How To Make Homemade Low Carb Protein Bars
This recipe is so easy to make, you may never buy protein bars from the store again.
First, we combine most the ingredients in the food processor:
Then, we stir in the final ingredients and let the protein bars set:
After an hour, your low carb protein bars will be ready!
I recommend lifting the mixture out of the pan and then cutting the bars on the parchment paper. That way, they wont stick to the cutting board. I cut mine into 15 squares.
What To Put In Your Protein Bars
Feel free to customize your high protein, low carb bars recipe however you want!
- Something sweet: I like adding sugar free chocolate chips. You could also experiment with white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or even dried cranberries.
- Adding some crunch: Any nuts or seeds will work if you dont want to use sunflower seeds. Pecans, almonds, or even pumpkin seeds will be delicious! Just make sure to chop any larger ingredients.
- Texture: Ingredients like chia seeds or flax are a fun way to play around with the texture while adding a nice health boost.
- Protein: I use whey protein in my recipe for texture and protein. However, you could use another flavorless powder like collagen peptides. You could also make these with a flavored protein powder. Just make sure to reduce the amount of sweetener you use since most flavored protein powders are sweetened.
- Nut or seed butter: You can substitute the almond butter for any nut or seed butter you prefer. There are plenty of options at the store! Or, make your own by throwing the nuts or seeds in the food processor and processing until a butter forms.
How do you like to make your low carb protein bars? Let us know in the comments below!
How To Make Coconut Chocolate Bars
Step One. Line an 8-inch baking pan with wax paper or parchment paper.
Step Two. Make the Coconut Bars: blend together coconut flakes, coconut oil, coconut cream and maple syrup in a food processor.
Step Three. Pour the coconut mixture into the prepared pan. Smooth and press down into a tightly-packed, even layer.
Step Four. Make the Chocolate Layer: Melt chocolate chips and coconut cream together, mixing well until smooth.
Step Five. Pour chocolate mixture over coconut bars and smooth into an even layer. Freeze for 40-70 minutes, until firm. Slice and enjoy!
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Two Recipes Endless Options
Have you ever noticed that most of the recipes out there for homemade protein bars are so specific? I am a fan of baking recipes being specific, since baking is chemistry. But these are no-bake.
Those other recipes either rely on one specific type of protein powder, call for a million different funky ingredients Ive never heard of, or they are one flavor and one flavor only. So frustrating!
Tips For The Best Bars:
- A 9×9 pan is the better option for the cook time outlined. If using an 8×8 pan, you may need to add about 10 minutes to the bake time.
- Wait at least an hour to cut into the bars after baking so that they have time to set up. We like to let them cool for a few hours. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes in the pan, then remove from the pan using parchment paper and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
- Salting the cookie bars right after they come out of the oven will help them stick to the melted chocolate.
- We like to drop the pan of cookie bars onto a cutting board right after they have cooked to help them deflate faster, and to give some nice cracks and texture in the top.
- Warm, melted butter will actually help dissolve the sweetener in this case. We will have plenty of time spent creaming together the butter and sweetener so that the butter won’t be too hot when we add in the eggs.
- Room temperature cream cheese and eggs will create the best results. This is important for all baked goods to avoid eggs from scrambling or butter from seizing .
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How To Make Keto Chocolate Coconut Bars
Start by greasing a 12-count brownie pan or square pan and set aside. Then, youll mix together your coconut flakes, coconut oil, and maple syrup, until combined. Lightly wet your hands and place the mixture into the brownie pan/pan of choice. Freeze it for around 30 minutes, before melting the chocolate. Using two forks, dip the coconut bars in the melted chocolate until completely covered. Place on a lined plate and refrigerate until the chocolate has firmed up.
Freeze Your Chocolate Coconut Bars
I also like keeping the chocolate coconut bars in the freezer. Transfer the bars to an airtight freezer-safe container. Use parchment paper if you are stacking them to keep them from sticking to each other. Takeout as many as you would like before eating and let them sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before eating them.
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How To Make Keto Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×9 pan, then line with parchment. In a large bowl, cream together sweetener and warm butter with a hand mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Add in cream cheese and vanilla extract, and continue mixing together until there are no lumps of cream cheese, about another 3-5 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time until completely incorporated, but don’t over mix.
In a separate bowl, whisk together almond flour, coconut flour, salt, baking soda, and xanthan gum. Combine the wet and the dry ingredients, folding together the batter with a rubber spatula. Don’t over mix.
Fold in the chocolate chips, reserving some for the top. Spread the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth the top to even it out. Press in the remaining chocolate chips all over the top.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out mostly clean, and the edges are lightly browned. Sprinkle with flakey sea salt, and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, before transferring to a wire cooling rack for at least 1 hour before cutting and serving.
After bars have cooled, cut in and serve!
How To Make Keto Coconut Bars
You will be amazed by how simple these bars are to make. Seriously, five minutes until they are in the oven! Whats easier than that?
Stir the egg whites, coconut, sweetener, and chocolate chips together.
Then pour the mixture into an 8×8 pan that has been lined with parchment paper and greased with coconut oil or cooking spray.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until they are firm. Cool before cutting.
