Chocolate coconut cashew bars made with simple, clean ingredients for a sweet treat that you can feel good about eating.
Real talk. It’s a damn inferno outside. The heat index in Florida this week has been somewhere around 105 degrees F and it hits you like a ton of bricks as soon as you step outside. On the plus side, I don’t have to waste time applying bronzer because my face has a constant natural glow. Perspiration is the cheapest cosmetic around. Who knew?
To avoid bringing the smolder into my kitchen, I’m opting for raw, no-bake, cold, crisp, chilled-everything. Most meals lately have consisted of every variety of salad you could think of, overnight oats, Greek yogurt parfaits, ALL the fruit and these chocolate coconut cashew bars (which should totally count as a meal). 
More real talk. Being someone that has been pretty immersed in the field of health, food and nutrition for a while, it’s fun to keep tabs on what the latest trends are. Traditionally, a lot of trends have (unfortunately) revolved around elimination diets in which certain foods or food groups were vilified and restricted. Foods marketed as low-calorie, low-fat, low-this, low-that were usually interpreted by novice consumers to mean “healthy”, right?
Well now we’re starting to see the paradigm shift. People are beginning to change their mindset about food and paying closer attention to not only the nutrition label, but also the ingredient label. Consumers are becoming more interested in actually adding more nutritious ingredients into their diet, as opposed to eliminating other ingredients.
What perhaps is even more exciting is that fat is no longer being demonized. Food items such as coconut oil, avocado oil and nut flours are being used more widely for their nutritional benefits with less emphasis placed on their concentrated caloric value.
This is pretty riveting for us dietitians and food bloggers to finally see the old school way of nutrition-focused thinking start to change. Science is ever evolving, my friends, and this industry will forever stay relevant because of it.
To piggyback off that rant, these bars are made of simple ingredients that you actually may already have sitting in your pantry. The base is a blended concoction of raw cashews, oats, liquid sweetener of your choice and coconut oil that seriously resembles cookie dough, both in taste and texture.
The divine chocolate topping is simply a mix of cocoa powder, liquid sweetener and a few pinches of sea salt. The coconut flakes are optional, but coming from someone who could eat a whole vat of Almond Joy bars, I really think they add an extra layer of decadence.
Taking a bite into one of these bars is like going on vacation to a beautiful remote island. You just get lost in the taste and mouthfeel of silky cashews, velvety chocolate and chewy coconut flakes. Each bite is better than the next and the flavors just resonate in your mouth long after you’ve finished eating it. 
We’ve been going nuts (pun intended) over these bars all weekend and I’m already looking forward to making another batch. I’m thinking of topping the next batch with goji berries so stay tuned on Instagram!
I hope you guys LOVE these bars as much as we do. If you make them, be sure to snap a pic and tag #dishingouthealth so I can see your beautiful creations. Your photos truly make my day.
- **Base**
- 1½ cups raw unsalted cashews
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup liquid sweetener (honey, brown rice syrup, maple syrup)
- Pinch of sea salt
- **Chocolate Coconut Topping**
- ¼ cup liquid sweetener (honey, brown rice syrup, maple syrup)
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes
- A few pinches of sea salt
- Add cashews to food processor and blend for 2-3 minutes, stopping to scrap down the sides every 30 seconds or so. You want to process the nuts until they start to form somewhat of a paste.
- Add oats, coconut oil, liquid sweetener and sea salt and blend for another 2-3 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed, until ingredients form a dough (refer to picture).
- Line a loaf pan or 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment paper and lightly coat with non-stick spray. Empty dough into pan and press down firmly, spreading evenly to all edges. It's helpful to use the bottom of a measuring cup to really compact dough.
- Chocolate topping: In a large glass measuring cup or bowl, whisk together liquid sweetener, melted coconut oil and cocoa powder until smooth and well-combined. Pour over dough, spreading evenly with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with coconut flakes and sea salt.
- Freeze for 1 hour or refrigerate for 3 hours before slicing. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
To make vegan, use either pure maple syrup or brown rice syrup as sweetener
Join the Conversation!
What’s your current favorite cool summer treat?
Have you also noticed a positive change in how people are viewing food and certain nutrients? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
I'm Jamie - A Registered Dietitian, recipe developer, and full-fledged foodie inspiring you to live deliciously. 
These bars were absolutely amazing! My entire family enjoyed them. My kids couldn’t believe they were actually good for you! Definitely a keeper!
Oh I’m so thrilled to hear that, Kelly!! Thank you for coming back and leaving a review. Cheers!
I ate a bar and I totally enjoyed it’s chocolate taste! I really thought it was chocolate! I was surprised to be told it’s cocoa powder. Great sweet. I want to make it too. I was also surprised it has honey ( my friend used honey as sweetener). Balanced, all flavours come out in a beautiful harmony that sings eat meee 😛
And I am soooo glad to find healthy and light sweets!
