These chocolate almond quinoa snack bars are fudgy, with a little crunch from toasted quinoa, and a sprinkling of sea salt on top. A great meal prep snack to enjoy throughout the week.
Another recipe I'm super excited to be finally sharing with you! This one has been in draft since Feb. 10. I'm so glad I'm feeling better after a couple of rough months of morning sickness.
I kind of forgot to share some other big news with you...we bought a house!
Like...a real 'grown up' house, with my dream kitchen...so much counter space, big windows looking into the back yard (which backs onto a green space), and into the family room. There were eleven offers on the house and we are still pinching ourselves that our offer was accepted! We don't take possession until July, and it's going to be three looong months...and I guess now we have the small task of selling our current house.
Well, enough about the house news, and more about these beautiful chocolate almond quinoa snack bars, amiright?
Don't forget to pin this recipe to save it for later!
After the success of these No Bake Energy Bites 7 Ways, I have been trying to think of other easy snack recipes. A few months back, I tried Pinch of Yum's Chocolate Snack Bars and it was love at first bite! I thought it would be fun to come up with my own chocolatey snack bar recipe.
These snack bars are super fudgy, thanks to the dates. Dates + cocoa powder + food processor = fudgy amazingness. For serious.
And...have you heard of toasted quinoa? It's pretty sublime, too. Simply toast up your quinoa in the oven for a few minutes and raw quinoa becomes nutty crunchy deliciousness.
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You are going to need a food processor for this recipe to blend your dates into the perfect texture. If you are looking for a basic, affordable food processor, you might like the one I have
...no bells or whistles, and it's going on 4 years with no issues whatsoever.These chocolate almond quinoa snack bars come together in under 30 minutes, and are perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth during the week...basically these are perfect to add into your weekly meal prep routine!
I drizzled the tops of these snack bars with some melted chocolate and sprinkled with some coarse sea salt...I am just a sucker for salty + sweet.
I'm just going to have to distract myself from new house excitement by making another batch of these chocolate almond quinoa snack bars...because I'm getting itchy feet, and my little orange kitchen is starting to feel pretty small!
Happy Thursday, friends!
Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped these chocolate almond snack bars. Itโs so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel, or on Facebook.
Tips for perfect chocolate almond quinoa snack bars:
- you will need a food processor for this recipe, and I highly recommend the one I have
- after blending, your mixture should come together when rolled in the palm of your hand. If it doesn't, try adding another couple of dates.
- looking for an easier recipe? Check out these seven No Bake Energy Bites flavors!
- or how about these Coconut Black Bean Brownies, which can also be made in a high powered blender!
- looking for more meal prep snack ideas? Check out these Creamy Greek Yogurt Fruit Dips (3 Ways), these Fudgy Black Bean Brownies, or these 7 No Bake Granola Bars, or this round up with 36+ Healthy Snack Recipes
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Chocolate Almond Quinoa Snack Bars
Ingredients
- โ cup quinoa uncooked
- 1.5 cups dates pitted (around 15)
- ยฝ cup almond butter
- ยฝ cup almonds
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted
- โ cup chocolate chips
- coarse sea salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350ยฐF. Spread quinoa out on a baking sheet and bake for 6-8 minutes, until toasted and golden. Start checking at 6 minutes to make sure they don't burn.
- Remove from oven and transfer to a bowl to cool.
- In a 7-cup food processor, combine the dates, almond butter, almonds, maple syrup and cocoa powder.
- Pulse 10 times, then blend on high for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture is in small uniform bits as pictured above. Mixture will be 'doughy'.
- Add melted coconut oil and blend for 10 seconds until it is evenly dispersed.
- Important: Scoop up some of the dough in your hand. If it firmly sticks together, proceed with the rest of the recipe. If it is crumbly, add another tablespoon of coconut oil and blend again.
- Add the toasted quinoa and pulse 10 times to mix it through.
- Press into a 9 x 9 inch baking dish lined with parchment paper. Using your hands, press the mixture into the dish, flattening it and working it into the corners. You can flatten it evenly using the back of a drinking glass.
