectar, butter, and honey. I can’t figure out how. I think I can do 1/4 and 3 tablespoons of olive oil as one substitution. What about the agave nectar? I don’t want any sugar or artificial sweeteners.

    • Karen

      Creative substitutions. I’m happy you’re exploring new ways to make these. Maple syrup is sugar in a very pure form and is a good choice. You can certainly cut this back but to cut out all the sweet will definitely make these more like bread. You could also try applesauce in place of some of the oil/butter. Not sure they’ll hold together, but you could try and let me know.

      • Jackie

        Could I substitute oats for coconut flour?

        I was able to make the recipe with vegetable oil and it turned out fine. I’m going to now make the recipe with olive oil 🙂

        • Karen

          Hi Jackie: I’ve never tried it with coconut flour instead of oats. The oats are such a large bulking ingredient that I’d guess that they wouldn’t hold together as well, but give it a try. Yes try olive oil and let me know. I still prefer coconut oil as it adds such a wonderful flavor.

    • Karen

      You can try this. Mound them like a cookie. Or if you have a full-size muffin tin, just put a small amount in the bottom of each muffin cup. Bake for the same time as the recipe directs. Let me know how they turn out.

  • Leena Naji

    Loved this recipe. I actually didnt use the agave nectar. The 1/4 honey was sweet enough for me. Any idea how many carbs are in a bite???

    • Karen

      Leena, here’s a nutritional breakdown per bite: 133 calories, 15 grams carbohydrate (2.2 grams fiber, 7 grams sugar), 7.3 grams fat, 2.2 grams protein. And if you cut back on the sugar then you can omit about 3 grams sugar and 12 calories from each bite. Thanks for sharing!

    • Karen

      Hi Annie: I’m not familiar with how WW points are assigned. I don’t count points or calories, but if I had to guess each one would be similar to a slice of bread. Hope that helps.

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