With just 4 real-food ingredients, you can make these delicious homemade Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars. This homemade Larabar recipe is vegan & gluten-free and such a perfect on-the-go snack for the kiddos or…you!
August is always a nostalgic time of year for me. I still have nightmares that I didn’t actually graduate college. It’s this dumb reoccurring dream that happens every so often where I signed up for 4 classes and ended up”forgetting” about one of the classes and failed it. It wasn’t just any class, it was a mandatory class needed to graduate.
I BARELY think about college, so it’s always weird when this dream pops into my head. Anyways, August made me think of this! I can’t believe August is right around the corner. Targets worldwide have already started their back-to-school campaign and it makes me freak out inside. Funny thing is, my 10-year high school reunion is this year meaning that 10-years ago this August, I started college! WOAH. 8 years ago this November I started Fit Foodie Finds. Man, I’m old balls.
In honor of school starting up, we thought we’d create a delicious and easy homemade Larabar recipe. Why? Because I was OBSESSED with Larabars in college. I bought them every single week because I love how minimal their ingredient lists are. Big fan of Larabars and I hope you are too!
It’s obvious why we chose this flavor. Becuase peanut butter and chocolate chips make the world go round. So what do you need for these little ditties?
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars
- Medjool dates
- Unsalted peanuts
- Mini Chocolate Chips
- Sea Salt
The key to this recipe is soft Medjool dates! Typically when you buy Medjool dates in the produce section, they are much fresher than the packaged section. The softer they are, the easier they are to pulverize in the food processor.
One more cool thing about this recipe! If you buy your ingredients in bulk, you can make these bars for less than $1 per bar. I call that a win. Most co-ops and health food stores like Whole Foods and Fresh Tyme have amazing bulk sections. For sure check them out! You’ll be plesantly surprised.
Healthy Bar Recipes
- No-Bake Chocolate Coconut Energy Bars
- Peanut Butter Protein Bars
- Copycat Cashew Cookie Larabars
- Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch Clif Bars
Homemade Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars
Ingredients
- 20 Medjool Dates pitted (fresh)*
- 2 cups unsalted peanuts
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- First, line a square cake pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Next, pit 20 dates. Then, add to food processor.
- Add peanuts and salt and blend on high until your dough has formed. You may need to stop a few times to scrape the sides. Your dough should be sticky, yet not too wet.
- Transfer your food processor into the fridge for 5 minutes to cool just a tad. You want to do this so the chocolate chips don't melt! Once slightly chilled, add the chocolate chips and give it one last whirl to combine.
- Transfer dough into cake pan and use your hands to spread out evenly. If you spray your hands with cooking spray, there will be less sticking.
- Place cake pan in the freezer for 1-2 hours.
- Remove from freezer and let sit for 5 minutes until you can wiggle the bars out of the cake pan. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 bars.
Tips & Notes
- Make sure you are using soft dates for this recipe. If your dates are older/harder, you will likely need to add a few teaspoons of water.
- Storage: Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- If you're eating these bars as more of a snack, feel free to cut the serving size in half to make 16 total bars!
These were a little sweet for us so next time I would reduce the amount of dates a little. I think they would have blended up much better in a Vitamix. We loved the fresh peanut taste – which you don’t notice so much in real Larabars. Also, I would recommend refrigerating them for an hour rather than freezing. Chocolate is more flavorful when it is not too cold.
Hi, could you please tell me if you use roasted or unroasted peanuts? Thank you!
Hi Steph! Either one will work, as long as they are unsalted!
OMGGGGG I JUST MADE THEM AND HOLYYYYY THEY TASTE SO GOOODDDD I LOVE HOW INEXPENSIVE THIS RECIPE WAS AND HOW EASY IT WAS!! NGL BLENDING THE DATES AND PEANUTS TOOK A BIT OF TIME BUT WHEN IT FINALLY BLENDED I WAS SO HAPPYYYYYY! THE BARS ARE SO NICE AND MOIST I WILL DEFINITELY MAKE AGAIN! THANK YOU FOR THIS RECIPE!!
Hope this message finds you feeling well and in good spirits.
I’m also a Larabar junkie and my fav is the chocolate chip peanut butter.
So finding this simple lil recipe was a real treat.
Cheers,
Pepper
these homemade peanut butter chocolate chip bars looks so chewy and yummy, very unique and they seem to be bursting out with flavor!
Has it really been eight years since you graduated high school? Girl, you do NOT look a day over 25. 😉 ANYWAYS, these homemade copycat LARABARs look AMAZEBALLS and I want to dig into one RIGHT now! This flavor is one of my favorites aside from, ya know, ALL THEIR OTHER PEANUT BUTTER BARS!
AW THANK YOU!!!! Big ol’ 28!
LARABAR Bars are a brand. You may consider changing the name of your recipe to avoid being sued.
The correct term is “nutrition bars”.