Vegan Date and Pecan Bars are healthy, covered in chocolate…and possibly the best snack ever! A chewy date bar made with soft medjool dates, nut butter, and roasted pecans, these little bites are perfect for snacking. This is no bake dessert and takes only 10 minutes to prepare, so let’s go!
I have a crazy sweet tooth and it comes out specially after dinner. I’ve got a few good hours to myself and my hubby(hopefully, if bed time went as planned!), and I am a snacking monster. Lately, I’ve been trying to eat healthier and that means Chocolate Date Truffles instead of chocolate, and Homemade Almond Joys instead of a candy bar.
It feels great to snack well! And I especially love that guiltless feeling of taking seconds and thirds. Truly nothing like it.
Today our snack of choice is a sugar free and gluten free date bar. We are coating them in chocolate because they look like a serious treat like this, and um…why not? Chocolate covered is always better!
Ingredients for Vegan Date Bars
To make these vegan Date and Pecan Bars you’ll need a few simple ingredients. Because this is a no-bake and raw dessert, quality matters. Pick the juiciest dates you can find and make sure to use a yummy nut butter that is organic and healthy(check labels!).
- Medjool Dates these are the largest and sweetest date variety. If you want to switch them for a different kind of date you may have at home, you’ll need to measure them because other dates are smaller.
- Nut Butter you can use your favorite nut butter- I like cashew and almond butter. The butters with a combination of nuts add a lot of flavour!
- Honey raw honey is used for sweetener. if you don’t eat honey you can use maple syrup instead.
- Cacao powder for a rich chocolaty flavor use a good quality cacao powder.
- Roasted Pecans to keep the pecans crunchy, they must be roasted. you can roast your own pecans(instructions in post).
- Chocolate I use chocolate chips inside the bars(which is optional but recommended), and a dark chocolate for dipping the bars in. To keep these dairy free make sure to use a dairy free chocolate.
- Coconut oil for adding to the dipping chocolate. This gives the chocolate that smooth finish and creamy taste.
How to Make Vegan Date Bars
These Date and Pecan Bars take about 10 minutes to make. Including the freezing times where we let the chocolate set, you’re looking at 20 minutes total!
- First add dates, honey, butter, and vanilla to a food processor and process the mixture for a few minutes until smooth.
- Then add to a bowl with chopped pecans and chocolate chips. The mixture is very very thick, kind of like play doh.
- Oil a baking dish with coconut oil and press in the date pecan mix.
- Freeze for 10 minutes. Carefully remove and slice into squares.
- Melt chocolate and coconut oil and dip each square. Place a pecan on top and freeze again for 2-5 minutes. Drizzle with some finishing chocolate and serve up!!
Date and Pecan Bars- TIPS
TIP NUMBER 1. you can buy regular pecans for half the price as roasted pecans and roast them yourself. (if they are the same price for some reason buy the roasted ones, otherwise continue reading).
To roast your own pecans: preheat the oven to 175 º C/ 350 º F. Place raw pecans on a baking tray or in any oven safe dish in a single layer. Roast for 7 minutes. Remove and let cool.
TIP NUMBER 2. always, always, always check your dates. There are tiny bugs that sometimes live on the insides of dates and you do not want to eat them. Pull open each and EVERY SINGLE DATE, remove the seed, and look very closely at the insides. Dates are complex and there is a lot going on inside there so check well.
Substitutions for Date Bars
This is a fun and simple recipe for vegan date bars. if you don’t have all the specific ingredients, fear not! Try these substitutions:
No pecans? Use walnuts, Almonds, or Roasted Macadamia Nuts instead. Mac Nuts are pricey so I would definitely cut down on the amount though! You could get by with a half cup of nuts.
No honey? Use maple syrup or agave nectar instead.
Best dates to use: Medjool Dates,(affiliate link) the sweetest largest variety of date. If you can’t find those try: Deglet Noor Dates(affiliate link), or Barhi Dates.(affiliate link).
We hope you love these Date and Pecan Bars!! If you try them please give a rating below, and PIN and FOLLOW to save on Pinterest!
Vegan Date and Pecan Bars [chocolate covered]
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup medjool dates, pitted (about 13 dates) substitutions for medjool dates in post above
- 1/4 cup cacao powder
- 3 Tbsp nut butter of your choice(I used cashew/almond butter mix)
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup roasted pecans, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
For Dipping and Prettying
- 200 gram chocolate
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil
- 10-12 whole roasted pecans
Instructions
Blend Dates
- Open up each date and check the inside for bugs. Discard the seed and hard piece at the top of the date.To a food processor fitted with the "S" blade, add dates, cacao powder, nut butter, honey, vanilla extract, and coconut oil. Process for about 3 minutes, until a smooth paste forms. It will be very thick.
Add nuts
- Transfer date mixture to a bowl and add chopped pecans and chocolate chips. Mix with a silicone spatula. Just fold the dough over itself to incorporate the nuts.
Freeze
- Rub bread tin with coconut oil or spray oil. You can fit the bottom with parchment for easier removal if desired. I use this loaf tin from amazon(affiliate link)Press in the date mixture. Place in the freezer to set for 10 minutes.
Cut and Prettify
- Remove the date loaf from freezer and place on a cutting board. Cut into 10-12 equal squares. Place a parchment paper on a plate/in a container/on a sheet pan that will fit into the freezer.Break up the chocolate into chunks and place in a microwave safe dish with the 1 TBSP coconut oil. Microwave for 30 seconds, mix, and repeat one more time. Mix until chocolate is smooth. Spoon some of the chocolate into a piping bag for decorating.Dip each date bar into the chocolate to fully coat(or at least coat the sides that you will see. The bottom doesn't need to get chocolate).
- Place on the parchment covered plate/container/baking sheet. While the chocolate is still wet press in a whole roasted pecan into the top of each bar.
- Freeze for 5 minutes. This next step is optional- Remove bars from freezer and drizzle some chocolate onto the tops of each. Place in the freezer again to set another 5 minutes. Serve.Store in the freezer and remove 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
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