Healthy chocolate coconut bars

Let me first say, these bars are AMAZING.  Truth be told… I. LOVE. DESSERT.  There, I said it.  I guess it’s not a big shock, being that my favorite hobby it to bake and decorate cakes.  But, there is a constant war going on inside of me.  One side that loves all things sweet – cake, icing, pies, cookies, brownies…, and the other desiring to be healthy and knowing that really none of these things are good for our overall health.  Don’t get me wrong, I really don’t think there is anything wrong with an occasional cake to celebrate a special occasion or making cookies with my Little Mouse and creating memories together in the kitchen, but as a whole it’s not something we need to consume on a regular basis.

Last week this battle was once again going on inside me when I was making a cake for a friend, and really wanting to have some for  myself too.  I had also been craving some “Healthy Chocolate Bars” that my mom made when we were growing up.  I didn’t any of the main ingredients on hand, so I decided to alter it a bit to make it even healthier than the original.  The end result was far better than the original every was!  YAY!!  I LOVE it when my ideas actually turn out and are delicious!!

These bars are not only healthy, they are also dairy free and gluten free, and very low in sugar.  I used coconut palm sugar as the sweetener because this sugar is not refined near as much as others and actually ranks as one of the lowest on the glycemic index chart – meaning it does not spike your blood sugar resulting in surges of insulin in the body, rather your body digests it much more slowly.

Healthy Chocolate Coconut Bars

• 1/2 cup coconut oil – melted
• 1/2 cup coconut palm sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 cup oatmeal – ground fine in a food processor
• 2 cups almond meal
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/8 cup almond milk
• 1 cup dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, stir together all the ingredients except for the chocolate chips.  This should be very thick.  Pat evenly into the bottom of a 9 inch x 13 inch baking dish.  Bake at 325 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  It should be golden brown and no longer look wet.

After removing from the oven immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of the bars (this will cause the chocolate to melt).  After setting for a few minutes, spread the melted chocolate chips like icing to cover the top of the bars.

Once cooled completely, the chocolate will firm back up.  You may need to put it in the fridge for an hour or so.  Once the chocolate has hardened, cut the bars and store in an airtight container.

These are so good!  They are also quite a filling snack with all the almond meal and oatmeal in them.  They are just perfect, just a tad sweet, and the coconut really sets them off.  Now I have a healthy go-to recipe for when I get those chocolate cravings!  I would love to know your favorite HEALTHY dessert!