This may be my favorite comment ever, Dimitra. So thrilled you enjoyed them!! Cheers to you and healthy sweets!
These are outstanding!!!!!!!!!
I love you’re idea I make a slice very similar to this : Ingredients :
3 cups or more Cashews
1\4 cup Maple syrup
1 block Dark chocolate
METHOD :
Blend cashews with 1\4 cup maple syrup .
Melt chocolate and pour half into a tin ,freeze until frozen about one hour or less . Add cashew mix and freeze then add more melted chocolate . and freeze , garnish on a serving plate with Raspberry’s and fruit . ENJOY !!!!
Sounds yummy! I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks!
These are AMAZING! I was not expecting much for being a healthier desert, but these were so good!
SO glad to hear, Chloe!! They are one of my favorite desserts 😛 Thanks for the positive review!
Wow, these are fabulous! Thanks so much for sharing this!
I’m so glad you enjoyed then, Fiona! Thanks for stopping by!
Never used coconut oil before but I tracked it down and had a go. I can’t believe how good these are. Particularly when the June temperature in Middle England is over 80F……… We ate them with sliced strawberries and creme fraiche. Indescribably delicious.
Hi Bryoney! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!! Strawberries and creme fraiche sound like lovely accompaniments. Thanks for stopping by!
These look delicious! I have to say, however, that it’s pretty funny you say in the post, “Traditionally, a lot of trends have (unfortunately) revolved around elimination diets in which certain foods or food groups were vilified and restricted. Foods marketed as low-calorie, low-fat, low-this, low-that were usually interpreted by novice consumers to mean ‘healthy’, right?” and then in the recipe tout how these are “clean” (usually code for paleo-friendly) vegan, gluten free, and dairy free. You realize most people care about these things because they believe in “low-this, low-that,” not for provable health issues like Celiac’s, right? Also, “vegan” and “dairy free” is redundant. If something is vegan it’s always dairy free.
Kirsten, I read your comment and feel the need to add my comment! These are very tasty bars, I’ve made them a few times now and came across them because they are vegan. I just wanted to correct your remark that vegan and dairy-free is redundant. It is not. Diary-free refers to not including diary products only. Vegan refers to no dairy, no eggs, no fish oil, etc.
dishingouthealth, thank you for a delicious treat. I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
Thank you, Laure! Glad you like the bars!
Kirsten’s not wrong, though. While it is not redundant to say something dairy-free is vegan, it is redundant the other way around. Language is for communicating; clarity is not irrelevant.
Speaking of language, your title led me to think the chocolate would be raw, but it’s not your fault that english is awkward. Since it’s no-bake I guess I could substitute, eh. Also, no-heat is a good opportunity to use raw honey.
Anyhoo, interesting looking concoction. I appreciate the flour-free simplicity with appealing ingredients.
PawPaw: I think I just saw Daddy giving Mama a birthday kiss! ;-)I sent the stickers on Friday. I totally forgot tomorrow is a postal Holiday. I was hoping she would get her stickers before she got her next round of Chemo. Your family is beautiful Brent. 🙂 (But, I know you know that!)Many prayers in the days ahead for Miss Abby (and the family)
Hiya! Not only does this recipe sound gorgeous, the format is clean, simple and pleasing to look at. I wondered what plugin you used to format these? When wordpress updated my go to plugin stopped working! Really like the look of your recipes and would love to know what you use to format them 🙂 (In return, I promise to make these bars and snack on them immediately…)
Hi Rosie! I use the EasyRecipe plugin from WordPress. It actually came with my website theme.I had something similar happen to me recently (WordPress updates are so annoying!). I hope you’re able to get things sorted out!
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This was literally delicious!!!! So easy to make too!
Yayy, so thrilled to hear, Sabah! Thanks so much for coming back and sharing! Cheers.
Made them and ate 85% myself! i used organic coconut smiles which are thicker flaked chunks and i toasted them first. to put on top! big hit with my 4 kids! I have a picture but it wont let me post it.
Haha Stephanie that’s amazing!! So glad to hear you and kiddos enjoyed them! Thanks for trying to share the pic, anyway! Cheers.
I made these and really liked them, but I found the base to have waaay too much oil. I poured off a slick of separated oil from the base before putting the chocolate topping on. I’d make these again but probably would only need a tbsp or two of coconut oil in the base. Very yummy though.
Agree. It was sooooo tasty but I also used 4 paper towels to take the oil out before adding the chocolate layer. And next time, I´m going to make it with different sweetener than honey. Just to see the difference.
I made these last night and they are amazing! My non vegan boyfriend loved them — can’t wait to make more! thank you!
Yayy so thrilled to hear that, Sara!! Enjoy! 🙂
Thank you for this amazing recipe. It really is absolutely fantastic. As I’m on low carb diet I decided to modify it a little bit so instead of using oats I went completely nuts and added ground almonds and it’s absolutely awesome (I also lowered the amount of honey in base and used stevia in chocolate topping, but that’s just because of my personal preferences 🙂 ). Thank you, again. You’re awesome! 🙂
Hi, Zeljko! That’s AWESOME – so happy to hear you love the recipe. I’m also really intrigued by the idea of using all nuts – I’ll have to try that! Thank you for sharing your feedback!
