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+ servings

Healthy Homemade Crunch Bars

Classic crunch bar vibes—made healthy at home
Author: Whole Shenanigans
Prep: 15 minutes
Refrigeration Time: 2 hours
Total: 2 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 6 + bars

Ingredients

Quick Version

  • 1 cup chocolate (sweetened chocolate of your choice)
  • 1 cup puffed quinoa (store-bought or homemade*)

From-Scratch Version

  • 1 cup 100% cacao wafers
  • 1 cup cacao butter
  • 1/2 cup powdered coconut sugar (or sweetener of your choice), double for a less dark version
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 cup puffed quinoa

Instructions

Quick Version

  • Melt the chocolate: Use a double boiler (a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water) or microwave in short bursts, stirring frequently to prevent burning.
  • Add the puffed quinoa and stir until evenly coated.
  • Pour mixture into a parchment-lined pan or mold. Refrigerate 2 hours until firm.
  • Slice or break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

From-Scratch Version

  • Melt cacao butter in a double boiler (a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water). Once it is mostly melted, stir in the cacao wafers until melted.
  • Mix in your sweetener, vanilla extract, and salt.
  • Add the puffed quinoa and stir until evenly coated. (See “notes” to make your own puffed quinoa.)
  • Pour mixture into a parchment-lined pan or mold. Refrigerate 2 hours until firm.
  • Slice or break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

Video

Notes

-*If you want to make your own puffed quinoa, it will not be as puffy as store-bought, but it will still give you a good crunch. First, rinse the quinoa, then dry it completely (this removes the bitter saponins). I skip this step personally because I don’t have the patience. Then toast over medium heat until it pops. Keep it moving — it burns fast!
-Use chocolate with 70% cacao or higher for more antioxidants and less sugar.
-Bars can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or frozen for several months.
-Give these bars a nutrient boost with nuts, chia seeds, hemp hearts, goji berries, or pomegranate.

Nutrition

Calories: 279kcal | Carbohydrates: 12.8g | Protein: 1.4g | Fat: 26.2g | Saturated Fat: 16.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8.4g | Sodium: 15.5mg | Potassium: 121mg | Fiber: 3.5g | Sugar: 5.8g | Vitamin A: 20IU | Calcium: 10.5mg | Iron: 1.6mg

Nutrition values are approximate and may vary.

Keyword: chocolate bar, crunch bar
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