- (Optional): melt the chocolate chips in 15 second increments in the microwave, stirring each time. When completely melted, transfer the chocolate to a small plastic bag, snip the corner, then drizzle over the bars.
- Sprinkle with coarse sea salt to taste.
- Freeze for 30 minutes, then remove from the freezer, cut into 15 bars, transfer to a storage container, and store in the fridge for up to one week.
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Video
Nutrition Information
ยฉ Sweet Peas & Saffron - Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
Lisa says
DO you think I could make use of the ground almond that I have rather than whole almonds?
Denise says
Hi Lisa, I haven't tried that, but the nice thing about the whole almonds is they add a bit of crunch to the bars. Let me know how it goes if you try ground almond ๐
Danielle says
Can it work with soaked quinoa??
Denise says
I haven't tried, but I don't think that would result in crispy quinoa.
Dessert1512 says
What is the substitute of almond butter
Denise says
Any natural nut butter will work in place ๐
Rao says
I had no food processor, skeptic at first, these turned out sooo good. I added mixed nuts and oats too.
Denise says
Wow, glad to hear it worked out for you with no food processor!
Anique says
I just made them! Ik really like it! Had to improvise because my food processor could not handle it haha! So they came out a little rustique ;p .. I left out the quinoa and the chocolate on top! I will make again them for sure!
Denise says
LOL! Glad they worked out for you even with your improvisation. Thanks, Anique!
Chris says
Would this work with quinoa flour?
Denise says
Hi Chris, I'm sorry I've never worked with quinoa flour before so I can't say how they'd turn out.
Radhika says
Also can I just use cacao nibs instead of cocoa powder?
Denise says
Hi Radhika, I've never used cacao nibs before so I'm not sure if it would work.
Radhika says
The quinoa is just toasted and not cooked otherwise?
Denise says
Yes! I know it sounds strange but the quinoa gets crispy and toasted and gets a nice texture ๐
Caitlin says
These sound so delicious! great addition with the quinoa ๐
Denise says
Thank you!
judy says
Can they be frozen? I could never eat that much sweet in a week.
Denise says
Hi Judy, I haven't tried with these ones, but I've had great success freezing other energy bar/energy bite type of recipes. I think these would freeze well!
marcie says
I love sweet and salty and I need some form of chocolate in my day every day. These look like the perfect snack Denise and I can't wait to try them!
Megan says
How much quinoa is used in the recipe? This looks amazing!
Denise says
1/3 cup! Sorry, I've just updated the recipe ๐
Julie says
Looks great! Will check back for the quinoa amount!
Denise says
1/3 cup! Just updated ๐
Medha @ Whisk & Shout says
These look delicious! I remember drooling over Pinch of Yum's snack bars when they were posted and I love this recipe too- definitely need to get in the kitchen and make them both ๐
Denise says
POY's snack bars are suuuuper delicious! Thanks, Medha!
Kylie says
Yummy, please update us on how much quinoa to use!!!!
Denise says
Whoops sorry! 1/3 cup, recipe is now updated ๐
Kylie says
Thanks! Making it now!
Pam Anderson says
Ditto to the above comment. How much quinoa do we use? The recipe sounds delicious and easy.
Denise says
Sorry Pam, I've just updated: 1/3 cup quinoa.
Dawn says
I don't see quinoa included in the ingredient list. How much do we use?
Denise says
Can't believe I missed that! 1/3 cup quinoa ๐
Susan says
Can u use a blender...I have a ninja
Denise says
Hi Susan, I'm not actually sure...I've only tried with a food processor. Have you ever made date-based energy bites or bars in your ninja before?
J says
I used my Ninja and it worked great ๐ The only thing I had to double check was if I needed to rinse the quinoa before roasting. I did not. The bag said "pre rinsed". Turned out great!
Denise says
Nice! So glad to hear it works in a Ninja, thank you so much for sharing that with us! Glad you enjoyed the recipe ๐