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    Home > Recipes

    Raw Chocolate Orange Energy Bars

    Published: Nov 14, 2016 · Updated: Oct 29, 2020 · by Veronika Sykorova · This post may contain affiliate links · 17 Comments

    211 shares
    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe·5 from 1 review
    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

    Oh hello there, chocolate.

    I'm posting these random chocolate bars while probably every single blogger in the world is posting a pumpkin recipe. I don't actually have a single pumpkin recipe on my blog (well apart from this Butternut Squash soup but that's different, right? I mean, it's a squash) and I'm not sorry about that  because here's the thing - I never really cared for pumpkin. Pumpkin pie isn't really a thing here in the Czech Republic so I actually ate my first pumpkin spice flavored food at the age of 20 when I bought a pumpkin spiced muffin at Whole Foods in NY. I gotta admit — it was delicious, but they don't sell pumpkin puree here and I just don't care enough to make it myself.

    What I do care about is chocolate. Oh yes. In any form. Raw chocolate bars, chocolate oatmeal, chocolate smoothies, chocolate ice cream, chocolate sauce, chocolate cake — you name it, I want it all. I've always been a chocolate person. When I was a kid and my mom used to order a cake for my birthday, I always wanted the most chocolatey one while all the other kids were into the basic white vanilla cake with fruit on top and they never wanted to eat my chocolate cakes. The joke's on them, though, because that always meant more leftovers for me. HA!

    Nowadays, I only seem to hang out with chocolate lovers and they happily devour anything chocolate flavored I bring them and they absolutely LOVED these chocolate orange energy bars! If you're not one of my childhood friends and you happen to be obsessed with chocolate as much as I am, definitely make these! If fact, let's make them together because I'm craving these yet again.

    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

    I don't know if you're into personal what's-up-with-my-life kind of posts but today I just gotta share with you some exciting updates.

    I just had three much needed days off and today I'm going back to work again for a very long work day which isn't very fun but we're opening a new store so I'm excited to see how it all goes.

    On a happier and more fun note, I went to a Justin Bieber concert here in Prague on Saturday!! As you may already know, I already experience Purpose tour in Toronto this spring but this was the first time Justin visited Prague so I couldn't skip it! It was so much fun you guys! I actually had the ''pit'' seats (not really seats because we were all standing) which is basically the best spot to be because it's right in the middle of the stage. I was so close to him, to the music, to everything and it just couldn't be better! He also looked so happy here and in such a good mood which naturally meant I was in a good mood. I dare say the concert here was even better than the one in Toronto because of his energy and mood. SO MUCH FUN.

    I don't want to go on a rant here because this is a post about chocolate energy bars, not Justin Bieber buuut.. if you're not a Bieber fan, I totally respect that as long as you respect that I am. I've had so many people look at me weird or even laugh when I told them I like Justin's music. I don't get it. I wouldn't laugh at you if you said you liked Beyonce while I didn't (side note: I love Beyonce) so don't judge me for my taste in music. Let's all be adults and stop judging each other. I'm not gonna get into the tabloids Justin drama where he seems to do something wrong every single day of his life but it's not even that, people are still hung up on him singing Baby and rocking the "Bieber" hair. Like, please grow up, move on. He's changed in all ways possible to the better, he's grown up, I obviously don't know him personally but I believe he's a kind person with a good heart and (this will sound super cheesy but w/e) I couldn't be proud of him. When he smiles, when I see him genuinely laugh, it makes me happy. When I'm one meter away from him and see his eyes tear up because he sees the signs everyone is holding that say "we'll always be here for you" I feel proud that we did something to make him feel the love.

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    Showing the love is the least I can do because, all jokes aside, his music helped me through a lot and still helps me every day of my life. Whether you like Justin or not, if you listen to music, any at all, you probably know what I'm talking about. Music is powerful and it can change your mood completely and Justin's music happens to always brighten my day. I feel so full of positive energy and pure happiness after the concert, I can't even describe it.

    What's my point here? I don't really know, I guess I just wanted to share with you my love for Justin because I don't do that very often nowadays (or, well, ever since I stopped using my Tumblr shh — where are my 2012 Tumblr friends at?!). My love for him won't go away no matter what anyone thinks or says. I'm affirmed of that every time I see him live. I used to actually avoid talking about Justin with others, almost ashamed of liking him. Isn't that just ridiculous? I was afraid they'd judge me for it which is just a total BS.

    That's probably the moral of the story — stop caring what people think. Don't ignore your favorite music, hobbies or anything else you like. Embrace it. If it makes you happy, nothing else matters!

    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

    Anywayyyy... I could talk about Justin probably all day but let's get back to these energy bars.

    5 reasons why you need these raw chocolate orange energy bars in your life:
    1. because everyone needs chocolate in their life
    2. because these aren't just delicious, they're also nutritious (there's spirulina hidden inside but shhh)
    3. spirulina is really high in protein and so are the nuts in these energy bars so they are a great post workout snack
    4. these are the perfect snack to pack to work, I mean, the title says it all — energy bars
    5. and lastly, because you just have to try these. The orange-chocolate-date-nut combo is out-of-this-world delicious!

