Everybody’s favorite candy bar, made healthier and vegan. Make a batch (or two) of these homemade Snickers bars to have on hand whenever a candy craving hits!

Healthy Homemade Snickers Bars

It’s no secret that I love to make homemade candy. In both 2019 and 2020, I did a Halloween candy series over on my Instagram where I shared homemade versions of your favorite candy bars during the month of October.

I’ve already shared a full blog post on my Cookie Dough Caramel Bars, which isn’t exactly a candy bar out there on the market, but something I’ve wanted to make for a while. Plus, they are SO good! It was the most popular candy bar in this year’s series.

However, the most requested candy bar was by far a Snickers! I can’t say I was surprised by this. Snickers are crowd pleasers with their soft nougat, silky caramel and crunchy, salty peanuts. They provide everything you could want in a candy bar!

I must admit, I was a bit nervous to make these. I didn’t know how to make nougat, nor did I know how to ‘healthify’ it or make it vegan. However, after a little encouragement from my friend and boyfriend, I gave it a whirl. And boy am I glad they convinced me to make them because these were by far THE BEST candy bar I’ve ever made.

Despite my fears, these Snickers bars are actually very easy to make. Do you want to know why they are so easy? You make the caramel, which is made with just two ingredients, and then to half of the caramel you add flour and vanilla and voilà! You have nougat! All that’s left is to melt the chocolate and assemble.

I Love These Snickers Bars Because:

• They are vegan
• Gluten Free
• Made with seven simple and easy to find ingredients
• Easy to make

I am going to go out on a limb and say this is the BEST healthy homemade Snickers bar recipe you will find. Most other healthy recipes replace the nougat layer with a shortbread layer, which may be delicious but will not be close in texture to nougat.

My homemade Snickers bars have a chewy (but not too chewy!) nougat, sweet and gooey caramel that is balanced out by the salty and crunchy peanuts. Everything is enrobed in delicious and antioxidant rich dark chocolate, and perhaps sprinkled with a bit of flaky sea salt, if you’re feeling fancy!

Ingredients

• Nut butter: Almond butter or cashew butter are my favorite types of nut butter to use for this recipe
• Maple syrup
• Almond flour: Bob’s Red Mill is my favorite
• Vanilla extract: Is added to the nougat to enhance the flavor
• Peanuts
• Dairy free dark chocolate
• Coconut oil: To thin the melted chocolate, which makes it easier to dunk the bars

What You Need

• Small saucepan
• Spatula
• Mixing bowl
• Whisk
• Loaf pan
• Microwave safe bowl
• Two forks

Instructions

Since the caramel is also the base for the nougat, the caramel needs to be made first.

1. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the nut butter and the maple syrup.
2. While stirring constantly, bring the mixture to a low boil. Gently boil the caramel for 2-3 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat and let the caramel cool for 5 minutes.
3. Measure out 1 cup of the caramel and add it to a mixing bowl. Whisk the caramel for 2-3 minutes until it gets thicker and lighter in color. This will help aerate the nougat and make it fluffier.
4. Add the almond flour and vanilla to the caramel and mix with rubber spatula until a dough forms.
5. Next, add the nougat to a parchment lined loaf pan and press into an even layer.
6. Mix 1 cup of the peanuts into the remaining caramel and pour over the nougat layer. Spread the caramel into an even layer with a rubber spatula.
7. Top the caramel layer with the remaining 1/2 cup of peanuts. Press peanuts gently into the top of the caramel layer. Freeze for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
8. Combine dark chocolate and coconut oil in a wide microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second intervals until chocolate has melted, stirring between intervals.
9. Take the candy out of the freezer and cut it into even sized bars. Use two forks to dunk candy bars into melted chocolate, coat all sides and allow excess chocolate to drip off. Place the chocolate bars on a parchment lined baking sheet. Place bars in the freezer to harden chocolate.

Tips and FAQ

• For the chocolate, be sure to use a bowl that is wide and not too deep. You want the width of the bowl to be a few inches longer than the length of your Snickers bars. This will make it a lot easier to dunk your candy.
• Dunking the candy bars with your hands will get very messy. Use two forks, one on each end of the candy bar, to pick up, dunk and rotate your candy in the chocolate. Use the forks to hold the candy bar over the bowl to allow excess chocolate to drip off and back into the bowl.
• Do NOT place your candy bars on a wire cooling rack. The chocolate will harden and stick to the cooling rack and make it difficult to remove the bars in one piece. Place bars on a parchment or wax paper lined baking sheet to easily transfer to the freezer. Once the chocolate has harden, the bars will peel right off the paper.
• Store your homemade Snickers bars in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
• Remove candy bars from the freezer 10-15 minutes before enjoying.

Substitutions

• Nut Butter: Any nut or seed butter will work. My recommendation is either cashew butter or almond butter as they have the most neutral flavor. However, peanut butter will only add to the peanut flavor already present in these bars.
• Dark Chocolate: Milk chocolate or white chocolate will work in place of dark chocolate.
• Coconut Oil: Coconut oil is optional but helps thin out the chocolate, making it easier to dunk and coat the candy bars. Do NOT use water.

More candy and dessert recipes:

• Cookie Dough Caramel Bars
• Pecan Pie Bars
• Pumpkin Crisp
• Almond Coconut No Bake Bars
• No Bake Salted Caramel Pretzel Cups
• Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts

As always, if you make this recipe please let me know by commenting and rating below. If you take a picture, tag me on Instagram @thechowdown. I love seeing your recreations!