Healthy No-Bake Protein Bars (Low-Carb, Vegan, Gluten-free)
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These Homemade Protein Bars are no-bake, easy to make, and so good! Skip the overpriced store-bought bars, and make these instead for a healthy breakfast, snack, or treat on the go or anytime!
I'm always on the lookout for healthy snacks for my family, especially easy recipes since I am pretty busy. We love my recipes for healthy chocolate truffles, no-bake cookies, and kale chips, but this recipe for homemade protein bars is one of our all-time favorites.
It's a great grab-and-go snack and is full of yumminess that you and your family will love.
If you've been buying protein bars in the store, here is your chance to make them at home for much less money and likely with much healthier ingredients.
You'll save a ton of money, have total control over the ingredients, and well, they taste great too.
How are These Homemade Protein Bars Healthier?
- Seeds and nuts give a great dose of healthy fats that are good for you and great for leveling out your blood sugar levels.
- The optional organic protein powder provides a nice dose of protein. (Yes, I know this is not necessarily considered a “real food”, but for those of us dealing with food allergies, sometimes this is the best we can do)
- Coconut oil is a great healthy fat as well
- No preservatives
- No questionable “natural flavors”
- No highly processed protein powders (depending on what you choose if adding a protein powder.)
- No extruder-processed puffed grains and such that have been cited for questionable effects on health
- Low carb – there's a low-carb option for those who need it
- Allergy free – make these bars however you need to in order to avoid allergens or sensitivities
These originated as a recipe for Almond Power Bars on Elana's Pantry. I tweaked the recipe a bit, made it more suited to variation, and gave nutrient-boosting and sugar-free alternatives.
Warm Weather Tips
The only problem with these homemade protein bars is that they don't travel well in warm weather. So take a cooler bag along with you if you plan to eat them on the road when it's not cool.
Making these homemade vegan protein bars with cocoa butter instead of coconut oil will make them a lot more stable.
Storage
You can keep these bars at room temperature for about 4-5 days, or store in the fridge for up to two weeks.
I like to make these Homemade Protein Bars in bulk and then place them in the fridge or freezer for a fast healthy snack for the family. They'll keep well in freezer for up to 6 months at least when packed in a freezer-safe container.
Recipe Notes and Substitutions
- Sweeteners: Use vegetable glycerine, xylitol, or erythritol (add in about 1/3 more) as the sweetener for a low-carb version. If you don't need low-carb, use Sucanat or honey or even maple syrup for more natural options. 1/32 teaspoon stevia extract is also a good choice.
- More Protein: Substitute up to the total amount of the flax meal with the same amount of rice protein for an extra punch of protein. Nutribiotic makes a great brand from non-GMO brown rice. You could also use some of this great grass-fed gelatin to firm up the bars and give more protein.
- Be Careful Processing! Please note the recipe says to process the nuts to a coarse meal. If you over-process, you'll end up with nut butter. That will still taste great but will make the bars more dense and not solid unless you freeze them. Still yummy, though!
- Nut Options: For nuts, almonds, and organic macadamias are good options. Mixing several kinds works well too. You can also substitute 1 1/3 cups of coconut butter or seeds for nut-free. If using seeds, organic sunflower and organic pumpkin seeds work well.
- Flax Meal: Here is a good brand of organic flax seeds for making flax meal. You can also use rice bran or organic protein powder instead of flax meal.
- Coconut Butter: You can also substitute coconut butter for the nut or seed butter.
- Coconut Oil: You can substitute an alternative solid fat for the coconut oil. Use organic cocoa butter or butter for a more warm weather-stable bar.
- Stevia: You can use 1/32 teaspoon (1 scoop) of stevia extract (see How to Use Stevia) instead of xylitol.
- Chocolate Chips: If you would prefer to make your own chocolate chips, here are my Homemade Chocolate / Carob Chips. My Homemade Chocolate / Carob Bar (1 cup of chips per bar recipe) is another option.
- THM: This recipe qualifies as an “S” for those on the Trim Healthy Mama plan.\
More Processed Food Replacements
Here are some of our favorite recipes to take the place of store-bought products.
