Quick and Easy No-Cook Tasty Snack Bars - Perfect for Adults and Childrens Lunch Boxes

***RECIPE***

Now that many of us of trying to be more and more careful about what we eat, it’s a lot easier to find quick, convenient, and healthy little snacks readily available in supermarkets. 

However, they do come at a cost and the healthiest bars are not always the cheapest.

Did you know that it is really easy to make your own? A healthy treat, largely made from fruit takes less than 10 minutes to prepare. Something halfway between an apple and a chocolate bar, also handily sized for a lunch box and packed with energy in the form of good fats and natural sugar.

Now that the boys have packed lunches at school I wanted to give them something that is a treat but that isn’t full of added sugar. I remember having a chocolate biscuit in my packed lunches as a child, but I was sure there must be something healthier that is just as tasty, and doesn’t cost nearly as much as a school dinner.

Quick and Easy No-Cook Tasty Snack Bars

Google came to the rescue and I came across lots of recipes for homemade healthy snack bars on the internet. None of the recipes I found quite fitted my boys' tastes so I came up with my own, using our favourite cereals and dried fruits. 

Rolled oats, rice crispies, coconut and cranberries plus cocoa powder for that chocolate taste!

Dates do contain natural sugar, but this energy is from a natural source but also fibre and protein too. And the very, best thing is that they taste just as good (well actually, better) than your favourite chocolate bar.

Ingredients:

For one week’s worth of date bars for two boys (Minimum 10 pieces)

• 300g dates
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 handful of cranberries (30g)
• 10g dried coconut
• 50g oats
• 50g puffed rice
• water

 

Method:

These couldn’t be simpler to make, just mix all the ingredients, press, chill, then slice into bars, roll into balls or squash into a biscuit shape.

1. Boil the kettle and chop the dates into very small pieces.

2. Place the dates in a bowl and add hot water without completely covering the dates. Leave to soften for a few minutes.

3. When soft use a fork to break the dates down further and mix well. You could use a food mixer for this part).

4. Add the cocoa powder, cranberries, coconut, oats and rice crispies and mix thoroughly until all of the ingredients are stuck together.

5. Line a baking tray with cling film then spoon the mixture in, pressing down firmly.

6. Place in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

7. Once firm take out of the tray, remove the cling film and slice into at least ten equal pieces.

Dairy Free

What more could you want for your lunch box? They are dairy-free, vegan-friendly, low in saturated fats, and free from added sugar and syrups. This recipe can also be wheat and gluten free depending on the oats and puffed rice you use.

Quick to make

I have got myself into a habit of making this on Sunday evening, so they are ready to be put into the boys' lunch boxes every morning. It takes less than 10 minutes.

 

Budget Friendly

They are also fairly cheap too. Even with the additional ingredients, at under 20p per bar, they are less than a third of the cost of a shop-bought healthy snack.

Have you tried making your own healthy snacks?

Deb x