5-ingredient Healthy Chocolate Orange Date Bars (Nakd Bar Copycat)
on Aug 18, 2021, Updated Apr 24, 2022
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If you’re looking for a guilt-free no bake snack bar that tastes like a treat, you may have found it. Vegan, gluten free, unrefined sugar free (pretty much everything free), these healthy chocolate orange date bars are so easy to make with just 5 raw ingredients.
Love chocolate truffles? This healthy chocolate orange truffle recipe is the delicious ‘sibling’ of these raw orange chocolate bars. They make a great gift!
Why you’ll love them
- NO refined sugar, chocolate, butter or oil. These yummy raw brownie bars are gluten free, vegan and just pure goodness, really.
- Just 5 raw ingredients. So quick and easy to make in a food processor. Nothing to cook or bake.
- Taste like gooey brownies. Honestly. A tastier no bake snack bar you will struggle to find.
- Make perfect after school snacks, lunch box treats and pick-me-ups on the go.
- Taste just like Nakd bars! Love them? Me too, but it’s much more economical to make your own raw bars!
About the ingredients
Dates: Packed with fibre, dates are a great natural sweetener. I use pitted dates (you want this to be a quick recipe!). I’ve found some incredible dates locally that honestly taste almost like caramel, so see what you can find. Medjool dates work really well, but any dates are fine. In a pinch, the recipe even works with dried apricots if you’re not a fan of dates!
An orange: You’ll need juice and zest for maximum yummy orange flavour in these incredible orange chocolate bars.
Raw cashews: Use raw unsalted cashews, which you can find in a bulk buy store ven
Raisins, sultanas or prunes: These add extra yummy sweetness to the truffles.
Cacao powder: This is different to cocoa powder. It’s very healthy! You can find it in most good health food stores, and a lot of supermarkets, too. Can you substitute with cocoa powder? Yes, actually, since you only need 2 tablespoons anyway.
How to make them
Step 1: Prepare an 8 x 8 inch baking pan by lining it with baking paper.
Step 2: Pour the juice of half an orange over the dates for a while. This has two purposes – to soften the dates a little and to begin flavouring the truffles with orange.
Step 2: Put the cashews and the rest of the orange juice into the bowl of your food processor (any is fine but I really love this fancy Breville Sous Chef Peel and Dice food processor). Process for about 2 to 3 minutes or until the mixture is all mashed up and forms a ball.
Step 3: Empty the cashew and orange mixture into another bowl.
Step 4: Now add the date and orange juice mixture and the sultanas (or raisins/prunes) to the food processor bowl (no need to clean it first) and process that until you have another sticky ball. This will probably happen faster than the cashew mixture.
Step 5: Now this is the fun part! Mash the two mixtures together in the large bowl with a spatula until you have something that looks like thick chocolate cake batter. Mix in the orange zest and cacao powder too. Mmm! Permission to pinch off bits of the mixture and eat them. Cook’s treat!
Step 6: Press the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Smooth right into the corners. Put into the fridge or freezer to harden (at least 30 minutes), then cut into 8 to 10 bars.
More things to know (Recipe FAQ)
Store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a couple of weeks. Alternatively, keep them in the freezer. They freeze well for up to 3 months. I actually think they taste best straight out of the freezer, since they don’t really taste frozen.
You can try dried apricots! The taste will be slightly different, but your bars will still taste very delcious.
Try sunflower seeds! They will mash up in a similar way to the cashews. Your bars will still taste very yummy, and sunflower seeds are also very nutritious. Let me know if you give this a try!
No worries. Just leave them to soak in the orange juice for a little while longer. They’ll be fine.
Looking for a healthy but show stopping dessert? You just have to try this 30-minute healthy chocolate cake, too. It will blow your mind (also makes a great kids’ birthday cake!).
More Easy Healthy Snacks
- These 5-ingredient healthy chocolate orange truffles are like the little sibling to these bars! They’re perfect little energy bites, and also make a great gift.
- Learn how to make this homemade low sugar granola and you’ll never buy granola again! Love granola? This crunchy tropical chocolate chip granola makes such a delicious topping or snack!
- These copycat Nature Valley sweet and salty peanut butter granola bars are legendary. Try them and see for yourself.
- Continuing on with the ‘orange’ theme, you just have to try these dried orange slices. Dip in chocolate for a delicious healthy snack, or give as a classy gift.
Or check out this list of 50+ healthy sweet snacks that don’t taste boring!