- Powdered Sugar Substitute
- Homemade Chocolate Chips
- DIY Liquid Stevia Drops
- Homemade Marshmallows (SF option)
Hope you enjoy the taste and the healthy boost that these Homemade Vegan Protein Bars bring to your wallet!
Grain-Free No-Bake Homemade Protein Bars
Ingredients
Base:
- 2 cups nuts (preferably soaked and dried)
- 1/2 cup flax meal (flax seeds ground in a blender or spice grinder)
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened and organic if possible)
- 1/2 cup seed or nut butter (made from soaked and dried nuts or seeds is preferable)
- 3/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons low carb sweetener (or other granulated or liquid sweetener–see Recipe Notes)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 or more tablespoons protein powder, collagen, or colostrum (optional for more protein)
Topping:
- 1 cup sugar-free chocolate chips (melted; or try these Homemade Chocolate Chips or this Homemade Chocolate Bar for a DIY option)
Instructions
- Place nuts or seeds, flax meal, coconut, seed or nut butter and salt in the bowl of a food processor.
- Process until the nuts or seeds are ground into a coarse meal.
- Melt coconut oil over low heat. If the temperature of your home is around 76 degrees, you can skip this step and add the oil directly to the food processor as it will be soft enough to process easily.
- Add coconut oil, sweeteners and vanilla to processor bowl and process until well combined to form a thick, yet crunchy paste.
- Press the mixture into an 8×8 square pan (you can be quite flexible here. A 9×9 will work just fine. A larger pan will produce thin bars, while a smaller pan will yield thicker ones)
- Place in refrigerator to chill.
- If you are making your own chocolate/carob chips or chocolate/carob bar, prepare while the protein bars are chilling, but do not harden the chocolate chips or bar.
- Top bars with the chocolate chips or bar. Top either before the bars chill, or melt the chocolate topping and top with it.
- Press the topping onto the chilled bottom layer.
- Place back in refrigerator to chill (if you can wait that long :-)!)
- Cut into squares and serve.
- Store in refrigerator.
Notes
- Sweeteners: Use vegetable glycerine, xylitol, or erythritol (add in about 1/3 more) as the sweetener for a low-carb version. If you don't need low-carb, use Sucanat or honey or even maple syrup for more natural options. 1/32 teaspoon stevia extract is also a good choice.
- More Protein: Substitute up to the total amount of the flax meal with the same amount of rice protein for an extra punch of protein. Nutribiotic makes a great brand from non-GMO brown rice. You could also use some of this great grass-fed gelatin to firm up the bars and give more protein.
- Be Careful Processing! Please note – the recipe says to process the nuts to a coarse meal. If you over-process, you will have a nut butter, which will still taste great, but will make the bars more dense and not solid unless you freeze them. Still yummy, though!
- Nut Options: For nuts, almonds and organic macadamias are good options. Mixing several kinds works well too. You can also sub 1 1/3 cups coconut butter or seeds for nut free. If using seeds, organic sunflower and organic pumpkin seeds work well.
- Flax Meal: Here is a good brand of organic flax seeds to purchase to make flax meal. You can also use rice bran or organic protein powder instead of flax meal.
- Coconut Butter: You can also substitute coconut butter for the nut or seed butter.
- Coconut Oil: You can substitute an alternative solid fat for the coconut oil. Use organic cocoa butter or butter for a more warm weather-stable bar.
- Stevia: You can use 1/32 teaspoon (1 scoop) of stevia extract (see How to Use Stevia) instead of xylitol.
- Chocolate Chips: If you would prefer to make your own chocolate chips, here are my Homemade Chocolate / Carob Chips. My Homemade Chocolate / Carob Bar (1 cup of chips per bar recipe) is another option.
- THM: This recipe qualifies as an “S” for those on the Trim Healthy Mama plan.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is merely an approximation. Optional ingredients are not included and when there is an alternative, the primary ingredient is typically used. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts since they have been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
Would you eat these Homemade Vegan Protein Bars for breakfast, snacks, or on the go?
Photo Credits: Naomi Huzovicova
Has anyone made these without a food processor?
You could do it w/ a powerful blender or chop the nuts some other way and maybe stir really well, I suppose.
