Monday 25 August 2014

Guilt-Free Crispy Chocolate Caramel Bars









Sometimes recipes don't work out as I had planned. Case and point: healthy chocolate caramel crispy bars.

They looked beautiful. In theory they would be great... and I suppose when I think about it they really were not bad at all. In fact, everyone loved them...










 See? They were really quite pretty.



But they just weren't what I was going for.. I used quinoa crispies instead of rice and they got soggy and the bar itself was not crispy but kind of dough-y.

I brought them to my grandmothers house and everyone loved them!


But I was not satisfied. I WANTED CRISPY BARS DANGIT.

I complained for hours and decided to try again.












Eureka!














Crispy chocolate bars with a layer of decadent RAW vegan caramel with my favourite topping in the world: chocolate. That raw vegan caramel is on POINT. I have seen it floating around different blogs and raw vegan recipes so it is by NO means my own idea. But as usual I tweaked it to suit my needs and I feel like using the nut butter and melted coconut oil helped it mix a little bit better!

Crispy. Crunchy. Sweet. Delicious. A perfect combination of rice crispy treats, granola bars and a chocolate caramel candy bar. Who would say no to that?!

















If at first you don't succeed? Cry, complain and behave restlessly until you get the courage to try again! It will be okay, I promise.


Without further ado, I present to you my Guilt-Free Crispy Chocolate Caramel Bars.








Guilt-Free Crispy Chocolate Caramel Bars 

Yields 16 Bars 

Gluten Free, Refined Sugar Free, High Protein, Vegan Option

Ingredients:

Base

  • 1 1/4 cups puffed rice cereal (gluten free)
  • 1 heaping cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup vanilla protein powder 
  • 1/3 cup shredded coconut 
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder 
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon 
  • 1/2 cup nut butter
  • 1/2 liquid sweetener of choice (honey, maple syrup, agave, brown rice syrup, coconut nectar)
  • 5 drops NOW Foods English Toffee Stevia Drops* (optional but really good!) 
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil (melted)
Raw Caramel Layer

  • 1/2 cup dates, pitted
  • 1 tablespoon nut butter
  • 1 tablespoon liquid sweetener of choice (see above)
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted 
Chocolate Layer

  • 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
Optional Toppings: Toasted Coconut, Additional Chocolate Chips, Nuts, Seeds, Etc!


Directions:

Base

  1. Sift together all dry ingredients except cocoa in a large mixing bowl and set aside
  2. In a small saucepan add nut butter, liquid sweetener, cocoa, coconut oil, and any other flavourings and sweeteners you may desire 
  3. Add liquid mixture to dry mixture until fully combined 
  4. Press the mixture into an 8x8 pan lined with foil or plastic wrap and set in the fridge for 30 minutes
Raw Caramel Layer

  1. Pulse all the ingredients in a food processor until fully combined (mixture will be sticky!)
  2. Spread as evenly as possibly over base layer and place back in the fridge for 30 minutes

Chocolate Layer

  1. Melt chocolate in microwave (or whichever way you would like!) until smooth 
  2. Add in coconut oil and stir until chocolate is thinned out and very shiny
  3. Pour over caramel layer, tilting the pan back and forth to coat your caramel layer evenly
  4. Add toppings if desired
  5. Place in fridge to set at least 45-60 minutes
  6. Cut into 16 bars and serve!
  7. Refrigerate leftover bars



That's it! Chop them up and bring them to...well....anywhere! These taste like CANDY! Oh my gosh. They are perfect and the perfect crunch level. I am one happy baker. Except...I did not bake these because they are no-bake. Well, it doesn't matter just LOOK!


























See that caramel layer? Mmmmm. So chewy and delicious.












I would take these with me anywhere. I would take them on vacation and on an airplane --- I would take them to bed but I ate chocolate in bed once and woke up with...well. You know what happened.














These are the ultimate in healthy crispy chocolate caramel bars. THE ULTIMATE. In every kind of chocolate crispy bar category, actually. 






So if you know someone who is a fan of sweet, chewy, satisfying chocolate and caramel bars -- BOOM. You are their new favourite person.


But you were already -- we both know that!



And just to give you a sense of the NOM factor:










OOPS! Couldn't help but sneak a bite.



From my kitchen to yours,


Happy Chewing!

XO 

5 comments:

  1. These look wonderful! I just found your blog, and it is lovely :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am so happy you found me! Thank you for the kind words :)

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  2. Full Melt chocolates are organic fair trade premier brand of medicated chocolate bars.Full Melt offers a variety of fun and delicious flavors to choose from including both plain milk and dark chocolate bars for those who want to experience the true flavor of cannabis.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I know this is an old post, but I just made these and they were fantastic! I salted every layer (love salty caramel) and they've gone down a treat with my family. Next time I think I'll double the caramel for a thicker, gooeir layer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kate! I am SO SO happy you liked these! I love them, too. AND OMG SALTY CARAMEL! What have I been doing this whole time! I'll have to do that next time. And YES to a double layer. The more caramel the better!

      Delete