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These Coconut Cranberry Protein Bars are perfect snack to have on hand in the fridge. Packed with dried cranberries, walnuts, coconut, dates, and protein, these energy bars are the perfect make ahead snack to fuel your day! They are also paleo-friendly, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
I love having grab-and-go snacks always handy in the fridge. While there are plenty of options out there to buy at the store, sometimes you just really want to have control over the ingredients and not spend a fortune on it! That’s where homemade protein bars come in! These Coconut Cranberry Protein Bars have a great taste, are easy to make and with just a handful of ingredients!
Ingredients Needed
Here is an overview of the ingredient list. Keep scrolling for the full recipe.
- Dried Cranberries
- Unsweetened Shredded Coconut Flakes
- Soft Dates
- Walnuts
- Coconut Oil
- Collagen Peptides or protein powder (see note below)
Substitutions
It’s so easy to make different swaps with this recipe. You can swap out the dried cranberries for another dried fruit (maybe blueberries or raisins). You can swap out the walnuts for another nut. And you can even swap out the coconut for oats if you want to!
Different Protein Options
I am a big fan of the natural protein inside of collagen peptides, but there are a few different options for added protein into these bars. You can add:
- Unflavored protein powder (I like Ritual)
- Ground flax seed
- Chia seeds
How to Make Them
These homemade bars a bit reminiscent of store-bought Larabars. Only, for a fraction of the price. The bonus is that they are really simple to make at home. All you need is a food processor and a container to to shape the bars. To make them:
- Add all ingredients to a food processor.
- Pulse until the mixture comes together, sometimes it can take a few minutes.
- Prepare a small square baking dish (I used a 4×7 inch glass dish) by lining it with parchment paper.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish and press down until it is even and flat.
- Refrigerate the mixture until it is hard, at least 4 hours.
- Cut into bars or squares!
Can I Roll These Instead of Making Bars?
Absolutely. Instead of forming these into bars, you can roll them into balls. Aim to make them about 1-2 tablespoons worth.
How to Store Them
Store these bars in a covered container for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. They can also be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.
They are stable at room temperature but they do get soft, so it’s best to store them long term in the refrigerator.
If You Like This Homemade Energy Bar, Try These Others:
- Nut Free Energy Bites
- PB and J Oatmeal Energy Balls
- Cherry, Coconut and Chocolate Granola
- Mint Chip Energy Bites
Coconut Cranberry Protein Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup walnuts
- 8-10 large soft dates pitted
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1-1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut see note
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 scoops collagen peptides
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a food processor.
- Process until well-combined. This can take about 3-5 minutes. You'll know it's done when you can pinch together a portion of the mixture and it will stick together. Be careful not to over-process as the oil will start to separate from mixture.
- Prepare a small baking dish (I used a 4x7 inch rectangle glass dish) by lining it with parchment paper.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish and press down until it is even and flat.
- Refrigerate the mixture until it is hard, at least 4 hours.
- Cut into 8-12 bars or squares.
- Store the bars in the refrigerator or freezer.
With 4 g of protein per serving you cannot call these protein bars. That is just misleading.
These taste really, really good, but I think it’s very misleading to call them protein bars. 4g protein per 20g sugar is just…egregious. Protein bars should have upwards of 20-30g protein per serving. Good recipe, though, will try to modify to bring further in line with name.
Are there any substitutes for collagen peptides?
Any protein powder!
These are great! I’ve made them 2x this month. Super easy.
If you substitute Flax or Chia seeds for the collagen peptides, how much do you use?
What happens if you bake it?
These are a no bake, so you wouldn’t bake them.