What is the serving size? Thanks so much for this…….
I think whatever size you like. We cut ours fairly small as they are rich. Enjoy and you are welcome!
Hi! how long do these bars keep for would you say?
Sorry but I can’t make shelf life claims. I get they won’t last long though:).
These sound so Yummy! I’ve been wanting to make my own bars and such but I don’t have a food processor! What do you use? There are so many options but I know I want one that can take on heavy duty nuts! I’d love your recommendation 🙂
I have the Viking Pro but they don’t make it any more. Funny – it has bad reviews on Amazon but I have had mine for YEARS AND YEARS and just LOVE it. Anyways, I did a little digging. I think I would buy this one (affiliate links): https://amzn.to/1OWmLB3 if going for a lower priced model, and this one if going for a larger ticket processor. Hope that helps!
I used a blender with great results. It works best if you add the fats in with the nuts all at once. Dry nuts will not process so well without them. These bars are delicious!
Hi!!
Just made my first batch! Super excited about them!! How long do they keep fresh??
Yea! I’m not sure – they don’t last too long around here. I keep them in the fridge – they are great that way.
Thanks for your site, one question regarding temperatures, are they in Fahrenheit or Centigrade?
cheers – Don
They are all Fahrenheit. Thanks for reading and hope you enjoy whatever you try!
How many grams of Protein do this bars have?
Hi there. Sorry but I don’t do nutritional analysis on my recipes b/c there are typically a lot of ingredient alternatives. I would suggest plugging the ingredients that you will use into a nutrition calculator. Thanks and hope you enjoy them!
Hello,
I just made these and they are fantastic, used ery. instead of stevia and almonds, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds, I did choose cocoa butter but followed the recipe completely. I ran it through Spark People recipe calculator at 10 servings and was shocked. Can you please do a quick calorie/carb count and message me. I use a lot of your recipes and hope very much that I entered some information wrong. I do not want to post the results on this site because it was a great recipe and frankly, I would like to eat them.
Hi Laura.
Glad you enjoyed them! Can you tell me what surprised you – was it the calorie count? It’s for sure a high calorie food since there are a lot of nuts and nut butters in it. However, they are very filling so you don’t need much to keep you satisfied. Thanks again.
I haven’t made these yet, but this recipe is sent from heaven. This is EXACTLY what I’ve been searching high and low for. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Can’t wait to make these. I also love how you wrote the recipe with all the substitution options. My children will love these and I won’t be starving on the road anymore for lack of food options. ?
So glad to hear it. Hope you like them!!
Hello, how much gelatin would you use? Thank you!
Maybe 1-2 Tbsp? Thanks!
Hello! Can you tell me please what the vegetable glycerin would be used in leiu of in your original recipe? You put it in the variations as a low carb substitute. Which ingredient is it subbing for? Thank you!
It’s the liquid sweetener. I just update the post to reflect that. Thanks for asking!
Thank you very much! 🙂 I did not know glycerin was sweet. Excellent idea to sub in protein powder and gelatin. I’m on it! 🙂
I hope you enjoy them!!
Hi there Adrienne,
I am SO IN LOVE with these bars. Oh my heavens!!!! You totally nailed it!!! My hubby loves them, too! I use almonds, walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp and chia seeds. I roast everything except the chia. I add the shredded unsweetened coconut with 2 scoops protein powder (Primal Push Vanilla), the gelatin, almond butter, vanilla 2 T glycerin and a little homemade Truvia blend.. I add chopped dried cherries (or other fruit) and the chocolate for my hubby. I leave those 2 items out for mine. I prefer the not so sweet version. PACKED with protein and SO YUMMY!!!! I share this recipe with everyone, giving you credit, of course, lady!!! THANKS A MILLION!!!!!!!!!!! These are a life saver. We were doing the “All Natural” Quest bars. HA!!! Still processed…. and NO comparison to how delicious these are… and a WHOLE LOT less expensive.YAY!!!
Wow – thank you!!! What a fabulous comment to start my day off with. Take care and hope to see you around again!
You are my “go to gal”! I am very grateful for you and your diligent hard work to help us all in our healthy lifestyles. ??
You’re just too kind – thanks!