Whether you’re looking for a protein boost to tide you over ’til your next meal or a sweet pick-me-up but without the guilt, these Sugar-Free Nut n’ Seed bars are just what you need! They’re vegan, grain and gluten-free, soy-free, and friendly to both paleo and lectin-free diets.
Merry Meatless Monday! It’s about 2:30 in the afternoon and I’m just now sitting down to write today’s post! That being said, I probably don’t need to bother mentioning what a busy week I just had!
My original plan for today had been to perfect a cookie recipe I’ve been working on (it’s almost there!). On top of not getting the chance to make another cookie batch, last Wednesday, my friend Jen called me up after her morning gym time and exclaimed, “I need a breakfast bar!” and so, I had a new mission to conquer.
I’ve often run into the same problem Jen’s been having. You’re at the gym, giving it your all, and when your workout is done you’re absolutely starving, only you still have a couple of hours until your next meal. There are many protein and breakfast bars out there for sale, but it’s hard finding one with ingredients I approve of, and for Jen, I’m sure it’s even harder because she’s on a very restrictive diet.
I’ve made bars similar to these in the past, but the recipes I’ve previously used weren’t going to work because along with nuts and seeds, they also included plenty of dried fruit. I’m not saying dried fruit isn’t healthy, but it is packed with sugar, and even though it is a natural sugar, some of us still cannot have it.
My first time giving these a go, I did them without the chocolate. They were good, and I knew they’d get the job done, but I also knew I could make them better. If you ask me, everything is better with chocolate! They also had a tendency to crumble if you weren’t careful, and the chocolate helps with that as well. I guess that proves it’s not just tasty but helpful as well. LOL!
These aren’t hard to make, you just have to make sure you start them ahead of time so they can freeze and then later defrost. The first step is to pulse the nuts in a food processor. The nuts I went with were almonds, pecans, and walnuts, but this can be changed depending on your own personal likes and dietary needs. All that really matters for the recipe to work is that you end up with two cups of nuts.
The next step is melting the chocolate. I purchased two three-ounce chocolate bars which were 85% pure dark chocolate and both soy and dairy free. This will work for a lectin-free diet, and I believe for paleo, or you may purchase special bars (or chips works) marked as paleo friendly as well as vegan (yep, this exists!).
The chocolate is quite bitter. Don’t get me wrong, I love dark chocolate, and some crazy people (no offense), like my husband, are good with chocolate this dark, but it is a bit much for me. For that reason, along with a small amount of coconut oil, I added a little Stevia while melting the bars. For a paleo diet, I suggest adding pure maple syrup instead. You only need to add enough to where the chocolate tastes yummy to you and not overly bitter.
When the chocolate is melted it’s to be poured into the bottom of a loaf pan, lined with parchment paper. You will need to cover the bottom of the pan, but make sure to save a small amount of the chocolate to turn into drizzle later. The loaf pan then gets placed into the freezer while we move on to the next step.
To make the body of the bar, we melt coconut oil in a saucepan, whisk in some almond butter, and then along with the chopped nuts we add shredded coconut, hemp seeds, ground flax seeds, cocoa powder, cinnamon, a pinch of salt, and your sweetener of choice. Again, I used Stevia, but only about half of a small packet. Once the ingredients are well combined, remove the chocolate-bottomed loaf pan from the freezer and pack the nut and seed mixture on top. You want to catch the chocolate before it’s completely set, so it binds to the body of the bar.
The bars now freeze for two hours, or you can leave them in as long as you’d like. Once frozen, you will want them to defrost to refrigerator temperature so they are easily cuttable. You can do this in the fridge, or at room temperature if you keep a close eye on them. Too warm and they will crumble.
Once the bars are removed from the loaf pan and cut (I did six, even sized bars or squares work too), they will need to be spaced out a little on ht parchment. The chocolate now needs to be reheated and whisked with a bit of non-dairy milk and water (I also added more stevia at this point). If using a liquid sweetener you will need to skip the water.
When the chocolate is smooth again, it can be drizzled over the bars. I chose to also sprinkle some more coconut shreds on top while the chocolate was still warm. The bars just need to get refrigerated again until the drizzle has hardened, which doesn’t take long.
