For the past few months I have been playing around with paleo power bar recipes. When I’m on the go I want to grab something that is packed with nutrition, not too sweet, and plenty tasty.
I’ve made this grain-free power bar recipe a bunch of times now. My taste testers (that would be my husband who is a very direct and stringent critic) have given it their official seal of approval (that would be eating an entire tray in two days flat).
When I saw Heidi’s video I knew it was time to share my paleo power bars recipe. Heidi is my favorite food blogger and author of the delightful book, Super Natural Cooking. In Heidi’s video, her voice is so soothing and the content so tranquil that it might put you into a trance. It has gorgeous shots of California’s Big Sur interspersed with her recipe.
Power Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups almonds
- ½ cup golden flaxmeal
- ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- ½ cup creamy roasted almond butter
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ½ cup coconut oil, melted
- 4 drops stevia
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Place almonds, flax meal, shredded coconut, almond butter, and salt in a food processor
- Pulse briefly, about 10 seconds
- Add coconut oil, stevia, honey, and vanilla to dry ingredients
- Pulse until mixture forms a coarse paste
- Press mixture into an 8 x 8 inch baking dish
- Chill in refrigerator 1 hour, until firm
- In a saucepan, melt chocolate over very low heat, stirring continuously
- Spread melted chocolate over bars
- Refrigerate 30 minutes, until chocolate solidifies
- Serve
- Store in refrigerator for up to 1 week
My no-bake, high-protein, high-fiber bars are based upon Melissa Diane Smith’s recipe for Amaretto Protein Bars. I’ve made quite a few changes to her recipe, simplifying it a bit and lowering the amount of sweetener.
The chocolate topping on these paleo power bars makes them seem a bit decadent. Though dark chocolate, rich in antioxidants, has now entered the echelon of power foods so I’ll keep it on mine.
By the way, the photo above is actually of Macadamia Power Bars. To make that recipe simply substitute raw macadamia nuts for the almonds and raw macadamia nut butter for the roasted almond butter.
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Joanne says
Hi Elana!
I was recently diagnosed with leaky gut and all of the trigger foods i am now intolerant too include eggs, almonds, walnuts, even cinnamon and oregano. all grain and gluten are off the table which have been for years for me anyway but the eggs and the almonds hurt. These bars look amazing. Since tree nuts are a problem for me could i just leave them out or do you have any suggestions to modify. these sound like they would be great for breakfast. I am struggling the most with what to eat for breakfast now.
Thanks for reading, listening and any help you have.
Elana says
Joanne, thanks for your comment and so sorry for all that you are going through. I haven’t tried making these bars without nuts so not sure how that would work. I have recently written something that may be very helpful for you:
https://elanaspantry.com/how-i-healed-my-gut/
I hope you’ll keep me posted on your progress!
Elana
Jana Sauer says
I was on the lookout for some power bar recipes since my Traffic control season starts in a few days. I was so lucky to log onto my Facebook and see you had posted this one. I need to grab a few ingredients but I look forward to trying them.
Elana says
Thanks Jana! I hope you love these as much as we do :-)
Hallie says
These are absolutely amazing and SUCH a hit with my 13 year old boys who are hungry all the time…SO much better than bars from the store and quick to make. We are doing a fast from sugar for a while, so for the topping, I mixed equal parts cacao powder and coconut oil (which I melted after measuring) and added stevia to sweeten. I do plan to try it with the chocolate, though! I just love your recipes, Elana! I so appreciate how you present them and provide many recipes with a manageable number of ingredients. Your carrot soup was such a hit, too…shared with many friends! Thank you so much!
Elana says
Thanks Hallie!
Mandy says
Just give your information on flax seeds and stevia, no need to be snippy.
Lissa Brooks says
Is there a substitute we can use for the stevia? Neither my husband nor I like the metallic aftertaste of any of the liquids or powders we’ve tried. I’d rather use another natural sweetener.
Katie Adams says
I also hate stevia.
So I just used 2tbls honey
Instead of 1tbls honey+ stevia.
I also set aside some of the almonds and rough chopped them so there was more chunks.
They turned out great.
Faith says
These are delicious. I am trying to be healthy and lose weight. Not sure how many carbs but are delicious. I used the enjoy semi sweet chips which are soy free dairy free but still does have sugar but now I know they would also be delicious without the chocolate.
I have made several of your recipes recently and so far they have been reallllllly good.
Tony says
Faith, based on the basic info and using standard selections of ingredients, ‘MyFitnessPal.com’, I came up with :205 calories; Carbs @ 7g (3 net) 13%; Fat @ 18g 77%; and Protein @ 5g 10%; Sugar content of 1.1g. I substituted the stevia and honey with 2 Tbls of ‘Swerve’ (Erythritol-a plant based sweetener, with no ‘sugar’ content), and I used regular ‘Bakers’ unsweetened chocolate (‘0’ sugar).
Ceomi Shanks says
Is there a substitute for shredded coconut? The adults in our house can’t deal with the consistency. Thanks!
Elana says
Ceomi, I haven’t tried that so not sure :-)
Raina says
These look great! Any way I can substitute for the flax meal? My husband is allergic. Thanks!
Elana says
Raina, I haven’t tried that so not sure :-)
Carol says
Can I use almond flour or meal for the ground almonds? My friend made these, so good. I just don’t have almonds.
Elana says
Carol, I haven’t tried that :-)
Violet says
Just made these yesterday – they’re soooo good!
But – with my addled brain in the mix – I got them nicely in the pan and then realized that I left the almond butter out. It was an easy fix and they’re so much better with that crucial ingredient included. (Nuts are good for your brain, right? :D ) Also, I just threw the chocolate chips into the mix – too tired to make the icing thing.
Anyway, thanks so much for this recipe. I needed a neat little bar for morning coffee and these fit the bill perfectly!
Mandy says
Cacao nibs are also delicious in these and add a crunch
Elana says
Thanks Violet and Mandy!
Michelle says
I cut the recipe in half the first time I made this and they were gone by the end of the day. My entire family LOVES this recipe, which isn’t something that happens often.
Elana says
Michelle, I’m so happy to hear your entire family LOVES this recipe!