These were unbelievable! So easy to make and healthy too! I’m on a prenatal diabetes diet and substituted the sweetener in the chocolate topping with 2 1/2 packets of stevia and it tasted great. This has allowed me to eat a square a day and feel like I’m having dessert again! My toddler loves them too, thanks for a great recipe!
YAY I’m so thrilled to hear that, Kelsey!! Thank you so much for sharing! Cheers to you!
Ok. So this looks so much like Nanaimo bars it’s crazy! It’s a traditional Canadian dessert… Along with butter tarts that are served over holidays. I might adapt this for Christmas. I don’t know if it tastes like it. But the idea of cashews to be used as the icing filling his genius!
I bet if u added a little coconut flour to the cashews it would have a lighter texture too. More like Nanaimo bar filling. Wow
Excited. Thanks for the inspiration
Hi Karen! Ha too funny! I have never heard of Nanaimo bars before but will be definitely be looking them up now! Also love the idea of adding coconut flour to the cashew mix. If you try, please let me know how they turned out! Xo
Any suggestions on what to use as a substitution for oats? Thanks!
Hi Lorna! I haven’t personally tried this, but I would try using extra cashews to replace the oats. Let me know how it turns out!
Not sure if you have solved your oat replacement question but I would suggest quinoa flakes (which in fact look like oats but are made from quinoa). I have a friend with an oat intolerance that is completely separate from her desire to live a GF life and over the years, I have managed to substitute quinoa flakes for oats in many recipes. The resulting bars may taste a bit more nutty but other than that, you might not even know the difference 🙂
Hi Joss! That is SUCH a great idea — thank you so much for sharing. I haven’t experimented with quinoa flakes yet, but you’ve inspired me!
Would these work using peanuts or almonds? I’m allergic to most tree nuts, but can eat almonds. Peanuts are no problem, but I’ve read that they’re not as good for you as they used to be?
Hi Lisa! I have not tried using almonds, though I think they would work well. Just make sure you ground them very well before adding the oats and remaining ingredients to the food processor. I’d love to hear how it turns out!
These look so tasty – I’ve been needing to lose a bit of weight and eat healthier so I am go to ditch my usual Friday night chocolate bar and make these tonight! So looking forward to trying them 🙂 they look easy and affordable to make too xxx
Hi Natanya — that’s so great!! They are certainly inexpensive to make and super simple!! Please let me know what you think! Xo
I worry about them being too sweet and want to cut the sweetener in half… worried about the liquid portion though.. any thoughts?
Hi Carrie,
I haven’t tried this, but you may be able to increase the amount of coconut oil in the same ratio you are reducing the liquid sweetener. I will say, though, I’m not big into super sweet things myself and I think these have just the right dose of sweetness. I would compare it to eating a dark chocolate granola bar. But if you do try using more oil in place of sweetener, please let me know how they turn out. Thanks!
Sooooo good! Satisfies a sweet Tooth and yet is filling! Will definitely make again!
Yay! Thank you, Darbie! 🙂
I just made these and the chocolate topping was nothing but crumbles, couldn’t even spread it. I did it twice thinking I did something wrong but results were the same. What a shame
Hi Felicia,
I’m so sorry to hear that – so odd??! Was the coconut oil melted down to a liquid when you added it to the cocoa powder/sweetener mix? It should have smoothed out easily once those three were mixed together?? It’s a major shame wasting
I just made them and also had the topping harden up. However, I realized it was because I had added the melted coconut oil to cold maple syrup I had taken out of the refrigerator. I popped it into the microwave for 20 seconds and it spread beautifully. The squares were a hit at a dinner party with people asking for the recipe!
Hi Colleen, I’m so thrilled you and your guests enjoyed them! Thank you for the review! Cheers.
Turns out they were such a hit that a second batch was requested today! Lol
These are delicious! I made them today and can’t wait to share them with my coworkers. Great recipe!!
Yay I’m so thrilled to hear that, Jennifer!! Thanks for letting me know! 🙂 Enjoy
These look super yummy! Pinned them.
Yay thanks love! They are such a treat! Xo
Woo Hoo these look amazing! You truly can’t go wrong with the chocolate/coconut combination!
Thank you, Laura! I couldn’t agree more! Xo
Hi Dani! I’m so glad you did, too! I am hooked on the chocolate + coconut combo too – it never gets old! Thanks for pinning the recipe! 🙂
Hello! I’m so glad that I stumbled upon your blog today! These bars look DELICIOUS and I pinned immediately. I really can’t get enough of the chocolate/coconut combo!
OMG these look GOOD! And easy! I’ve been looking for new vegan desserts. Can’t wait to try!
Yes, SO easy!! I hope you love them!