These raw bounty bars are healthy vegan bounty bars made with 4 simple ingredients. Bonus, these coconut bars are also low-carb, gluten-free, and keto-friendly!
Are Classic Bounty Bars Vegan?
No, the original Bounty Bars are not vegan, and neither are Mounds or Almond Joy.
They all contain dairy milk chocolate in their shell.
However, in January 2021, Mars launched a vegan Bounty chocolate tab! It is different from the candy bar, but for coconut chocolate lovers, this hit the spot!
How To Make Vegan Bounty Bars
Most homemade bounty bar recipes use high-sugar ingredients like sweetened condensed milk or sweet coconut.
This healthy low-carb bounty bar recipe is made only with unrefined sugar and 9 grams of net carbs per bar.
Ingredients For Healthy Bounty Bars
All you need to start making your own healthy raw bounty bars at home are 4 ingredients and a food processor.
- Unsweetened desiccated coconut – it refers to finely ground coconut, not shredded coconut that is grated. I’m a fan of using desiccated coconut, if you are too, you have to try my Vegan Macaroons.
- Maple syrup – or any liquid sweetener you love, including sugar-free maple syrup if you want to make keto bounty bars.
- Canned coconut milk – don’t use packaged coconut milk. It’s too thin, too low in fat, and won’t stick the coconut batter to form bars. Always shake the can of coconut milk before opening and measuring! You can also use canned coconut cream as a replacement. It will increase the saturated fat of the recipe but tastes amazing. As for coconut milk, shake the can vigorously before opening it.
- Coconut oil – you must use coconut oil or cocoa butter but not vegetable oil. Coconut oil and cocoa butter are the only two plant-based fats that solidify under 23C to firm-up no-bake desserts.
Making The Filling
To make your own bounty bars, you first need to add the unsweetened desiccated coconut with maple syrup, canned coconut milk, and coconut oil into the bowl of a food processor.
Then, process on the high-speed setting for 30 to 45 seconds or until it forms a sticky, moist batter that you can easily squeeze in your hands to form bars.
Chilling The Coconut Filling
It’s much easier to squeeze the coconut bars if you chill the coconut mixture for 10 minutes.
The coconut oil firms up slightly in the fridge and the batter holds better into a cylinder shape, like regular store-bought bounty bars.
Forming The Bars
Place each shaped coconut bar onto a tray covered with parchment paper. This makes it easier to unstick the bar from the plate later on.
If you want to make vegan almond joy, press a roasted almond gently on top of each coconut bar.
Freezing The Bounty
Finally, freeze the shaped coconut bars for 15 minutes to set the bar hard. This step makes it easier to dip the bars into melted chocolate.
Preparing The Chocolate Shell
Meanwhile, melt vegan chocolate chips into a small microwave-safe bowl along with coconut oil.
I recommend microwaving in 20-second bursts, stirring between until the chocolate is fully melted and shiny.
Otherwise, bring all the ingredients into a small saucepan over medium heat.
Dipping Bounty Into Chocolate
Now that your chocolate is ready, remove the bars from the freezer.
Use 2 forks, or wooden tongs, to hold one coconut bar and dip it into the bowl of melted chocolate.
Since the coconut bars are very cold, the chocolate shell sticks to the bar easily.
Make sure you coat all the sides of the bar, and when coated, wait a few seconds above the bowl to drain the extra chocolate from the bar.
Finally, release the coated bounty bar onto the plate with parchment paper. Repeat this step until all coconut bars are coated with melted chocolate.
Freezing The Bounty Bars
When all the bars are dipped into the melted chocolate, place the plate in the freezer again to set the shell. It usually takes 10 minutes.
How To Make Keto Vegan Bounty Bars
If you want to use this recipe to make low-carb, sugar-free bounty bars, you will have to swap two ingredients.
- Maple syrup – replace with sugar-free maple-flavored syrup from Choc Zero or Lakanto.
- Dark chocolate chips – use stevia-sweetened dark chocolate chips.
Frequently Asked Questions
Almond joy bars are coconut bars topped with roasted almonds and coated with a crunchy chocolate shell.
You can use this vegan bounty bar recipe to make almond joy bars. Press a roasted almond on top of the coconut bar just before you freeze them.
The almonds will stick to the coconut bar, and you will be able to dip the bar into melted chocolate later to form the chocolate shell.
For an even healthier bounty bar, use dark chocolate bars with at least 70% cocoa.
These bars contain less sugar and a strong dark chocolate flavor that goes very well with coconut. My favorite options are:
70% cocoa
78% cocoa
85% cocoa
I won’t recommend a higher percentage of cocoa, or the bars would be extremely bitter.
These healthy bounty bars can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
You can also freeze them in a sealed box and thaw them for 20 minutes before eating at room temperature.
More Raw Vegan Dessert Recipes
I love to create easy raw vegan dessert recipes. They are easy, healthy, nourishing, and gluten-free. Below I listed my favorite raw vegan dessert recipes to try:
Did You Like This Recipe?
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Vegan Bounty Bars
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups Unsweetened Desiccated Coconut - finely ground coconut not shredded
- 3 tablespoons Maple Syrup - or liquid sweetener of choice like keto sweetener see notes
- ¼ cup Melted Coconut Oil
- ½ cup Canned Coconut Milk - Shake can before opening and measuring
Chocolate coating
- 1 ¼ cup Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips
- 2 teaspoons Coconut Oil
Instructions
- Before you start, shake the can of coconut milk before opening, then measure the amount required by the recipe.
- In the bowl of a food processor, using the S blade attachment, add desiccated coconut, maple syrup, melted coconut oil, and canned coconut milk.
- Blend on high speed for 30-45 seconds until the coconut mixture comes together. You may have to stop the food processor, scrape down the side of the bowl, and process again until the ingredients are sticking together. Overall, it takes a max of 1 minute 30 seconds to blend.
- Chill the batter for 10 minutes. This step makes it easier to shape the coconut mixture into bars.
- Remove bowl from the fridge, scoop out about 2 tablespoons of batter, press in your hand to shape a cylinder, and form bars. Place each bar onto a plate covered with parchment paper. Repeat until no more batter is left, leaving half a thumb of space between each bar.
- Freeze the plate with the coconut bars for 15 minutes to harden.
- Five minutes before removing the bars from the freezer, start melting the dark chocolate chips and coconut oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Otherwise, place the ingredients into a microwave-safe bowl, microwave by 20-second bursts, stirring between, until melted and shiny.
- Remove the coconut bars from the freezer and, using two forks or wooden tongs to hold the bar, dip into the melted chocolate to coat the coconut bars fully.
- Return the dipped coconut bar onto the plate covered with parchment paper and repeat until all bars are coated.
- Pop the plate in the freezer again for 10 minutes to set the chocolate shell.
- Store the bounty bar in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or freeze and thaw at room temperature just before eating.
Is there a substitute for the choc chips? Cacao powder and coconut oil for example?
Yes, it should be ok with coconut oil and cocoa powder. In fact, I do this often with my coconut oil chocolates!
Fabulous! Love how easy they are, they look posh and the ingredients are cheap. One of my go tos. Delicious and moist
Glad you love them!