• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Broke Bank Vegan
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • About
    • Recipes
    • Contact
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Sweets

    Healthy Homemade Snickers Bars (No-Bake, Vegan & Gluten-Free)

    Published: Sep 8, 2020 · Updated: Dec 13, 2020 by Mitch and Justine · This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to recipe
    Homemade Snickers Bars

    Who needs traditional candy bars when you can make these healthy homemade Snickers bars? Bite into layers of rich chocolate, crunchy peanuts, creamy date caramel, and chewy nougat. What a delicious way to curb your hunger!

    Vegan Snickers Bars
    Enjoy these bars without the need for an oven!
    Table of Contents
    • 📖 About
    • 🍲 Key ingredients
    • 🔪 Instructions
    • 🌡️ Storage
    • 💭 Budget tips
    • 🍴 Tasting notes
    • 📋 Recipe
    • ♻️ Similar recipes
    • 💬 FAQ

    📖 About

    We love chocolate. And, we love peanut butter. But, we also love caramel. So, it's only natural that we used to love Snickers before transitioning to a vegan lifestyle.

    Now, that doesn't mean we lost our sense of taste people. Let's be honest, those candy bars are damn delicious. However, if you take a look at the ingredient list, you may wish you hadn't seen it. Sugar, milk-fat, corn syrup, palm oil, egg whites, and artificial flavors are just some of the components of these bars (yikes).

    Not all hope is lost though! You can still enjoy this delicious treat of layered nougat, caramel, peanuts, and chocolate without feeling like you're eating a science experiment.

    We made these homemade Snickers bars with healthy, wholesome ingredients you can actually pronounce. They're free of refined sugars, gluten, and (most importantly) animal products!

    Did we mention how easy they are to make? Yup, no-bake desserts are the best! All that you need is a few simple ingredients, a pan, and a freezer for these healthy homemade Snickers bars. Think you can manage that? Let's do it!

    Peanut Butter, Cacao Powder, Oats, Almond Flour, Dates, Cocoa Butter
    These bars are made with simple ingredients

    🍲 Key ingredients

    • Dates: ahhh, dates are quite possibly the best food ever created. With sweet, honey-like characteristics, they create the absolute perfect caramel layer in this recipe. Unlike the caramel in an actual Snickers bar, dates are packed with fiber and other important nutrients like potassium. You're body (and your bowels) will definitely thank you for eating these golden nuggets!
    • Peanuts: with all the sweet flavor happening, a touch of salt and crunch is just what these bars need. They're a nice halfway point between layers of rich chocolate and caramel, but before chewy nougat (like, "hey congrats you've almost made it through!"). Peanuts are a mighty tasty superfood. Bet you didn't know they contain more protein than any other nut!
    • Oats: To create a nutty, chewy nougat layer, we combine rolled oats with more dates and almond flour. It basically tastes like the middle portion of Dad's Goodie Rings (did anyone else only eat those from those variety cookie packs?). Oats contain an insoluble fiber, called beta-glucan, which helps keep you full and prevents a huge spike in blood sugar levels.
    • Cacao butter: rich and velvety smooth with subtle hints of chocolate. That's cacao butter in a nutshell (well, in a cocoa bean shell). Seriously though, how this is wonder-food created? Cacao beans are pressed to extract cacao powder and cacao butter. This fat portion from the beans actually turns solid at room temperature, making it the perfect ingredient to use in a chocolate candy bar coating!
    Flour In A Food Processor
    Grind up the oats into flour

    🔪 Instructions

    Nougat

    For the nougat crust, you'll throw some rolled oats, almond flour, and a pinch of salt to a food processor. Blend that up until you achieve a fine meal texture, especially the rolled oats. Next, mix in the pitted Medjool dates and blend until you have a dough-like consistency. It should easily stick together between your fingers.

    Pro tip: If your dates are dry, you may want to soak them for a few minutes in hot water before adding them to the food processor.

    Crust Pressed Into A pan
    Press the crust into an 8x8 pan

    Once your nougat is blended, press it into a parchment-lined baking pan or dish (an 8x8 works best) and set it aside while you prepare the caramel layer.

