5-minute Chocolate Energy Bars
These 5-minute Chocolate Energy Bars are the perfect pick-me-up. They’re quick and easy to make, raw, vegan, gluten-free, customizable, satisfying, nourishing, happiness-inducing and chocolatey!
“This is amazing Mash’Allah. So tasty, thank you!”
Love To Bake
For years, I have been seeing recipes for date balls or bars, and I’ve always thought how perfect they would be for Iftar, the small meal eaten to break the fast during Ramadan (the Islamic holy month of fasting).
Dates are eaten during Iftar as they are a nutrient-dense source of fiber and help regulate your blood sugar after the day of fasting. I often slit the dates open, remove the pits and replace them with a couple of almonds. Almonds are filling and add some necessary nutty crunch to offset the sweet and chewy dates.
These energy bars take the same concept and enhance it with…chocolate! Anything is better with chocolate, right? Another great recipe that chocolate makes even better is my Avocado Chocolate Mousse (and it’s healthy!).
Fasting or not, these chocolate energy bars are the perfect pick-me-up. They’re quick and easy to make, raw, vegan, gluten-free, customizable, satisfying, nourishing, happiness-inducing and chocolatey! 🙂
More Snack Recipes You’ll Love
Coconut Raspberry Cacao Bliss Balls
Double Chocolate Cardamom Cookies with Cassava Flour (gluten-free + dairy-free)
5-minute Chocolate Energy Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw almonds
- 13-14 (~1 1/2 cups) medium medjool dates, pitted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 heaped tbsp cacao or cocoa powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
Optional Add-Ins
- chia seeds
- chocolate chips
- white chocolate chips
- cacao nibs, current favorite
- shredded coconut
- sesame seeds
- poppy seeds
- ground cinnamon
- instant coffee/espresso powder
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients in a food processor. Process until the almonds have broken down well and the ingredients begins to form into a ball, about 2 minutes. If you are using chocolate chips and would like them somewhat intact, add them toward the end of the chopping.
- To flatten into bars, either place the dough between wax paper or place it in a quart size ziplock bag and then use a rolling pin to flatten. If using a ziplock bag, use scissors to cut it open after flattening the dough.
- Cut into bars of desired size. Enjoy right away and store the rest in the refrigerator.
Enjoy!
16 Comments on “5-minute Chocolate Energy Bars”
Can we somehow incorporate protein powder (whey) and oats into this recipe?
Yes, sure! These bars are very adaptable.
Hi,
I tried the recipe without optional add ins, and it was delicious, however, I want to add all the ingredients next time. Any tips for the amount of optional ingredients for
Hi Hassan, this is a really forgiving recipe. You can’t go wrong! As a guideline, you can start with 2 tbsp of the chocolate chips, cacao nibs, or coconut. I wouldn’t prefer more than 1 tbsp of the seeds, and probably just a pinch of the spices would be enough. 1 tsp of ground espresso powder would be delicious! Again, this is just me eyeballing. You can make it your own 🙂
Going to make these later as I have some dates. Can these be made into balls instead of bars?
Yes, Rachael. They’ll hold up in any shape. Sorry for the delay in responding..hope you get a chance to try them!
Absolutely fabulous energy bars. These were so tasty that i ate quite a bit while shaping them. The only thing i changed was soaking the almonds for half an hour in boiled water and removing the skins. It still holds together really well. My daughter enjoyed preparing these too. Great quality time with her 🙂
Yum! That’s a great tip. Thank you for taking the time to share!
Hi, what is the calorie count on these?
Added the nutrition facts!
Hello! What is estimated expiration date?
Hello! These will stay fresh in the fridge in a sealed container for 4-5 days!
This is amazing mash allah. So tasty, thank you!
Yayy! You’re welcome! Thanks for your review!
These sound great! So excited to try making them for iftar. I wonder if the recipe can be made into balls as well.
Yes, they certainly can!