Homemade Double Chocolate Grain-Free Power Bars

The two writing projects I have right now are this blog post (about chocolate snacks) and my newsletter for tomorrow (about non-food rewards). The ironic juxtaposition of the two topics is not lost on me.

But neither is chocolate.

So if you want to read about ways to improve your life, sign up for the newsletter (there’s a handy box in the right sidebar, or you can click here). If you want to read about ways to improve snack time, you’re in the right place.

I’ve wanted to make a batch of granola for a while, but it’s been too darn hot to turn on the oven. When I came across a recipe for grain-free dark chocolate peanut butter “granola” bars, I was intrigued.

Even better, I had all the ingredients and no baking was required. I was going to stick close to her recipe until I had a few ideas along the way. Like more chocolate.

Instead of buying a protein bar chock full of junk, you can easily make these at home. I’d imagine it would be easy to shape them into little “bites” instead of squares if you’d like.

Whirr a bunch of nuts with a few pitted dates.

Melt together your sweet, chocolatey binder, then add to your nut mixture.

Stir well and pat firmly into a parchment-lined pan.

I sprinkled mine with protein-packed chia seeds and antioxidant-rich cacao nibs. The coffee-like bitterness of the cacao (and the salt I added to the original) helps balance all the sweetness.

Voila.

Pop the pan in the freezer and in 2 hours they’ll be ready to cut to size.

Mine stayed in the freezer overnight, so using my bench knife was helpful (as was letting them thaw for a few minutes).

The good news is that my husband loved these. The bad news is that my husband loved these.

I’ll definitely be making them again. They’re reasonably high in sugar, but I feel good about them being unprocessed and full of good stuff. And they’re chocolate.

They’re grain-, gluten-, and dairy-free, but not truly vegan because of the honey. You could try maple syrup instead, or use agave or brown rice syrup if you don’t mind those.

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Homemade Double-Chocolate Power Bars

by Stacy Spensley October-22-2012

A few pantry ingredients combine to make a decadent power-packed treat without any creepy chemicals.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup natural peanut or almond butter
• scant 1/4 cup honey, preferably raw
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 heaping tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (not cocoa mix)
• 1/2 cup raw almonds
• 1/2 cup raw walnuts
• 1/2 cup raw pecans
• 1/2 cup raw cashews
• 5 medjool dates, pitted
• 1/2 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon flax seeds
• 1 tablespoon chia or hemp seeds
• 3 tablespoons raw cacao nibs

Instructions

1.) Combine nut butter, honey, coconut oil, molasses, and vanilla in a saucepan over low heat. Stir until combined. Add cocoa powder and mix until uniform. 2.) Combine almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, and dates in a food processor. Pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand. 3.) Add the coconut, sunflower seeds, and salt, and pulse until the sunflower seeds are broken up. Add sesame and flax seeds and pulse a few times to mix.4.) Stir nut mixture and nut butter mixture together until uniform. Press firmly into an 8×8 baking pan lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with chia or hemp seeds and cacao nibs, pressing them into the surface of the bars.5.) Freeze for 2 hours before slicing into squares with a sharp knife or bench knife. Refrigerate for 2 weeks or freeze for a few months, well-wrapped, and thaw before serving.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 2 hour Total time: 2 hour 20 mins Yield: 16 squares

Tagged as: chocolate, dairy-free, gluten-free, october unprocessed, vegan