Healthier Chocolate Crispy Bars

This treat is Dairy-free, Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar-Free, and a hit with my kids (and me!).

I love high-quality chocolate/cacao, full of minerals like magnesium and heart/immune healthy polyphenols. Most chocolate, however, is laden with added refined sugar and inflammatory milk - which negates the health benefits of the tiny amounts of cacao present in them... 

So, I like to make my own chocolate treats. This bar can be made with any puffed wholegrain you can find - I like quinoa but feel free to sub with anything you like! 

You can also throw in some pumpkin seeds for added zinc. 

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups chocolate chips - if you want a sweeter bar, use sweetened chocolate chips. I personally love dark chocolate so I use unsweetened, but it can be bitter and less appealing for kids. (I like Santa Barbara Cacao fruit for unsweetened or their Coconut blossom for sweetened, (discount code below, not an affiliate but theirs test for heavy metals so I like to share).

• 1 cup almond butter (or any other nut butter or seed butter)

• 1/2 tsp stevia powder or monk fruit

• 1 tbsp vanilla extract or powder

• 3 cups quinoa puffs (you can also sub with millet, rice, or any other whole grain puffs)

• (optional, add crushed pumpkin seeds for zinc)

Instructions:

1. Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave or over the stove (bring an inch of water to boil in a saucepan, then place the chocolate chips in a bowl, and place it inside the saucepan, stirring to melt, careful not to let it get too hot)

2. Add the vanilla extract, stevia, and almond butter to the melted chocolate, and stir to combine evenly.

3. Mix in the millet, quinoa, or rice puffs (and pumpkin seeds, if using), stir to combine evenly

4. Pour mixture into a lined 9×9 baking dish

5. Place it into the fridge for 2-3 hours.

6. Once firmed in the fridge, cut into slices and then keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Brands I use:

Chocolate chips - Santa Barbara Chocolate - I'm not an affiliate, but got a code platefulhealth for 10% off 

Stevia powder - Mountain Rose organic stevia. I don't like the bleached, processed stevia, and prefer to use dried whole leaves that have been ground into a powder. 

Quinoa puffs - local bulk bin, have not been able to find this online

Rice puffs - One-degree organics which I get from Thrivemarket (20% off your first order) 

Vanilla extract - Costco or Kiva vanilla powder