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Vanilla Almond Snack Bars Recipe

Chewy and wholesome snack bars that are sweet and salty, packed with whole foods, and are made without grains or refined sugars.

These vanilla almond snack bars are simple and wholesome with a sweet taste that won’t give you a sugar crash. They’re an easy fruit and nut bar, similar to a KIND bar. They’re grain free, gluten free, have no refined sugar, and are packed with whole, natural ingredients like almonds, dates, and seeds. Usually I add a little oats to energy/granola bars but I wanted to keep the main ingredients purely nuts and dried fruit.

Do you remember my recipe for Gluten Free Apple Crisp? Just like it, today’s recipe is not just “really good for a gluten free recipe.” It’s just plain REALLY GOOD. We’re using almond meal in today’s recipe again too. For anyone not familiar with almond meal, don’t get nervous. Almond meal is just ground almonds before reaching the stage of almond butter.

While you can purchase it at the store, almond meal (also known as almond flour if using blanched almonds and grinding a little more fine) is easy to make at home. It’s what you always use when making blueberry almond power muffins and granola clusters! Simply pulse almonds until they reach a gritty and rough flour-like consistency like this:

Almond meal helps bind the snack bar’s ingredients. We’ll also add roughly chopped almonds, too. You will love their crunchy texture. For a little sweetness, use honey. I do not recommend thinner liquid sweeteners like maple syrup or agave. Brown rice syrup works too. Salted sunflower seeds bulk the bars up and, when paired with the dates and honey, supply that satisfying sweet and salty flavor we all know and love.

Baked the vanilla almond snack bars for only around 20 minutes, or just until they are relatively set.

They’re sweet and simple, wholesome, flavorful, chewy, grain-free, and do not contain refined sugar. If you love these, try my berry vanilla cashew snack bars and quinoa snack bars next!

Here is the cashew coconut version mentioned in the Note above. Another favorite!

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 30 mins
Cuisine:
Courses:
Servings: 12
Description

Chewy and wholesome snack bars that are slightly sweet 'n salty, packed with whole foods, and are made without grains or refined sugars.

Ingredients You’ll Need
  • 1/3 cup (113g)
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup (30g)
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 Tablespoon (15g)
  • 1 and 1 1/3 cups (187g)
  • 5 Medjool dates, coarsely chopped*
  • 3/4 cup (105g)
Instructions
  1. 1
    Preheat oven to 300°F (149°C). Line an 8-inch square baking pan or 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper with enough overhang on the sides to easily remove the bars from the pan. Set aside.
  2. 2
    Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix the honey, vanilla, almond meal, salt, and almond butter together until combined. Fold in the almonds, chopped dates, and sunflower seeds until combined.
  3. 3
    Transfer mixture to prepared baking pan and press very firmly into an even layer. You really want it packed in tight—as tight as possible. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack for 1 hour, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 1 more hour. This helps firm up the bars which makes them stay compact. Remove bars from the pan using the overhang on the sides and cut into bars. Individually wrap each bar in plastic wrap or parchment. Store at room temperature for 1 week or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. I find they get a little sticky at room temperature over a few days, so I prefer the refrigerator.
Keywords: almond butter, almond meal, almonds, dates, honey, sunflower seeds, vanilla extract
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