No-Bake Pumpkin Date Bars
/Happy Wednesday/Buon Mercoledì!! Still didn't quite make the "Baking Tuesday" but today I shall dub "Baking Wednesday." And it shall be good. And involve all things healthy disguised as dessert (did I just lose you? Don't go away just yet, I don't put gross food on my blog!), chocolate (there, now you'll stay), pumpkin, spice, and everything nice! Life is too short to eat and drink poorly.
"La vita è troppo breve per mangiare e bere male" - Eataly
These bars feature a creamy, pumpkin chocolate chip filling atop a wonderfully soft and chewy-sweet date crust. They can easily be made gluten-free, vegan, and dairy-free. And you can eat them anytime for breakfast or a healthy snack (to be pronounced snaaaaaack with the Italian hand going) because there is no refined sugar (except from the chocolate chips), but there is protein from the beans, fiber from the oat flour and dates, antioxidants from the maple syrup and spices, and lots of vitamins and minerals from the pumpkin and above mentioned ingredients!
You guys, this is such a win-win. In fact, these bars might help you not die.
That last claim is not backed by science.
This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!
Adapted from Imma Eat That
No-Bake Pumpkin Date Bars
Serves about 9-12
Ingredients:
For the Date Crust
1 cup / 160g packed pitted dates
1 cup / 140g raw almonds
pinch of salt
For the Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Filling
1 15 oz can / 400g white beans, drained (navy beans, great northern, etc.)
1 cup / 240g pumpkin purée
1 cup / 100g oat flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup / 40g packed pitted dates
5 Tbsp / 100g maple syrup or honey
1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
2/3 cup / 113g semi-sweet mini chocolate chips, plus extra for topping
Directions:
Make the Date Crust
In a food processor combine dates, almonds, and salt. Pulse until the almonds are finely ground and everything comes together into a soft, crumbly dough that sticks together when pressed between your fingers. If after a few minutes the crust doesn't come together, add a few more dates.
Spread and press crust into a 8x8in / 20x20cm or 9x9in /23x23cm square pan. Clean food processor, you are about to use it again.
Make the Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Filling
In the food processor, combine all the filling ingredients except for chocolate chips. Blend until smooth. Scrape filling into a bowl and stir in chocolate chips. Spread over crust and top with more chocolate chips.
Cover and refrigerate for two hours before slicing and serving. Of course, that's in an ideal world, if you just can't wait, it will be okay. The center will just be softer. (And I know this because...)
No-Bake Pumpkin Date Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup / 160g packed pitted dates
- 1 cup / 140g raw almonds
- pinch of salt
- 1 15 oz can / 400g white beans, drained (navy beans, great northern, etc.)
- 1 cup / 240g pumpkin purée
- 1 cup / 100g oat flour
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup / 40g packed pitted dates
- 5 Tbsp / 100g maple syrup or honey
- 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup / 113g semi-sweet mini chocolate chips, plus extra for topping
Instructions
- In a food processor combine dates, almonds, and salt. Pulse until the almonds are finely ground and everything comes together into a soft, crumbly dough that sticks together when pressed between your fingers. If after a few minutes the crust doesn't come together, add a few more dates.
- Spread and press crust into a 8x8in / 20x20cm or 9x9in /23x23cm square pan. Clean food processor, you are about to use it again.
- In the food processor, combine all the filling ingredients except for chocolate chips. Blend until smooth. Scrape filling into a bowl and stir in chocolate chips. Spread over crust and top with more chocolate chips.
- Cover and refrigerate for two hours before slicing and serving.
Notes:
Vegan Version: Simply make sure your chocolate chips are vegan, as some brands contain dairy.
Gluten-free: Use certified gluten-free oats.
Dairy-free: Make sure your chocolate chips are dairy-free.
- Don't have oat flour? Make your own! Put the amount of oat flour you need of oats in a food processor or blender, plus a little extra, and blend until finely ground into flour! Tada.
- If you like sweeter desserts, or are serving a crowd that isn't used to "healthy" desserts, you could always add up to an extra 1/2 cup / 100g or so of brown sugar to the filling.
Calories
360.82Fat (grams)
12.91Sat. Fat (grams)
3.10Carbs (grams)
56.60Fiber (grams)
9.02Net carbs
47.58Sugar (grams)
29.52Protein (grams)
10.64Sodium (milligrams)
24.38Cholesterol (grams)
0.00Jenny's Notes:
Vegan Version: Simply make sure your chocolate chips are vegan, as some brands contain dairy.
Gluten-free: Use certified gluten-free oats.
Dairy-free: Make sure your chocolate chips are dairy-free. Easy, no?
Don't have oat flour? Make your own! Put the amount of oat flour you need of oats in a food processor or blender, plus a little extra, and blend until finely ground into flour! Tada.
If you like sweeter desserts, or are serving a crowd that isn't used to "healthy" desserts, you could always add up to an extra 1/2 cup / 100g or so of brown sugar to the filling.