A while ago I shared a post about date paste. It’s an excellent natural sweetener for desserts or smoothies, but dates can be used in many more ways. One of my favorite uses for date paste is as the base for soft, chewy no-bake breakfast bars. These bars are perfect for hectic mornings: they’re filling, rich in fiber, healthy fats and protein, and they travel well.
Making these bars is almost as easy as eating them. Because they’re no-bake, preparation is quick and requires minimal attention. After mixing, they only need time to set and firm up—either chill them in the fridge overnight or speed the process in the freezer for a couple of hours.
If you already have ready-made date paste, that makes things faster. If not, it’s simple to make a quick paste for this recipe: blend pitted dates with plain water until mostly smooth. For these bars it doesn’t need to be perfectly silky because the paste will be combined with nuts and grains. I warm the date paste gently with coconut oil and peanut butter in a saucepan to ensure everything blends smoothly before adding the dry ingredients.
You can combine the ingredients by hand, which is perfectly fine and keeps the texture rustic, or use a hand mixer with dough hooks to mix quickly without breaking up the dried fruit. The mixture will be quite sticky at first, but it firms up once chilled. Press the mixture firmly into a square baking tin lined with baking paper — a compact, dense base prevents trapped air pockets that can make the bars crumble when cut. Properly stored, these no-bake breakfast bars keep well in the fridge for about a week, or in the freezer for longer storage, which I prefer.
Chewy No-Bake Breakfast Bars With Dates
These chewy no-bake breakfast bars are packed with wholesome ingredients and sweetened with dates, giving them a fudgy texture and natural sweetness. They’re ideal for a quick, nutritious breakfast or snack.
Prep Time: 5 mins
Total Time: 5 mins (plus chilling time)
Course: Breakfast Bar
Cuisine: Vegan
Servings: 16 bars
Calories: 246 kcal (per bar, with optional topping)
Ingredients
- 300 g pitted dates*
- 125 ml water*
- 50 g coconut oil
- 125 g peanut butter
- 175 g rolled oats
- 50 g ground almonds
- 35 g shredded coconut
- 35 g roughly chopped almonds
- 20 g sunflower seeds
- 20 g pumpkin seeds
- 15 g golden raisins
- 15 g golden linseed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence or the seeds from 2 vanilla beans
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Optional topping
- 12 whole almonds
- 12 blanched whole almonds
- 1 tablespoon golden raisins
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
Instructions
- Process the dates and water in a blender or food processor until mostly smooth. If you prefer a very smooth paste, blend longer. Transfer the date paste to a saucepan.
- Add coconut oil and peanut butter to the saucepan and heat gently until the oil and peanut butter melt. Stir until the mixture is evenly combined and warm but not boiling.
- In a large bowl, combine the rolled oats, ground almonds, shredded coconut, chopped almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, golden raisins and golden linseed. Add vanilla, cardamom and salt.
- Pour the warm date-and-nut-butter mixture over the dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly by hand or use a hand mixer with dough hooks, taking care not to break up the dried fruit too much. The mixture will be sticky.
- Press the mixture firmly into a 20 x 20 cm (8 x 8 inch) square baking tin lined with baking paper. Press down as hard as you can to remove air pockets and ensure a compact texture. For an even surface, place a sheet of baking paper over the top and smooth with the palm of your hand or a flat spatula.
- If using the optional topping, scatter the almonds, blanched almonds, raisins and pumpkin seeds over the surface and press them into the bars so they adhere.
- Cover and refrigerate for several hours or, ideally, overnight. For faster setting, freeze for 1–2 hours. Once firm, lift from the tin using the baking paper and cut into 16 bars.
Notes
* The amount of dates and water in this recipe makes about 2 cups of ready-made date paste if you want to prepare it separately.
** Calorie estimate includes the optional topping.
Nutrition (per bar)
Calories: 246 kcal
Fat: 13 g (Saturated fat: 4 g)
Carbohydrates: 27 g (Fiber: 4 g, Sugar: 15 g)
Protein: 6 g
Sodium: 62 mg
Potassium: 291 mg
Tried this recipe? Let us know how it turned out in the comments.