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5-ingredient Healthy Chocolate Orange Date Bars (Nakd Bar Copycat)
Ingredients
- 1 orange, juiced and zested
- 6 ounces pitted dates
- 2/3 cup raw cashew nuts
- 1/3 cup raisins or sultanas, I used raisins
- 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
Instructions
- Line a fairly small square baking tin (I had 8×8 inch) with baking paper and set aside.
- Put the dates in a small bowl and pour half of the orange juice over them. Put aside for a moment.
- Put the cashews and the rest of the orange juice in your food processor and process until they are all mashed up and clump together in a ball (this took quite a while – at least 2 or 3 minutes).
- Tip the cashew and orange mixture into a bowl. Then tip the dates/orange juice and sultanas into the food processor and process for a short while until they too are all mashed up and form a sticky ball (this won’t take as long as the cashews).
- Add the mashed up dates/sultanas to the cashew/orange mixture in the bowl, then add the cacao and orange zest and mash everything together well until it resembles a thick chocolate cake batter.
- Tip the mixture into the baking tin and spread out and press down until it’s evenly pressed in and smooth.
- Cover and put in the fridge or freezer to harden a little, then cut into 8 to 10 bars (I cut mine into 8, but that makes fairly large bars).
I love these! Chocolate and orange is a great combination and you’v done a great job creating this healthy recipe! I will definitely try them!
I like Seinfeld, but haven’t watched the show in a while. It is funny!
Hi, Mira! Choc orange is one of my favourite flavour combos – so glad you like it, too! I hope you do try them some time soon 🙂
Oh I love easy grab and go recipes like this! Looks great!
Thanks, Annie … you’re right, these are totally grab and go. I have a stash in my freezer right now which are coming in ‘very handy’ come mid morning when I’m feeling a bit peckish!
oh seinfeld 🙂 and wow these bars look incredible!
Hi, Caralyn … so happy you like these! (oh, and thanks so much for passing by!)
Mrs Scrummy, I have to say I have seen sugarless chocolates bars/balls before but I have never been tempted however, I trust your taste so if you tell me these really do taste fudge-like, I am now going to give this a go! I actually have an entire bag of dates (was planning to make sticky date pudding) so I am tempted to try this right now!
Haha … actually this is the first time I’ve been tempted by something like this. I had to add chocolate and orange before I’d give them a go! So how did your attempt go? I really hope they actually did taste fudgy now that I’ve said so! I decided today that they also taste a bit like Christmas cake .. I guess it’s the raisins that does it. Anyway, so glad you liked these enough to give them a go! 🙂
Chocolate and orange, one of the best flavor combos and I love dates, i eat them everyday so I should probably make these 🙂
Hi, Janette! Really, you eat dates every day? Oh, well you absolutely must try these, then! I suspect you’ll love them!
How have you never seen Seinfeld before?!?! It’s SUCH a classic! Re-runs play here on pretty much all the channels all the time. So glad you have finally been introduced to Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer!
And these bars… they look awesome! I’m such a fan of chocolate and orange together… such a great combo!
I know … I’ve been totally Seinfeld ‘head in the sand’ deprived! Got to make up for lost time now!
So glad you like the bars, too … I’m addicted at the moment!
I make something very similar, although I put coconut oil in mine and they are SO good, aren’t they. A nice healthy snack.
Hi, Dannii! Yes, these are so yummy! Mine actually taste as if they’ve got oil or butter in, but they haven’t … although I say it myself, I was so impressed with myself because of that. Ha!
So glad you like these .. I will have to come over and check out your version, too!
Wow this sounds interesting,Iam having all the stuff u have mentioned and Iam going to try now,thanks.
Hello and thanks for passing by! Hope you like these as much as I did!
I used to watch Seinfeld when I was younger and it was on syndicated TV (I think it still is). I like the show but it wasn’t a show that I ever felt OMG I have to watch this ALL the time! But it is funny!
Now I need to get these bars in my life stat. Especially with all of the junk I’ve been eating lately. My body feels like a wreck and I think I’m becoming addicted to sugar and carbs. Yuck! Love this recipe, Helen!
I think we’ve just got into the habit of switching on an episode while eating. It helps that the episodes are only about 20 mins long, I guess. I know I’m about 20 years late with getting into this, but … oh well! Classic comedy!
Definitely get something like these bars into your life, Julie. Makes me feel OK about eating sweet chocolaty stuff!
Wow Helen I can just imagine the flavor combination. I adore chocolate and orange together. It’s been a while since I’ve last watched Seinfeld but every so often I remember the lines from an episode. 🙂
seems like the kind of show that it’s easy to remember the lines from! Glad you like the choc-orange combo. It’s my fave, too!