And so my baby has turned 7 yesterday and is slowly becoming a young little man. Along preparing a party for bunch of 6 year olds yesterday, I’ve been making and photographing these scrumptious bars. Yes, I’m not one of those organized bloggers that have all the posts scheduled in advance, I do it all last minute! I like it that way:)
I have a new found obsession – tahini, which is one of the stars in my Hemp, Chocolate and Tahini Coconut Bars recipe today. Now if you like me, slightly tahini obsessed you might want to try these. I think they are quite worth the trouble.
The flavours in these bars are quite settled and working beautifully together without being too assertive. The crust layer is a mix of hemp seeds, almonds, dates, cinnamon and tahini. I’ve used whole hemp seeds in this recipe, but you can use shelled ones if you prefer. I’ve blended the hemp and almonds together first to break them down and then added the rest of the ingredients.
The top layer is a creamy mix of creamed coconut, coconut oil and tahini with a little maple syrup and vanilla. Creamed coconut is the same thing as coconut butter and you can use whichever one you have. These bars are quite high in protein and healthy fats and totally amazing:) Enjoy.
Hemp, Chocolate and Tahini Coconut Bars (grain-free & vegan)
Ingredients
Crust layer:
- 70g hemp seeds (1/2 cup)
- 80g almonds (1/2 cup)
- 8 medjool dates, pitted
- 2tbsp raw cacao powder
- 1tsp cinnamon
- pinch of pink Himalayan salt
- 2tbsp coconut oil
- 3tbsp tahini
Coconut tahini layer:
- 200g bar creamed coconut or coconut butter (1 cup)
- 2tbsp coconut oil
- 2tbsp maple syrup
- 1tsp vanilla
- 2tbsp tahini
- 1tsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Line 7"square dish with parchment paper.
- Place hemp seeds and almonds into a food processor or high speed blender and pulse few times until they have broken down into a coarse texture. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until the mixture comes together. Spoon the mix into the dish, spread evenly onto the base and press tightly down. Place into a fridge.
- In a small pot gently melt creamed coconut with coconut oil. Stir in maple syrup, vanilla, tahini and lemon juice. Spoon onto the crust layer and smooth out evenly.
- Place into a fridge for about 30 min to set.
- Once set remove from the fridge and with a sharp knife cut into 16 squares.
- Store in a fridge in an airtight container.
- Enjoy!
Notes
It's best to have the maple syrup and tahini at a room temperature before mixing in with the creamed coconut. You can replace maple syrup with raw honey.
Remarkable. I would never have thought of making a bar with tahini. But I’m always looking for ways to dip into the tub of tahini I always keep in the fridge. Hope the birthday party was smashing.
Hi Lynne, thank you! The birthday party was fantastic, very noisy, but everyone had a great time! Have you tried medjool date with tahini, it’s been my sweet cravings treat lately! x
These look so good! And happy 7th birthday to your son! :D
Thank you so much Sarah! x
They look delish. Is the creamed coconut from a can that has been in the fridge overnight and you remove the cream from the top?
Hi Vanessa, no, that would be coconut cream. Creamed coconut is different, it’s basically fresh coconut, which is milled and formed into a solid block and it’s the same thing as coconut butter. You can often find it in shops that sell international food, it usually works out cheaper than coconut butter. Thank you for your lovely comment:)
I cut down the dates to 2 and replaced the maple syrup with stevia to fit my keto macros and OHMYGOD they were amazing! I’m totally embarrassed by how quickly I finished the batch.
Hi Maggie, thank you so much for your lovely comment. I’m so happy you loved these bars, they’re one of my favourites too! I’m not surprised you’ve eaten them so quickly! :)