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The Case For Protein Bars
My kids play a lot of sports. That means that were often on the run, so they eat a lot of protein bars.
And of course, each kid has his or her own favorite variety of bar. But all those packaged protein bars have one thing in common: theyre crazy expensive.
This recipe for homemade protein bars started out as something I was just making for my family, and that was that. After much hesitation, I had finally purchased some Vega Essentials protein powder.
I mean, they even sell protein powder at CVS now! I could use a coupon! I was just playing around with it.
Thats the kind of experimenting I rarely get to do anymore, where I just throw a bit of this and a bit of that into a recipe. Very few notes, even fewer apologies.
Atkins Protein Meal Bar With Real Almond Butter Keto
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Atkins Endulge Treat Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties Keto Friendly And Gluten Free 653 Oz Pack Of 6
- CHOCOLATE COVERED PEPPERMINT PATTIES. Let this rich and decadent treat delight your taste buds while keeping you true to your lifestyle. Includes 6 packs, each with 5 individually wrapped 1.31 oz patties.
- STAY ON TRACK. Our Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties provide 4 grams of protein and 11 grams of fiber per serving to help you achieve your daily goals. And, with 2 grams of net carbs and 1 gram of sugar per serving, this treat is perfect for a keto-friendly* lifestyle.*When used with Atkins ketogenic programs
- ALL TASTE. NO GUILT. With cool peppermint wrapped in a rich dark chocolate flavored coating, these patties deliver all the taste you crave with none of the guilt.
- SMART SNACKING. Atkins delicious and nutritious treats strike the perfect balance of indulgence and smart snacking.
- SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE. Atkins Endulge Treats have their own unique textures and flavors, offering the variety needed to satisfy all your cravings and help support your lifestyle.
What Nutrients Can Be Found In Coconut
Coconut doesnt just taste good in these keto coconut bars, its also filled with lots of nutrients too. Lets take a look at some of the vitamins and minerals you will get from including coconut into your diet. Plus, its a fantastic ingredient to add to savory dishes, like my Keto Coconut Shrimp or Coconut Chicken Tenders.
- Fiber – Helps keep you feeling full and satisfied. It’s important to get fiber from alternative sources on a gluten free low carb keto diet.
- Phosphorus, Potassium, Manganese – Healthy minerals to include in your diet.
- Fat – Coconut is a great way to increase your good fat intake.
- Vitamin E – Great for giving you soft and silky hair and skin.
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Chocolate Coconut Bars Instructions
1.Line a 9×5 pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Make the Coconut Base Layer: The crust for Chocolate Coconut Bars is very easy to make. It consists of unsweetened shredded coconut, almond flour, monk fruit sugar, coconut cream, and nut milk. In a food processor add all the ingredients and process or mix by hand until everything is combined.
3. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of the lined pan and start making the middle layer.
4. In a clean food processor, combine all the almond butter or nut butter of choice, almond flour, the coconut cream, and the monk fruit sugar. Stir or process until the ingredients are all combined.
5. For the chocolate topping, melt the coconut oil and add the cacao powder. Pour the melted mixture over the middle nut layer and sprinkle with sea salt.
6. Transfer the chocolate coconut bars to the freezer for 30 minutes or until they have hardened.
7. Once the chocolate coconut bars have hardened remove from the fridge. Cut into 15-20 bars, depending on how big or small you would like your bars.
Keto Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
These ooey gooey keto chocolate chip cookie bars are completely sugar and gluten free, absolutely decadent and so easy to make at home! Crisp around the edges, with a soft and chewy center, with no shortage of semi-sweet sugar free chocolate chips.
These low carb keto cookie bars are undeniably delicious, and perfect for a gluten free, low carb keto lifestyle. With only 5 net carbs per each of these chocolate chip bars, we’re confident that these can help kick your sugar cravings.
If you’re looking for something that tastes like low carb chocolate chip cookies, with even more decadence, you’ve come to the right place. With just a few staple pantry ingredients, you’ll whip these up in no time!
Quick note about this recipe: it was originally created for a paid Instagram collaboration with Lilys Sweets! We decided we absolutely had to bring the content over to the blog as well, but we werent required to. Thanks for supporting brands that help us bring fresh, free content to you, our readers!
Feel free to skip to the recipe card if you’re ready to get right into it. We do cover common questions, tips, and tricks in the body of this post to keep reading if you’re wondering something. We do also include tons of step by step pictures in the body of the post.
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Note On Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
First Published: January 21, 2015 Last Updated: May 19, 2020
Pro Tips And Recipe Notes
- When I first posted this delicious recipe, it was Christmastime, but these beautiful low carb chocolate bars are perfect for anytime youre celebrating. Enjoy!
- Leftovers can be kept covered in your freezer.
For anyone who loves coconut, these bars are sure to satisfy your coconut craving. They are light and refreshing: not too sweet, not too crunchy. Just right for an afternoon snack or healthy dessert with your steaming mug of hot chocolate.
I like to accompany mine with a bowl of fresh berries.
Now to admire the Christmas village my kids have set up on the fireplace mantle.
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