    Okay, that's enough talking for today, I'm going to let you read the recipe now. Hope you love it! :)

    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

     

    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

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    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

    Raw Chocolate Orange Energy Bars

    5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review
    • Author: The Healthful Ideas
    • Yield: 12 bars 1x
    • Category: snack
    Print Recipe
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    Ingredients

    Units Scale

    CHOCOLATE BARS:

    • 1 cup cashews
    • ½ cup almonds
    • ¼ cup shredded coconut
    • ¼ cup raw cacao powder
    • ¼ cup cacao nibs (+ more for sprinkling)
    • 2 tbsp chia seeds
    • 1 tbsp spirulina
    • ¼ tsp sea salt
    • 20 Medjool dates, pitted
    • 1 tsp orange zest
    • 4-5 drops lemon essential oil (optional)
    • optional add-ins: hemp seeds, other nuts or seeds, coconut oil, cacao butter, chlorella, maca, lucuma, mesquite or any other superfood powders

    CHOCOLATE SAUCE (see notes):

    • 2 tbsp coconut oil
    • 2 tbsp maple syrup
    • pinch sea salt
    • 3 tbsp cacao powder
    • dash cinnamon (optional)

    Instructions

    1. Pulse the cashews and almonds in a food processor a few times to break them up into small pieces.
    2. Add the shredded coconut, cacao powder, cacao nibs, chia seeds, spirulina, and sea salt and pulse to combine.
    3. Add the dates, orange zest, and lemon essential oil and process until all the dates are processed and the mixture forms a sticky dough.
    4. Line a square baking pan with parchment paper and press the dough evenly into it using either wetted hands or a spatula.
    5. Place into the freezer to set for 30-60 minutes.
    6. Take it out of the freezer and remove the dough from the pan. Cut into 12 bars. You can cut off the sides of the dough to make the bars look pretty and even.
    7. Lay them on a baking paper and drizzle with the chocolate sauce and sprinkle with cacao nibs.
    8. Place them into the freezer or fridge to set.
    9. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

    Notes

    To make the chocolate sauce: melt the coconut oil in a small pan over very low heat, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix with a spoon until smooth.

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    Did you make this recipe?

    Comment and rate the recipe below and tag @thehealthfulideas on Instagram with the hashtag #thehealthfulideas, I'd love to see what you made!

    Chocolate Orange Energy Bars - dates, nuts, cacao, orange zest, lemon essential oil, and sea salt. You'll love this recipe! | thehealthfulideas.com

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    211 shares

    Comments

    1. candy says

      November 22, 2016 at 2:23 pm

      Wow, that is a ton of chocolate in these energy bars. I can see they will give a pick me up. Look delicious.

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        November 22, 2016 at 10:51 pm

        Totally! I love them for an afternoon pick-me-up :)

        Reply
    2. Belle says

      November 22, 2016 at 3:42 pm

      Oh my! This looks amazing! My kids will love this!

      One Awesome Momma

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        November 22, 2016 at 10:52 pm

        Thank you so much, Belle! I bet they will! :)

        Reply
    3. Sara Giboney says

      November 22, 2016 at 5:27 pm

      These look amazing! I love all the superfoods in these energy bars!

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        November 22, 2016 at 10:53 pm

        Thank you, Sara! :) I add superfoods to anything and everything whenever I get the chance haha

        Reply
    4. Jessica Hughes says

      November 23, 2016 at 9:24 pm

      These look and sound amazing! I love sneaking in superfoods as much as possible. The orange and chocolate mixed has me craving these now!

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        November 23, 2016 at 9:32 pm

        Me too! I'm such a superfood addict lol. The orange & chocolate combo is my fave<3

        Reply
    5. Melanie says

      November 24, 2016 at 4:15 am

      These look great, can't wait to try them! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        November 24, 2016 at 9:20 pm

        Thank you, Melanie! Hope you enjoy them :)

        Reply
    6. natali says

      November 29, 2016 at 4:46 am

      You speak about dates in the instructions but they are not mentioned in the ingredients. I was wondering what quantity of dates is needed. Thanks.

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        November 29, 2016 at 7:25 pm

        Oh wow I can't believe I missed that. It's 20 dates. Sorry! :)

        Reply
        • natali says

          November 29, 2016 at 7:54 pm

          Thank you! I am looking forward to making this.

          Reply
          • thehealthfulideas says

            November 30, 2016 at 6:45 pm

            Yay hope you love it! :)

            Reply
    7. Jenna says

      January 04, 2017 at 5:31 pm

      Ok, I can forgive you for not really being into pumpkin for these chocolate energy bars. They look delicious!

      Reply
      • thehealthfulideas says

        January 04, 2017 at 8:03 pm

        haha thanks, Jenna! :)

        Reply
    8. Medsides.Com says

      May 22, 2020 at 3:07 am

      I ve made these twice and both times I ve had to finish them in my dehydrator. They are delicious but I m wondering why they didn t dry out? Did the first batch on the counter and the second one in the oven and got the same results. Btw, I made my second batch with dried cherries, white chocolate chips and lemon juice and rind instead of orange wow, now that was delicious my favorite!

      Reply

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    Welcome!

    I'm Veronika and The Healthful Ideas where I share original plant-based recipes for every day cooking and popular classics with a healthy twist.

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