Now you have healthy, protein-packed bars perfect for post workouts, or just when you need something good in your stomach between meals. I’ve kept my first batch (without the chocolate) and have been breaking off chunks every now and then when I feel myself getting hungry or when I’m craving something sweet.
I’ve yet to have these taste-tested by someone other than me, but I dropped Jen’s off to her earlier today (right before I started writing, actually) and I’m hoping they’ll be just what she wanted. Leave a comment below and let me know what you think, or take a pic when you’ve made yours and tag me on Instagram, @veggiesattiffanis.
Sugar-Free Nut n’ Seed Bars
Ingredients
- 6 oz 85% or higher dairy-free dark chocolate soy-free and/or paleo if necessary
- 1 cup raw almonds (I used almonds which were pre-sliced) or nut of choice
- 1/2 cup raw pecans or nut of choice
- 1/2 cup raw walnuts or nut of choice
- 1/4 cup + 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil
- 2 Tbsp almond butter
- 2 Tbsp unsweetened coconut shreds, plus more to sprinkle on top (on top is optional)
- 2 Tbsp shelled hemp seeds or seeds of choice
- 2 Tbsp ground flax seed or substitute ground chia seeds (but not if lectin-free)
- 2 tsp cacao or cocoa powder
- 1 – 2 packets (to taste) stevia, or sweetener of choice coconut sugar (to taste) recommended for paleo
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon (Vietnamese cinnamon is my favorite!)
- pinch sea salt, or more to taste
- 1 Tbsp unsweetened non-dairy milk I use almond
- 2 Tbsp water omit or lessen if using a liquid sweetener in the drizzle
Instructions
- Place your two cups of nuts in a food processor and pulse about 6 times. You want them chopped well and combined, but not ground.
- Line a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan with parchment paper. If only covering the sides, oil the two ends not covered by the paper (I used coconut oil).
- Heat and whisk the chocolate along with a 1/2 tablespoon of coconut oil in the top pot of a double boiler over medium heat (with water in the bottom pot), until both are melted and well combined. Taste and add a small amount of sweetener (to taste — I used a light sprinkle of Stevia), if desired. Turn off heat. Pour the majority of the melted chocolate into the loaf pan. Make sure to add enough to cover the bottom, but reserve some in the bottom of your boiler pan. Tilt the loaf pan to cover the bottom evenly, then add place it in your freezer.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the remaining 1/4 cup of coconut oil. Whisk in the almond butter. Next, add the cinnamon and cacao powder. Once well combined turn off the heat. Stir in chopped nuts, coconut, hemp seeds, and ground flax seeds. Add a little sweetener to taste. I used half of one Stevia packet (the little kind that are on tables in restaurants).
- Remove the loaf pan from the freezer. Hopefully, the chocolate isn’t completely hard yet; you want it still melty on top. Add the nut and seed mixture to the top of the chocolate. Pack it down until it is flat and even on top. Place it back in the freezer for two hours (or longer).
- Once two hours has passed, remove loaf pan from the freezer once again. Place it in the refrigerator until soft enough to cut (about one hour, if you cut it while it’s completely hard pieces will break off). Alternatively, you can leave it on the counter, but keep a close eye on it. Once it hits room temperature, it will be too soft and will crumble when cutting.
- When ready, remove from loaf pan by pulling up on the sides of the parchment paper. Cut the bar into 6 bars (or squares). Spread the bars apart from one another on the parchment paper.
- Go back to the double boiler with the remaining chocolate and add in the non-dairy milk. Heat and whisk until smooth. Taste and add more sweetener, if desired. I added at least another half packet of Stevia. If using a liquid sweetener, add it with the milk and omit that amount of water (so if you use a half tablespoon of maple syrup, only add 1 1/2 Tbsp water).
- Using a small spoon, drizzle the chocolate on top of the bars. If desired, sprinkle a small amount of coconut shreds on top of the melted chocolate. Transfer back to the refrigerator until chocolate hardens (about 15 to 30 minutes). Store in the fridge.