This is a quick and easy dessert that tastes indulgent while also being healthy!
To make fruit and seed chocolate bars, all you need to do is melt chocolate, mix in dried fruit and seeds (for nut-free bars), let the bars cool, break or cut into pieces, and serve. There are many ingredient possibilities, allowing endless combinations for a variety of tasty desserts.
For a firm chocolate bar texture, use pure chocolate to coat the dried fruit, seeds, and other optional ingredients. To create softer fudge chocolate bars, mix the chocolate with nut butter or coconut milk before melting, and then add the fruit and seeds.
A quicker method of making chocolate bars in a hurry
In a hurry? If you need a fast dish to take to a potluck or are trying to come up with a quick dessert that requires almost no preparation time, you can make these chocolate bars in just a few minutes. Add chopped dried fruit, seeds, and semisweet chocolate chips to a baking dish lined with parchment paper. Heat in the oven or toaster-oven for about 5 minutes. Swirl the mixture around with a spoon to mix the melted chocolate with the seeds and fruit, and then allow to cool. Break into pieces and serve.
If you need to transport the dish right away and don’t have time to let the chocolate bars cool, that’s okay! Lift the parchment paper out of the warm dish and place the melted chocolate bar ingredients directly into a cool dish or sheet of aluminum foil, keeping the chocolate bars there on the parchment paper. Cover with a lid or wrap in parchment paper and foil, and go! Bring an ice pack if you can for even quicker cooling, and by the time you arrive at your destination, the chocolate bars will be ready to serve.
Fruit and seed chocolate bars: An indulgent potluck dish
The dates create a chewy, caramel-like texture, and the nuts and seeds provide crunch. You can spread the ingredients out to make flat chocolate bars, roll them into balls, or drop them by the spoonful to create individual chocolates.
These bars are easy to make because the ingredients are flexible. You can add more or less of each ingredient and still have a delicious snack to take to work or school. This is an easy and quick dessert to bring as a potluck dish. Easily accommodate dietary needs by modifying the ingredients as needed. These chocolate bars are healthy enough to eat for breakfast or a snack. They are a portable, nutrient-rich snack for hiking, travel, and eating on the go.
More healthy snack ideas
- Try these Healthy 4-Ingredient Oat and Date Squares for an even healthier snack.
- Easy Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream
- Easy Peanut Butter Cups
Healthy Fruit and Seed Chocolate Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup Semisweet chocolate Melted
- 1/4 cup Coconut milk or nut butter Optional. Mix with the chocolate prior to melting to create bars with a softer, more fudge-like texture. For a firm, chocolate bar texture, use only chocolate.
- 1/3 cup Pitted dates Cut into small pieces
- 1/3 cup Seeds such as pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds
- 1/8 cup Other add-ins as desired such as chia seeds, toasted quinoa, dried cranberries, flax seeds, almonds, cashews, or pecans.
Instructions
- Melt the chocolate: Place chocolate in a microwave-safe dish and heat for approximately 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until melted (or heat the chocolate in a pan on the stovetop over low heat or in a double boiler, stirring frequently). For softer bars, add peanut butter or coconut milk to the chocolate prior to heating, and melt as above, stirring to combine.
- Meanwhile, cut dates into small pieces.
- Add dates, seeds, and any other ingredients to the melted chocolate, stirring to coat all the pieces with chocolate and combine thoroughly.
- Pour the mixture into a tray or dish lined with parchment paper and press into a uniform thickness (about 2cm thick).
- Refrigerate until the bars are fully cooled and hardened.
- Cut into bars or break into pieces and serve. Keeps for about 1 week in the refrigerator or freezes well for longer storage.
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