Vegan Chocolate Caramel Bars w/ Homemade Caramel

Vegan Chocolate Caramel Bars

Vegan homemade caramel + melted chocolate = heaven! These Vegan Chocolate caramel bars are absolutely amazing! I couldn’t stop eating them. The homemade caramel is SUPER easy to make and made without adding any overly fattening ingredients like coconut milk or refined sugar. This entire recipe is made without any gluten and without any refined sugar - you can even make it oil free too! 

Vegan Chocolate Caramel Bars

What about the pie crust?

A gluten free pie crust that is SO perfect and simple to make (and healthy!). I wanted a shortbread type of crust, but wanted a healthier version (oil free, gluten free, you know..the usual). So I just took some almond flour, dates, coconut sugar, and vanilla into a food processor – and voila! Just press it into the pan, bake it, and you have the simplest and delicious golden brown crust. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Vegan Chocolate Caramel Bars

What’s the best Peanut Butter to use?

Hands down Good & Gather Organic Natural Creamy Peanut Butter – it’s made with 1 ingredient, roasted peanuts. It’s naturally sweet and soooo creamy. It’s the BEST peanut butter I’ve had in my life…and trust me, I’ve had A LOT of peanut butter! (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Vegan Chocolate Caramel Bars

Let’s talk sugar..

There’s no need for it! Use a natural sweetener like date paste (which is just blended up dates with water). I use it ALL THE TIME and absolutely love it in baking. If you’re worried it might not be sweet, DON’T! Even with the date paste, it’s still super sweet (in a good way)! (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});  
Vegan Chocolate Caramel Bars
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Description

Crust layer: 

Homemade caramel: 

All else: 

Instructions
  1. Preheat oven at 350º and line a square pan with nonstick parchment paper

  2. Add almond flour and coconut sugar to a food processor and turn on - while it’s on, start adding dates one at a time until a dough texture forms.

  3. Press into the pan lined with parchment paper - and press down to flatten. 

  4. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Let cool completely

  5. In a medium sized bowl, add all the caramel ingredients and mix thoroughly - it should be lump free and a pourable consistency. If it’s too thick, add a tsp of almond milk at a time to thin it down. If it’s too thin, add 1.5 tsp of peanut butter at a time to thicken it. 

  6. Pour it directly over the cooled crust and spread over evenly - freeze for 35-45 minutes. 

  7. Melt your vegan chocolate over a double boiler and let cool down completely - do not try and pour it while it’s still warm/hot - it will ruin the consistency 

  8. Once the chocolate is cooled down - pour it directly over the crust/caramel and spread evenly. Be quick to spread because the chocolate will harden really fast! 

  9. Keep in the fridge for about an hour until it’s chilled completely 

  10. Cut into desired shape - note: the chocolate will NOT let you cut into pretty, perfect sized bars - it will go all over the place, which I think adds a little bit of character to it. 

  11. Enjoy!