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Delicious, healthy, homemade, Nut Bars, similar to "Kind Bars". These grain-free nut bars are the perfect snack!

Homemade Nut Bars

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Description

Delicious, healthy Nut Bars, similar to “Kind Bars”! A gluten-free, paleo, grain-free granola bar recipe that you will fall in love with!


Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 3/4 cup raw almonds, lightly toasted
  • 3/4 cup raw cashews, lightly toasted
  • 1 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut FLAKES, lightly toasted
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • Generous pinch salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
  • Other ingredients to add: dried fruit, any other nut, seeds (chia, sesame, flax, poppy), vanilla, puffed rice or millet.

Instructions

  1. Preheat Oven to 325F ( to toast nuts and coconut)
  2. Heat honey, salt, water and vanilla (optional) in a small pot over medium heat until it starts bubbling. Stir occasionally. Lower to med-low heat and continue simmering uncovered until honey reaches 270F. You need to use a candy thermometer to get this exact ( available at most grocery stores in the baking section.) This will take about 25 minutes on med-low heat, and will happen rapidly once it reaches 250F.
  3. In the mean time, lightly toast nuts and coconut, in the oven, just until coconut is fragrant and lightly golden about 8-10 minutes.
  4. When honey has reached 270F, turn heat off and pour the nuts and coconuts into the pot, stirring well to coat. Mixture may seem dry, but just keep mixing, until evenly coated. Spread out on a parchment lined 8×8 inch pan, or baking sheet, to about ¾ inch thick.
  5. Using a greased spatula, spread out evenly and press down firmly, compressing it down as much as you can. Cover with parchment and use the bottom of a cup or pot or even your hands (if it’s not too hot) and press down really hard, compacting it as much as possible. This will help the bars stay together when you go to cut them. Let cool uncovered on the kitchen counter for 45 minutes. ( no longer)
  6. Once it has cooled 45 minutes, place a cutting board over the mixure and gently flip it onto the cutting board (in one piece). With a big sharp knife, cut bars before they cool down completely (otherwise they will break when you try to cut them).
  7. After you cut them, let them cool down completely on parchment (a couple hours) before storing. Store in an air tight container layered with parchment, or just leave them on the counter like I do and watch them disappear. Or wrap them individually with parchment and string.

Notes

If you don’t have a candy thermometer.   Heat honey, just until warmed. Combine with remaining ingredients and spread out in a parchment-lined 8×8 baking dish, flattening firmly with a wet spatula. Bake at 300F on the middle rack. Check at 25 mins, rotate if need be, and continue baking.  For a chewy consistency, take them out at 40-45 minutes, for a crispy crunchy consistency, let cook the full 50 -55 minutes.  Keep in mind, all ovens are different, so heat may vary. The key is….You want to take them out when they are perfectly golden, before they get too dark. So watch them like a hawk after 35-40 minutes. If you take them out too early (before they are golden) they can be too sticky.  Pay attention to the color.

For example, I’ve cooked these in two different ovens. In the gas oven, 50-55 minutes delivered perfectly golden bars. In the electric oven, 40 minutes were enough for perfectly golden. 55 minutes would have totally burnt them.

Remove from oven, and cool completely. You could place in the fridge to cool faster. When it’s completely cooled, take the parchment out of the pan, turn it over and remove parchment. Flip back over and cut into desired shapes or bars. Store at room temp.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 bar
  • Calories: 144
  • Sugar: 12.5 g
  • Sodium: 198 mg
  • Fat: 9.6 g
  • Saturated Fat: 6.2 g
  • Carbohydrates: 15.6 g
  • Fiber: 2.1 g
  • Protein: 2 g
  • Cholesterol: 0 mg