These rich and moist coconut bars are made of not one, but three different forms of scrumptiously healthy coconut, including shredded coconut, coconut oil and coconut milk in their ingredients list.
I have Shirley at Gluten Free Easily to thank for this recipe as it is based upon her famous gluten free Crustless Coconut Pie. I’m a big fan of Shirley’s crustless pie recipes. They’re perfect when I’m looking for a quick and easy, yet simply tasty, gluten free dessert.
I find that this coconut bar recipe tastes a bit like a macaroon bar. If you want to jazz up your coconut bars and get really decadent, try drizzling them with dark chocolate.
Coconut Bars
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk
- ⅓ cup coconut oil
- ⅓ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon stevia
- ½ cup blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- 1 tablespoon coconut flour
- 1½ cups unsweetened shredded coconut
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
Instructions
- Mix eggs, coconut milk, oil, honey, vanilla and stevia in a food processor
- Pulse in almond flour, coconut flour, shredded coconut and salt
- Transfer ingredients into an 8 x 8 inch baking dish
- Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes
- Cool for ½ hour, then place in refrigerator and serve when chilled
Here are some of the health benefits of coconut:
- Naturally gluten free
- Full of heart healthy fats that lower LDL cholesterol
- Anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-parasitic
- Reduces inflammation and promotes healthy absorption of nutrients
- High in minerals such as iron, phosphorus and zinc
It is also thought that eating coconut products speeds up the body’s metabolism, helping to prevent obesity.
Finally, Dr. Mary Newport has written an article on the remarkable results she believes she has achieved using coconut oil to remediate her husband’s early onset Alzheimer’s disease.
In this video Dr. Newport shares intriguing anecdotal evidence on the impact of coconut oil on neurobiological function. Her findings will be of particular interest to those of us who are working on our brain health in dealing with diseases and disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimers, Parkinsons, autism, ADD, etc.
So grab yourself a coconut bar and a cup of delicious dandelion coffee (that’s what I’m drinking right now) and settle in to watch the video of Dr. Newport. And be sure to let us know your thoughts in a comment below.
Maura says
Love coconut and will make over the weekend. I am using sweet
almond milk for coconut milk and eliminating stevia. ONE QUESTION
makes 24 bars from an 8 x 8 pan? bars must be mini size-less than an 1″ per bar. Would like clarification. Thank you.
Sandy says
If you cut them into 24 bars, yes, they would be bite-sized. You can tell from Elana’s picture that hers are cut much bigger than that. Look at them in relation to the size of the plate, which is probably a salad or dessert plate. If the inside of the plate is 4 or 5 inches, then the bars are about 2.5 to 3 inches.
Suzanne says
Hey! I’m curious to know how they turned out using almond mik instead of coconut milk?? I want to make them right now, but don’t have coconut milk and really don’t feel like heading out!! Thanks!!
Kirk May says
I decided to go all the way coconut, and substituted coconut palm sugar for the honey. I added one Tbsp sugar to add moisture, and they were great! I love the soft sweetness of coconut palm sugar, and appreciate its low glycemic index — no sugar spike.
Kirk May says
Sorry – meant to say that I added one Tbsp water for moisture. Used the full 1/3 cup of coconut palm sugar instead of the honey.
Kate says
Looking forward to trying this recipe! I’m with the “I love coconut” gang and am always looking for more coconut-based recipes. These bars sound delectable. I’m sure the eggs are pretty essential, but I’ll give some alternatives a shot to see how the egg-free version turns out. Yum!
Sandy says
I made these this afternoon. I only had 1 cup coconut, though. It was some that I had left from cracking open a coconut and blending the flesh and freezing. So I thawed and used what I had.
They are delicious, although way too oily. I will definitely cut down the coconut oil when I make them again. And also a bit “eggy” too, but not too much so. I will add another tablespoon of coconut flour next time, for more “body,” because I had to bake them 40 minutes or so, as they were still too “jelly-like” after 30. They are room temp now and still too soft, so hope they will harden up a bit after being in the fridge.
I did not use the Stevia, I substituted 1 tablespoon of Whey Low Type D.
Love them and will make again with a bit more tweaking till I get them to my own taste.
Robin Casey says
I agree. I just made them and they are very oily and eggy. Also, this is my first time baking with coconut oil. Do you melt it first?
kay says
i just did a google search and found this: http://simpleorganic.net/how-to-bake-with-coconut-oil/
Robin Casey says
Thank you! I could have done that before dealing with clumpy oil!
Sandy says
Update to my previous comment: The bars never did get really firm, even after all night in the fridge. Tonight I’m going to warm some up and eat with a spoon like a pudding.
I’m wondering if I might have processed the egg mixture too long. Would that have made it more liquid? I’ll add more coconut flour next time. I don’t mind them being soft for mysel, but if I took them somewhere for others, I’d want them to be firm enough to eat by hand.
Vered Leb says
mine didn’t come out firm as well…
i thought i did something wrong, but went over the whole process (which is not that complicated at all) and couldn’t find a mistake…
Karen A. says
I raced home from work today, stopping to get the coconut shreds, and made these. They are cooling on the stove right now. They smell delicious and I will probably have to taste before they chill! You are truly gifted, Elana. Anything recipe of yours I have tried has turned out flawless, even when I have subbed erythritol sweeteners for agave, honey, etc. I bought myself your Almond Flour Cookbook for Christmas and made the spinach tart w/ herb crust for my friends at work and they raved. Thank you for all of your awesome recipes!
liz says
just wondering if the stevia is supposed to be liquid or powder? shoot!
Tracy Deakyne says
These look wonderful as usual! I just served your almond power bars to company this weekend and the newlyweds just looked at each other with huge smiles and remarked together “mmmmmmm”! They obviously just loved them!!!! Many thanks again! Just love the simplicity as well as the fabulously healthy ingredients and of course the incredible tastes! I’m sure this will be another winner! Tracy
Carolina D. says
I am making these today–they look wonderful! Elana, it is always such a joy to see your emails in my in box. : )
Brandon says
I recently blogged about Dr. Newport and her journey with her husband through Alzheimer’s with using coconut oil. The results are fascinating.
I will also be enjoying these bars with some herbal coffee later tonight! :)
Kathy says
Hi Brandon, I just noticed you mentioned “herbal coffee”. Can you tell me what it is and where you get it? Much appreciated!
Erin Brost says
Ahhh yum, I can’t wait to make these, I love anything coconut, and its good for my nursing baby too!