(Vegan) Chocolate Almond Butter Crunch Bars

Chocolate. Almond butter. Maple Syrup. Coconut oil. Crispy Rice Cereal.
Surely, you can’t hold it against me. Who could resist? These are some of the most awesome words in the dessert glossary.
And if you think that my fave breakfast when I was a kiddo, was a huge bowl of Rice Krispies sprinkled with two tablespoons of chocolate Nesquik, you can pretty put together the story of how I ended up with these bars.
Look at them! Honestly, who can resist so much awesomeness?

And while these chocolate crunch bars may not be the epitome of healthy food — let’s not fool ourselves people, a chocolate bar is still a chocolate bar even if healthified — they are made without processed, no-good-for-you white sugar but are instead sweetened with all natural maple syrup.
I also used sprouted organic puffed rice cereal, which is similar to classic Rice Krispies but without all the junk. In addition, it’s sprouted brown rice, meaning that the rice has germinated — which increases the natural nutrient content of the rice.
So I won’t go as far as saying that these (Vegan) Chocolate Almond Butter Crunch Bars are super-duper healthy but they are certainly more nutritious than a typical processed candy bar.

I don’t think there’s much more to say about these (Vegan) Chocolate Almond Butter Crunch Bars except that there’s really no reason not to give this recipe a try.
They literally come together in five minutes (no baking needed) and require only six simple ingredients: chocolate, crispy rice cereal, almond butter, maple syrup, coconut oil, and salt.
Gluten-free, dairy-free, and (almost) paleo-friendly. All in all, the perfect anytime treat for everyone.
To be completely honest with you guys, these bars are the kind of thing I could easily inhale in one sitting. And maybe I did it. Maybe...

(Vegan) Chocolate Almond Butter Crunch Bars                                                                      Print this recipe!
Inspired by CeleryandCupcakes

Ingredients
Makes 16 bars

3 cups crispy rice cereal (I used One Degree Sprouted Brown Rice Crisps)
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup almond butter (can sub nut or seed butter)
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup maple syrup
4 tablespoons coconut oil

Directions

Line a 8x8-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
Stir crispy rice cereal and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
Place almond butter, chocolate chips, maple syrup, and coconut oil in a medium size heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water, making sure that the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is shiny and smooth.
Alternatively you can heat in the microwave at 20 second intervals until completely melted. Stopping and mixing between each interval.
Pour chocolate mixture over crispy rice cereal and mix until thoroughly combined.
Pour into the lined baking sheet and refrigerate until set.
Remove and cut into bars.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 4 weeks.

Nutrition facts

One bar yields 280 calories, 19 grams of fat, 30 grams of carbs, and 4 grams of protein.