I’m sorry I’ve been a little quiet and inconsistent posting here over the past few weeks.

Not only have I been having some technical difficulties which, I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about by now, but to be honest, I’ve had a really hard time getting myself together after all the festive fun of Christmas and New Year I kind of felt like I was stuck in some kind of fog that I just could not find my way out of.

Then with all the devastation that’s been going on with the fires here in Australia, it’s been really hard to focus on anything else . . . posting recipes just seemed so trivial and insignificant , you know?!

But, I’m happy to report that things are finally settling down. Here at home the fog is lifting, I feel like I’m finding my groove again  but more importantly things are calming down on the fire front! Let me tell you, I have never been so happy to see rain than I have this past few days!!!!

Secretly healthy snickers bars to celebrate?!

Guys, these snickers bars are going to rock your world in more ways than one!

Firstly, secretly healthy snickers bars, um, yes!

World rocked!

Secondly, did you know that snickers bars don’t actually contain any peanut butter?!

Peanuts, yes, peanut butter, not a drop!

Did you know about this?!

I had no idea, I guess I never really looked at the label , back in the day I would just rip them open and devour them without giving the ingredient list a second thought and for some reason I just always assumed there was peanut butter in the mix. Please tell me I’m not the only one?!

But now I’m older , wiser and know a little better . . . mostly just because few weeks ago, when I started this mission to create a better for you snickers bar (that actually tastes good) as per your request, I took a peek at the ingredient list to see get some inspo and I was shook!

Not a drop of peanut butter in sight!

“. . . nougat topped with caramel and peanuts that has been enrobed in milk chocolate . . . ”

Who knew?!

You guys, these secretly healthy snickers bars are straight up money in the bank!

Dare I say better than the original!

And I don’t just mean because they’re made with wholesome, “better for you” ingredients, I mean because they truly taste all kinds of incredible! Also, dark chocolate always wins!

Soft, chewy nougat , check!
Although I tested this recipe at least 4 times if you want a crispier, more shortbread like base, leave a comment or send me an email and I’ll give you the details.

Dreamy (date free) caramel , check!

Choc full of peanuts , check and check!

Enrobed in chocolate, you better believe it! I mean is there any other way to live?!

Super simple to make using just 7 basic ingredients that I bet you have on hand already and come together in 1 bowl with 1 spoon and can be ready to devour in less than an hour – most of which is chill time which in all honesty is THE hardest part about making these bars.

Will waiting be difficult, possibly for some – some people being me

But will it be worth it?! Absolutely, 100%, without question, oh so worth it!

I mean . . . can you even with those layers?!

Gluten Free – Dairy Free – Grain Free – Refined Sugar Free – Low Carb – Keto – Paleo – Vegan Friendly

All natural, quick and easy, secretly healthy, soft and chewy, better for you snickers bars!

1 bowl + 7 ingredients

100% worth it!

And yes, you better believe I’ll be making a fully loaded peanut butter version some time in the not to distant future . . . watch this space!

From my heart to yours, enjoy xo

Raw {DATE FREE} Snickers Bars

Gluten Free – Dairy Free – Grain Free – Refined Sugar Free – Low Carb – Vegan – Keto – Paleo

8 large, 12 medium size or 26 bites of deliciousness

Ingredients –

For the base –

1/2 cup almond flour

1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon of coconut flour

1/4 cup of maple syrup*

2 Tablespoons of almond milk – or milk of choice

1 teaspoon of coconut oil, melted

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon – I actually use cinnamon before you speak coffee because coffee = life and I just love that little extra flavour boost it brings to the nougat – use EMS10 to get 10% off if you haven’t tried it yet, you really should!

1 pinch of salt

For the caramel filling –

1/2 cup almond butter

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup maple syrup*

1 teaspoon of vanilla

A generous pinch of salt

1/2 cup (or more if you want want extra crunchy) peanuts – or almonds for paleo – roughly chopped. Chunky peanuts make slicing a little tricky so I suggest chopping them up a little.

For the chocolate coating –

1/2 cup of good quality dark chocolate – use 1 cup if you want to completely coat your snickers bars

1 teaspoon of coconut oil

A pinch of salt + extra for serving

*keto friends use monk fruit based maple syrup

Method –

1 – Line a small rimmed baking dish or loaf pan with non-stick parchment paper and set aside.

2 – Place all ingredients for the base into a small bowl and stir until well combined.

3 – Press base in to your prepared baking dish (or loaf pan) and press in to one nice smooth even layer.

5 – Set aside.

6 – Place all ingredients for your almond butter caramel in to a small bowl and stir until smooth, creamy and well combined.

7 – Pour 1/2 of your salted caramel filling over your nougat base and smooth in to a nice, even layer.

8 – Optional – lightly toast peanuts, in the oven or a dry skillet for a few minutes until slightly golden and fragrant. Set aside for a minute or two to cool.

9 – Add peanuts to your caramel layer then use your hands (or the back or a spoon, it’s get a little messy but it’s totally worth it) to gently but firmly press your peanuts in to your caramel layer.

9 – Add remaining caramel, gently smooth to the edges – it’s OK if some of the peanuts get caught up in the caramel, it’s destined to happen, just go with it.

10 – Place in the freezer to set – should be ready in 20ish minutes.

9 – Melt together chocolate and coconut oil  by your preferred method – I like to do mine double broiler style, by placing the chocolate in to a bowl then sitting it on a small sauce pan filled with about 2 cm of water, let the water  simmer , without touching the bottom of the bowl, stir the chocolate occasionally until completed melted.

10 – Now – you have 2 options here –

1 – which is the option I chose – I sliced the chilled/set snickers bars then drizzled the tops of each bar with melted chocolate, repeating until all bars with crowned with chocolate, then drizzled the remaining melted chocolate over the top to make a pretty pattern.

2 – You can simply pour your melted chocolate on to the base, then slice it as a whole. If you choose to take this option, be warned the chocolate layer can crack as you slice it. I suggest heating the blade of your knife with boiling water before slicing, the heat makes slicing easier (and the chocolate is less likely to crack as much) as the heated blade will melt the chocolate layers as you press to slice.

Just make sure you wipe any excess water off the blade before slicing.

11 – Devour!

Bars are best stored in an air tight container in the fridge (can also be frozen)

Enjoy xo

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Question of the day –

What’s your favorite treat?

Feel free to share recipes, or links to your fave recipes in the comments below or on the Facebook page and please for the love of all that is good in this world when you do make these healthy snickers bars (or any of the recipes you find on this blog of mine) go ahead and snap a pic and share it either on the Facebook page, or tag me on twitter or Instagram. Sharing is caring remember.

Do it, do it You know you want to ox

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