Coconut & Banana Energy Bars

These no-bake, vegan Coconut Banana Energy Bars are a treat made in tropical heaven. Plus with just 4 simple, everyday ingredients you can be enjoying this snack in no time at all. All you need to make them is coconut flakes, vegan vanilla protein power, banana and dates. They’re energizing, delicious and tasty enough for dessert but healthy enough for breakfast. I’m in love with the sweet, tropical flavour and even more in love with how easy they are to make.

TOAST THAT COCONUT

This is totally optional but for even more coconut flavour in these bars, try toasting the coconut first! Or you can buy toasted coconut if you can find it and save yourself the step.

To toast coconut flakes, simply place them on a baking sheet and toast at 325 degrees for 5-10 minutes. Watch them carefully as they’ll toast quickly and can easily burn. That’s it! Toasting coconut brings out so much coconut flavour so if you’re a coconut lover, give it a try!

I loved toasted coconut in these Paleo Coconut Bars with Hemp Seeds too. Sooooo goooood.

GRAIN-FREE GOODNESS

I know some of you can’t or don’t eat grains for whatever reason, in which case these are the bars for you. No grains needed! I’ve got quite a few other grain-free snacks and treats on the blog, if you want to check ’em out, you can find them here:

Lime Coconut Energy Bites
Paleo Energy Bars with Cashew and Coconut
Raw Hemp Seed Brownies
3-Ingredient Vegan Banana Nut Bars

SNACK TIME

When it comes to plant-based eating, I find a lot of people get stuck with snacks and can end up relying on store-bought options. No big deal, there are a lot of great brands out there with healthy snacsk theses days however vegan snacks are so easy to make at home too. You can check out my post with 10 quick and easy vegan snack ideas, 10 banana snack ideas, list of road trip snacks or try one of fun ideas:

Hummus and veggies or crackers – easy and classic. Any chopped, fresh veggies work. Go with homemade hummus, it’s so easy!
Tahini (or other nut butter or coconut butter) stuffed dates – one of my all-time favourite 2 second treats. Tahini stuffed dates all day long.
Apple cookies – slice an apple into rounds and top with almond butter and sprinkling of cacao. You can also make an apple sandwich with peanut butter and chia seed jam slathered between two apple rounds.
Pumpkin bowls – loving these right now! Add some pumpkin puree to a bowl and top with tahini, cacao nibs, coconut, hemp seeds, sliced dates, banana and anything else you can think of. Pumpkins are loaded with nutrition so this is a great way to enjoy a treat and get plenty of nutrients too.
Quick trail mix – grab anything and everything from the pantry, stick it in a bowl and nosh away. Think nuts, seeds, dried fruit, dates, cacao nibs, toasted coconut and whatever else you can find.
Protein pudding with fruit and nuts – add a little vegan protein powder to a bowl, mix with just enough water to form a thick pudding, top with your faves like fresh or frozen fruit, banana, apple, nuts, seeds or coconut.
2 Ingredient Cookies – mash some oats and banana together to form a thick dough, shape into cookies and bake at 350 for about 12 minutes until firm. You can also use my recipe for Flourless Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Cookies, Sweet Potato Coconut Oat Cookies or Healthy Pumpkin Oat Cookies.
Vegan ranch dip and veggies – use my recipe for vegan ranch dressing, slice up some veggies and dig in.
Roasted veggies and tahini – I always make loads of roasted veggies for food prep so I’ve always got some on hand, add some roasted veg such as broccoli or brussel sprouts to a bowl and top with tahini, sea salt and lemon.
Quick herbed yogurt dip – mix plain dairy-free with fresh herbs like dill and parsley, add a little lemon, ACV, garlic and sea salt and use as a dip for fresh veggies.

EAT SOME VEGGIES TOO

Although I’d always like to snack on sweet things, I try to make at least one of my snacks veggie-based. Snacking on veggies is a great way to get more nutrition into your diet. I like to cut up lots of veggies for food prep, think carrot sticks, celery sticks, sliced bell peppers…so I’m more likely to eat them during the week. I’ll usually make one dip too, such as pesto, hummus, herbed yogurt dip or cashew ricotta to go with the raw veggies.

KEEP SNACKS BALANCED

When you’re dreaming up snack ideas, try to think of ways you can include all three macronutrients, fat, carbs and protein, with every snack. Balanced snacking will prevent spikes in blood sugar and keep those energy levels stable until your next meal. An exception to that is beofre workouts or during a long hike or something when you need immediate energy, in that case, reach for those carby snacks like Cinnamon Energy Balls, Vanilla Espresso Date Energy Bars or Vegan Peanut Butter Pretzel Energy Bars.

COCONUT BANANA ENERGY BARS

If you love tropical flavours like banana and coconut, then these are the bars for you. If you love super easy, quick treats than only require a couple ingredients, then these are the bars for you to. Here’s what ya need:

coconut flakes – toasted if you want!
banana
dates
vegan vanilla protein powder
Dats it! Easy as can be. They’re vegan, no-bake, gluten-free, grain-free and tasty as heck.

COCONUT BAR NUTRITION DETAILS

Each bar comes in at 136 calories with 14.7 grams of carbs, 9 grams of fat, 3.2 grams of protein and 3.2 grams of fiber. They’re higher in fat from all that coconut goodness which is nice because it balances out the carbs from the dates and banana. I cut mine into 16 squares but you could go for larger bars and double the nutritional info. The dough can also be rolled into energy balls if you want!

COCONUT BANANA ENERGY BARS

These tropical energy bars call for just 4 everyday ingredients. They’re vegan and grain-free and you will love the delicious coconut banana flavour and soft, chewy texture.

Author: Deryn Macey

INGREDIENTS

1 medium (120 g) banana
1 serving (30 g) plant-based vanilla protein powder
1 cup packed (210 g), pitted dates
3 cups (200 g) coconut flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and mix until it forms a dough.
Press the dough into a parchment, wax or saran lined square baking dish.
Let set in the freezer for a couple hours then lift out of the pan and cut into squares.
Can be stored in the fridge or freezer.

NUTRITION

Serving Size: 1 barCalories: 136 caloriesFat: 9 gramsCarbohydrates: 14.7 gramsFiber: 3.2 gramsProtein: 3.2 grams

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