As promised, I am on time for this month's Muslim Food Bloggers Challenge. The challenge is to cook with dates where dates in any form should be the core ingredient of the dish. *Happy Face*
As soon as I read the challenge, I figured I can share the recipe of these energy bars I made some time ago and even shared on Instagram. To me, energy bars were always "nature valley" and the likes that I used to grab from the food court before heading to the work desk on a busy day. It has always been my favourite go-to snack or a quick breakfast whenever I am running out of time. But now, I make these to sustain us during weekends! 😛
I have made these energy bars using a date paste block. To be honest, the first time I picked date paste, was to make Batheeth and then the Dates Chocolate Truffles. I am not sure of its availability in the rest of the world as almost all the recipes for making energy bars with dates involved Medjool dates that are processed in a food processor along with all kinds of nuts and dry fruits. I did not want to use up all of my whole dates, and that is when I saw Rafeeda's post on energy bars using Date Paste. The timing was perfect as I was looking for ways to use up the remaining block of date paste that has been opened.
I made her version but with loads of nuts the very week she posted and F loved it so much that he ate it as a dessert than a snack. As this is a healthy option for dessert too, I went ahead and picked another 1kg block of date paste and planned on making it in different ways.
So here are a few ideas that will enable you to get even more creative as options are endless.
No-Bake Dates Energy Bars | Almond Chocolate | Cashew Raisins | Peanut Chocolate
INGREDIENTS
Almond Chocolate
½ inch of date paste from the 1 kg date paste
¼ cup almonds, roasted and crushed lightly
¼ cup choco chips
1 teaspoon of cocoa powder
2 tablespoon granola (crushed lightly)
any oil to grease your hand while mixing
Cashew Raisins
½ inch of date paste from the 1 kg date paste
¼ cup cashews, roasted and crushed
1 tablespoon golden raisins
½ teaspoon cardamom powder
2 tablespoon granola (crushed lightly)
any oil to grease your hand while mixing
Peanut Chocolate
½ inch of date paste from the 1 kg date paste
¼ cup peanuts, roasted and crushed lightly
1 tablespoon choco chips
1 tablespoon dried cranberries (optional)
2 tablespoon granola (crushed lightly)
any oil to grease your hand while mixing
METHOD
- Mix everything well with greased hands ensuring even distribution of nuts to date paste
- Spread the dough on wax or baking paper and top it with another sheet
- Roll it even and desired thickness with a rolling pin and then shape it into a square by adjusting the edges
- Chill for a couple of hours
- Unwrap the chilled dough and use a sharp knife to cut (top to bottom press) (not sawing motion) to make bars
- Wrap each bar with wax paper and serve cold or room temperature
- Refrigerate the remaining in an airtight box - good for several weeks.
Here is another version - sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. I should have stopped with that but added my cranberry muesli that did not go down too well on an energy bar with dates.
I had made all four ways of dating energy bars on the same day. There were at least 3 to 4 bars of each kind and lasted in the fridge for more than a week. We shared one bar every morning with our cup of milk tea and now I think it is time I made another batch... 🙂
While here, check what my other fellow Muslim Food Bloggers have cooked up!
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!