No Bake, Vegan, Date Bars Recipe (Homemade Lara Bar)
Made with just 5 ingredients, this no bake recipe for date bars has zero added sugar but is still amazingly sweet and decadent!
Prep Time10 minutes mins
Cook Time2 hours hrs
Total Time2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Diet: Low Calorie, Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings: 12 bars
Calories: 138kcal
- ½ cup organic Medjool dates pitted and chopped (comes to about 4 dates)
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup whole macadamia nuts
- 4 tbsp almond or cashew butter
- Dash of sea salt
Add all of the ingredients into a food processor. Blend on high until the ingredients form a smooth dough.
Press the dough into an 8x8 baking pan lined with parchment. Chill in the fridge for 2 hours to set. Cut into 12 equal rectangles and serve.
Expert Tips
- Feel free to switch the nuts and add in dried fruits according to your taste preferences: any nuts, seeds and dried fruit will work well in this recipe.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week, using parchment paper to separate the bars. These bars will not hold up well if you freeze them.
- Do not use chopped dates, since they are typically coated in sugar or cornstarch.
- Make sure to refrigerate for at least 2 hours before cutting them - but longer is even better.
Variations for This Homemade Lara Bar Recipe
- Cashew Cookie: Switch the macadamia nuts for cashews, use cashew or almond butter, and omit the cocoa powder.
- Dark Chocolate Brownie: Switch the macadamia nuts for almonds and add 1/2 cup walnuts and 1-2 tablespoons of 88% dark chocolate chunks (preferably from a dark chocolate bar vs. chocolate chips)
- Apple Pie: Switch the macadamia nuts for pecans, add 1/4 cup walnuts, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, and 1/2 cup dried apples. Omit the cocoa powder.
- Peanut Cookie: Switch the macadamia nuts for peanuts, and use peanut butter instead of almond butter. Omit the cocoa powder.
- Cookie Dough: Switch the macadamia nuts for peanuts or cashews, omit the cocoa powder, and add 1/8 cup mini chocolate chips.
- Pecan Pie: Switch the macadamia nuts for pecans and add 1/4 cup almonds. Omit the cocoa powder.
- PB&J: Switch the macadamia nuts for peanuts, omit the cocoa powder and add 1/8 cup dried raisins or cherries.
- Banana Bread: Switch the macadamia nuts for almonds, omit the cocoa powder, add in 1/2 cup walnuts and 1/2 cup dried bananas.
Serving: 1bar | Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 178mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g