    Caramel

    For the caramel, you'll place some more pitted & soaked Medjool dates, peanut butter, and vanilla in a small blender or food processor, leaving the roasted peanuts out at this point. Blend everything until you achieve a smooth consistency. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides a few times.

    Once you have a smooth texture, spread the date caramel evenly on top of the nougat crust. Then, layer the roasted peanuts evenly across the caramel. It helps to push down on the peanuts slightly in order to help them stay in place (don't want to lose any of those bad boys).

    Date Caramel Spread
    Spread the date caramel over top your crust

    Then, stick the whole pan or dish in your freezer to set for at least 3-4 hours (we usually leave it overnight to make cutting easier). Once your Snickers "base" has set, remove it from the pan with the parchment paper. Cut it into bars and pop them back in the freezer while you prepare the chocolate.

    Chocolate

    For the chocolate coating, melt cocoa butter and coconut oil in a double boiler over low heat. Once those are melted, mix in the cacao powder and maple syrup. Whisk everything together until there are no clumps left.

    Date Caramel Topped With Peanuts
    Top the date caramel with crushed peanuts

    Dip each bar in the bowl of melted chocolate, then transfer back to the parchment-lined pan. Let the bars set in the freezer for at least another 15-20 minutes before serving them.

    Keep these snickers bars in your freezer for a healthy, yet incredibly delicious treat!

    🌡️ Storage

    These bars store best in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 4-5 months. They will also keep in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. If you do store them in the freezer, just defrost each bar for a few minutes before eating it.

    Healthy Homemade Snickers Bars
    You can fully dip the bars in chocolate, or just drizzle them

    💭 Budget tips

    We think everyone should be able to eat better for less, so here are a few tricks to make this recipe even more affordable:

    • Replace the Medjool dates with a cheaper variety like Deglet Noor
    • Use agave nectar in place of the maple syrup
    • Choose a cheaper vanilla extract, or use artificial
    • Half the chocolate coating ingredients and drizzle chocolate over top the bars instead of coating them entirely (see above picture)

    🍴 Tasting notes

    We hope you enjoy our healthy version of this classic candy bar as much as us! They're:

    • Creamy
    • Crunchy
    • Peanut buttery
    • Chocolaty
    • Naturally sweet

    If you try these Snickers bars, please rate them and leave us a comment below! Want to stay up-to-date with new recipes? Subscribe to our newsletter or connect with Broke Bank Vegan on social media. Happy eating!

    📋 Recipe

    Vegan Snickers Bars

    Healthy Homemade Snickers Bars

    $9.24 recipe | $0.77 serving
    Mitch and Justine
    Bite into layers of rich chocolate, crunchy peanuts, creamy date caramel, and chewy nougat. These no-bake Snickers bars are completely vegan, gluten-free, and a delicious way to curb your hunger!
    5 from 2 votes
    Prevents your screen from going dark
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 30 mins
    Freeze time 4 hrs
    Total Time 4 hrs 30 mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American, Gluten-Free, Vegan
    Servings 12 bars
    Calories 339 kcal

    Equipment

    • Food processor
    • 8x8 baking dish
    • Parchment paper
    • Double boiler

    Ingredients
     

    US Customary - Metric

    Nougat

    • 1 ¼ cup rolled oats ($0.24)
    • ¾ cup almond flour ($0.74)
    • ¼ teaspoon salt ($0.01)
    • ⅔ cup pitted Medjool dates ($1.15)

    Caramel

    • 1 cup pitted & soaked Medjool dates ($1.84)
    • ¼ cup smooth natural peanut butter ($0.44)
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ($0.21)
    • ⅓ cup roasted & salted peanuts ($0.21)

    Chocolate

    • ¼ cup + 3 tablespoon cacao butter ($2.58)
    • 1 tablespoon coconut oil ($0.12)
    • ½ cup cacao powder ($1.25)
    • 3 tablespoon maple syrup ($0.45)

    Instructions
     

    Nougat

    • For the nougat crust, add rolled oats, almond flour, and salt to your food processor. Blend until you achieve a fine meal texture.
    • Next, add in the pitted Medjool dates and blend until you have a dough-like consistency. It should easily stick together between your fingers. If your dates are dry, you may want to soak them for a few minutes in hot water before adding them to the food processor.
    • Once your nougat is blended, press it into a parchment-lined baking pan or dish (an 8x8 works best) and set it aside while you prepare the caramel layer.

