Chocolate-Avocado Breakfast Bars

4.77 from 13 votes

Stack of Chocolate Avocado Breakfast Bars with an avocado in the background

How about adding a whole bunch of nutrients to delicious, unprocessed chocolate to get you going in the morning?

These breakfast bars are sweet, crunchy, and incredibly satisfying. You might even feel like you’re having a treat — oh wait, you are! ย Chocolate-Avocado Breakfast Bars taste like a treat and they’re packed with unprocessed goodness.ย  So when you enjoy this recipe, you’re actually treating your body as well as youโ€™re treating your palate.ย  Scrumptious and healthy — all in one.ย  Perfect.

 

Chocolate-Avocado Breakfast Bars
4.77 from 13 votes

Chocolate-Avocado Breakfast Bars

By: Valentina K. Wein
These breakfast bars are sweet, crunchy, and incredibly satisfying.
Prep: 35 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Total: 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 12 bars

Ingredients 

  • 2 cups oats
  • ยฝ cup almond meal
  • ยฝ cup shredded unsweetened coconut
  • ยฝ teaspoon sea salt
  • ยผ cup coconut oil, melted, plus 2 teaspoons
  • 3 tablespoons amaranth, "popped" (see note)
  • ยฝ pound dark chocolate, finely chopped
  • ยฝ ripe avocado, medium-large
  • 3 tablespoons honey

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 375ยฐF, and line an 8x8-inch) baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside. (Use a large piece that will cover the sides and cut slits in each corner so that it will lay flat.)
  • Add the oats, almond meal, shredded coconut and salt into a large mixing bowl. Drizzle with the coconut oil, mix until everything is evenly coated, and then pour the mixture onto a baking sheet and roast in the preheated 375ยฐF oven until it's golden brown, about 20 minutes. (Do not wash the bowl you mixed in -- set it aside for later.)
  • While the oat mixture is roasting, melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler and mash the avocado with a fork until it's as smooth as possible -- you will need ยฝ cup. (Hereโ€™s a photographic guide to peeling and cutting an avocado.)
  • Pour the melted chocolate into the saved mixing bowl and add the mashed avocado and honey. Mix until smooth.
  • Once the oat mixture is out of the oven pour it into the chocolate-avocado mixture, along with the popped amaranth.
  • Stir until everything is evenly blended and pour it into the parchment-lined baking pan. Use your hands to firmly press down, spreading it evenly into the corners of the pan. Then use a large, flat-bottomed metal spatula to press down again, to flatten it evenly.
  • Cover the pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, and ideally overnight, before cutting it into 12 evenly sized bars.

Notes

To pop amaranth:
Heat a dry, large, deep skillet -- that has a lid -- over high heat until extremely hot.ย Carefully add about 1 teaspoon of amaranth grains, cover the pot, and allow them to pop while shaking side-to-side constantly. If they don't start popping within about 5-10 seconds, the pan isn't hot enough.
As soon as the popping slows, quickly and carefully pour into a large bowl. The goal is to get as many to pop as possible, but not to let them burn - if there are some unpopped ones, that's okay. Repeat the process, 1 teaspoon at a time, until all the amaranth is popped.
ย 

Nutrition

Calories: 298kcal, Carbohydrates: 27g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 19g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Sodium: 103mg, Potassium: 264mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 20IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 39mg, Iron: 3.5mg
Like this recipe? Rate and comment below!
Want another recipe that uses popped amaranth? Try these Honey Nut Amaranth Alegrias. Just three ingredients, and they’re divine!

Or try these No-Bake Energy Bites or Homemade Lara Bars.

About the Author

Valentina K. Wein is a recipe developer, food photographer and owner of the popular food blog, Cooking On The Weekends. Her focus is working with whole foods to create beautiful, comforting recipes for casual entertaining. Outside the worlds of food and photography, Valentina’s other passion is her family (including her two young boys, her husband and her dog, Maple.)

You can also keep up with Valentina’s recipes on Facebook, Instagram,ย Pinterest, and Twitter.

A photo of Andrew Wilder leaning into the frame and smiling, hovering over mixing bowls in the kitchen.

Welcome to Eating Rules!

Hi! My name is Andrew Wilder, and I think healthy eating doesnโ€™t have to suck. With just three simple eating rules, we'll kickstart your journey into the delicious and vibrant world of unprocessed food.

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4.77 from 13 votes (8 ratings without comment)
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31 Comments
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April 17, 2019 11:27 pm

5 stars
I like this recipe. It look healthy and delicious. I will try this for my family. Thank you for sharing.

January 24, 2019 9:21 pm

5 stars
nice recipe dear thanks for sharing with us

Tracey Tobin
October 23, 2018 7:23 am

Hi! The link to popped amaranth isn’t working. Also I need to substitute coconut as I am allergic. Any suggestions?

Linda Love
September 27, 2015 1:45 pm

5 stars
What a huge surprise. Didn’t expect to like these very much, but I LOVE them. Always have some in the fridge as a last minute substitute for a meal–or to tide me over in-between. They really do the trick. Plus I get my chocolate fix without all the bad stuff in the chocolate I normally eat. Love the texture, too. I do need to find other recipes to make with all this amaranth I now have. ๐Ÿ™‚

October 17, 2014 1:56 pm

I just made this recipe and I’m waiting patiently while they chill in the fridge.

I did a nutrition analysis on them for myself and thought I’d share since Beverly asked. I replaced the amaranth with 1 tablespoon hemp seed and 4 teaspoons chia seed based on Valentina’s suggestion in the comments. 1/12 recipe has 323 calories, 19 g fat, 34 g carbohydrate, and 7 g protein.

Laura MacPhee
October 16, 2014 5:21 am

5 stars
OMG! I could eat one of these for breakfast every day for the rest of my life!!! Made them last night and it was pretty easy. Popping amaranth is fun!