Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

Prep Time 15

Servings bars

Calories 277kcal

Blend all base ingredients in a food processor until well combined. The mixture should be slightly sticky and hold together nicely when pinched between your fingers.
Pour into a lined square tin, flatten down well with the palm of your hand, and place in the freezer to firm.
In the meantime, blend all topping ingredients in a food processor or blender until completely combined and smooth. Pour on top of your base and return to the freezer for another 1-2 hours, or the fridge for a few more.
Once set, remove your slice from the tin, leave to soften slightly (so the chocolate topping doesn't crack), then slice into thin bars. These bars are best served from the fridge, but can also be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Make it peanut/nut free: if you have a peanut allergy, you can sub the peanut butter for any other nut butter (hazelnut, walnut and almond are particularly delicious). You can also substitute unhulled tahini for a completely nut free version.
These bars use oats which are one of my favourite affordable everyday super foods, and are naturally wheat free. If you would like to make these 100% gluten free you can substitute the oats for buckwheat (dehydrated if possible, otherwise raw). You can order buckwheat here, and read more about whether oats are gluten free or not here.
Substituting to buckwheat will also by nature make these paleo, as long as you're using a non-peanut nut butter, if that's something you're interested in (although I personally don't fully subscribe to the paleo train of thought).
Make sure you don't slice these straight from the freezer as the chocolate topping will crack. You want to slice them from just below room temperature so that the chocolate is sufficiently soft to make a nice clean slice. You can set these in the fridge if you're not in a hurry and would like to avoid any potential chocolate cracking, although if you're like me you'll want to try these tasty morsels asap, and thus freezer-setting will be your preference!
If you'd like to learn more about the incredible therapeutic benefits of plant-based essential oils, and how you can use them in your life, check out my introductory workshop here.