    Caramel

    • For the caramel, place pitted & soaked Medjool dates, peanut butter, and vanilla in a small blender or food processor (leave the roasted peanuts out). Blend until you achieve a smooth consistency. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides a few times.
    • Once you have a smooth texture, spread the date caramel evenly on top of the nougat crust. Then, layer the roasted peanuts evenly across the caramel (it helps to push down on the peanuts slightly in order to help them stay in place).
    • Place the whole pan or dish in your freezer to set for at least 3-4 hours (we usually leave it overnight to make cutting easier). Once the caramel has set, cut into 10-12 bars and pop them back in the freezer while you prepare the chocolate.

    Chocolate

    • For the chocolate coating, melt cocoa butter and coconut oil in a double boiler over low heat. Once they have melted, mix in the cacao powder and maple syrup. Whisk everything together until there are no clumps left.
    • Taste and adjust sweetness to your taste. Then, dip each bar in the bowl of melted chocolate with 2 forks to roll them around. Once they are coated, transfer each bar back to the parchment-lined pan.
    • Let the Snickers bars set in the freezer for at least another 15-20 minutes before serving them. Keep these treats in your freezer for a healthy, yet delicious snack!

    Notes

    • If you don't own a double boiler or can't makeshift one, you can also melt the cacao butter and coconut oil in the microwave. Just be careful not to burn the cacao butter by microwaving it in 10-15 second bursts.
    • If your dates are quite dry, soak them in hot water for a few minutes or hours to soften them up. The dates for the crust don't need to be as soft as the dates for the caramel though.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1bar | Calories: 339kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 7.5g | Trans Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 3.8mg | Potassium: 346.2mg | Fiber: 7.4g | Sugar: 22.8g | Vitamin A: 30IU | Calcium: 5.4mg | Iron: 2.96mg
    Don't miss another recipe!Subscribe to our newsletter!

    ♻️ Similar recipes

    For more tasty sweets, check out our:

    • 2-ingredient chocolate peanut butter fudge for a seriously easy dessert.
    • Vegan brownies if you need a rich and decadent treat.
    • 3-ingredient vegan chocolate if you're chocolate addicts like us!
    • Vegan cookie dough bites because you should be able to eat cookie dough without chancing salmonella.

    💬 FAQ

    How can I make these bars peanut-free?

    To make these bars peanut-free, swap out the peanut butter for almond butter or cashew butter. For the roasted peanut layer, try using pecans, cashews, or almonds.

    I don't have cacao butter. What can I use instead?

    If you don't have cacao butter, you can replace it with all coconut oil (although the consistency will be meltier). You can also just use about ¾-1 cup of melted vegan chocolate chips or a chocolate bar.

    « How to Make Coconut Yogurt (Only 2 Ingredients)
    Simple Vegan Peach Cobbler (With Vanilla Nice Cream) »

    Reader Interactions

    leave a comment and rating! Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Mitch & Justine

    Hey, we're Mitch & Justine! We've been vegan for over 8 years, and we love to share plant-based recipes from around the world! Everything you'll find here is simple, affordable, and delicious. Learn more →

    Free Recipe Ebook

    Popular recipes

    • Jugo Verde
    • Quesabirria Tacos
    • Tacos de Canasta
    • Garnachas Mexicanas
    • Corundas
    • Huaraches

    Featured in

    Featured in logos.

    Footer

    ↑ Back to top

    Details

    Privacy

    Terms

    Disclaimer

    Disclosure

    Newsletter

    Sign up for emails and updates!

    More

    Accessibility

    About

    FAQ

    Copyright © 2022 Broke Bank Vegan