Healthy Chocolate Rice Crispy Treats

Your favorite sticky cereal snack but CHOCOLATE, and made with Medjool Dates instead of marshmallows for a healthier rice crispy treat!

SPONSORED BY NATURAL DELIGHTS

The best part about subtracting marshmallows from the rice crispy recipe equation is that it gives you lots of wiggle room to add a delicious amount of chocolate and still stay safely in the healthy-ish snack/dessert category. Not that there are any official category rules or anything, its more of just a this-feels-wholesome-enough-to-eat-at-any-hour intuitive feeling, ya know?

But even minus the marshmallows, these Healthy Chocolate Rice Crispy Treats still bring abundant sticky sweet childhood energy thanks to Medjool Dates! I promise they won’t ruin the crispy cereal crunch. I promise they will add a gooey caramel-y element you’re gonna love. I promise this will be your new favorite way to rice crispy treat.

How To Make Medjool Date Rice Crispy Treats

Here’s the simple secret to avoiding soggy fruit-sweetened cereal treats: don’t add water (or almond milk or applesauce or any water based ingredients). So that means we can’t blend up date paste as usual, we have to get a little more creative…

Chocolate Rice Crispy Treat Ingredients

• Medjool Dates. Our “marshmallows” so to speak, but MUCH more healthy and wholesome than that. With only natural sugars, lots of fiber, extra potassium, and of course their delicious gooey sweet flavor. Natural Delights is my go-to brand, has been for forever, their quality and taste never let me down no matter what I’m making.
• Almond butter. And that is how you make date paste without water and rice crispy treats without refined sugar that are still CRISPY. Other nut or seed butters will be fine too, a natural runny variety is best (if its too thick try 1/2 cup nut butter + 1/4 cup coconut oil)
• Brown rice cereal. Or regular rice cereal, just make sure its TOASTED not puffed.
• Cocoa powder. Annnnnnnd things start getting decadent, fam.
• Vanilla extract and salt.
• Dark chocolate chips. Can you simply make the bars, press into a pan, freeze, and eat? Yes. But is it more delicious to melt down dark chocolate chips, stir some into the cereal mix, spread the rest on top of the bars, and make this a much much more chocolatey rice crispy treat situation? Big time YES.

Step By Cereal Treat Step

Step 1: Blend pitted (or buy them that way!) Medjool Dates, almond butter, and vanilla. I recommend a food processor, but a blender will work too as long as you stop and scrape down the sides frequently. You want it to be mostly smooth, a few small chunks are okay.

Step 2: Mix the cereal with the cocoa powder and salt. Add the sticky paste to the chocolatey cereal and mix. Hands are highly recommended for this part.

Step 3: Melt the chocolate and mix half with the cereal. Press this sticky stuff into a pan, REALLY pack it in firmly.

Step 4: Spread the remaining chocolate in a thin dainty little layer on top of the bars. Refrigerate 4-6 hours if you’re patient, freeze for 2-3 hours if you’re not.

Step 5: Eat. Enjoy. Fall in love.

More Medjool Date Recipes You’ll Love

• Chocolate Chia Pudding Pops
• Chocolate Caramel Crunch Cups
• 3 Ingredient Vegan Chocolate Pots
• Salted Chocolate Truffle Bars
• Healthy Chocolate Fudge

Healthy Chocolate Rice Crispy Treats

★★★★★ 5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Natalie
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 3 hours (chilling time)
• Total Time: 3 hours 20 minutes
• Yield: 12 bars 1x
• Category: chocolate
• Method: no bake
• Cuisine: american

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Description

Your favorite sticky cereal snack but CHOCOLATE, and made with Medjool Dates instead of marshmallows for a healthier rice crispy treat!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 cups (70g) toasted brown rice cereal
• 1/4 cup (25g) cocoa powder
• 1 cup (200g) Natural Delights Pitted Medjool Dates*
• 3/4 cup (192g) almond butter (or any nut/seed butter)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 cup (180g) dark chocolate chips

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Instructions

1. In a food processor, combine Natural Delights Pitted Medjool Dates, almond butter, and vanilla. Process to a smooth paste.
2. In a mixing bowl, stir together rice cereal, cocoa powder, date paste, and salt (it’s messy but hands works best!)
3. Melt the dark chocolate chips.
4. Add half to the cereal mixture and mix to evenly coat.
5. Press into a lined 8×8″ pan, top with remaining melted chocolate.
6. Freeze 2-3 hours until firm.
7. Slice and eat! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

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Notes

*Use code 20feasting for 20% off Natural Delights Medjool Dates on Amazon!

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 bar
• Calories: 263
• Sugar: 19g
• Sodium: 57mg
• Fat: 17g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Carbohydrates: 32g
• Fiber: 6g
• Protein: 5g

Keywords: healthy, snack, dessert, kid friendly, no bake, easy, marshmallow free, cereal, bars, gluten free

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