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Healthy Chocolate Protein Bars are made with 6 real food ingredients and no added sugar. The perfect low calorie and gluten free protein snack that’s simple to make and a treat even picky eaters will love!
One of my favorite recipes from my low calorie cookbook are my homemade protein bars. I consistently have women writing to tell me how much they and their family love my low fat protein bar recipe!
Today I’m sharing with you a different protein bar recipe from the cookbook. chocolate protein bars!
They’re made with just six ingredients, no added sugar and have a ton of protein – something store-bought protein bars always seem to be deficient in. If you’re going to make a protein bar, it should actually have the RIGHT amount of protein in it, ya know?
Healthy Chocolate Protein Bars
Best of all these protein bars are made with HEALTHY ingredients and they’re easy and tasty! Here’s a few more reasons why I love this low calorie protein bar recipe.
- High Protein – 14 grams per serving from the protein powder and peanut butter which has healthy fat and some protein.
- Low Calorie – This protein bar is 236 calories which is considered low calorie. Calories are important, but the nutrient balance is more important as unbalanced protein, fat and carbs in a recipe will driving hunger and sugar cravings.
- Gluten Free – All the ingredients in this recipe are gluten free.
- High Fiber – Fiber is key for hormone balance, weight loss, to make you full and so much more! This protein bar has 5 grams of fiber per bar which is great.
- Healthy Fat – The healthy fat in the recipe helps to balance the protein and carbs and to keep you full!
Ingredients For Chocolate Protein Bars
Here’s what you need to make this healthy chocolate protein bar recipe! I also recommend you have a blender or food processor, parchment paper for easy removal and 8×8-inch baking dish.
- Bananas, ripe
- Chocolate Protein Powder
- Peanut Butter, unsalted with no sugar added
- Cocoa Powder, unsweetened
- Vanilla Extract
- Chocolate Chips
What Protein Powder To Make Protein Bars
There are many protein powder options on the market and it really comes down to your personal preference, but here are a few tips for protein powders and the ones I recommend.
Look for a protein powder that has least number of ingredients. Many protein powders have chemicals and additives that are unnecessary. I recommend a protein powder that is low in added sugar or uses stevia or monkfruit to sweeten it. From a nutritional standpoint, look for a protein powder that has less than 7 grams of fat per serving, has 20-30 grams of protein per serving and is lower in carbs 15 or fewer per serving.
Some protein powders do contain whey protein which some individuals cannot tolerate. Here’s a few options I recommend: whey protein, this plant-based protein or this plant-based protein, beef protein powder (this one is surprisingly tasty).
How To Make Chocolate Protein Bars
You won’t believe how easy this homemade chocolate protein bar recipe is to make! Step one is mixing the ingredients together in a food processor or blender, reserving the chocolate chips for the top.
Preheat oven and prepare a baking dish with parchment paper (for easy removal) then pour the blended mixture into the baking dish. Smooth the mixture into an even layer. It will be sticky and so I recommend wetting a spatula to help with the smoothing process. Top with the chocolate chips then bake!
Once the protein bars are baked, remove them from the oven and do not slice until they are FULLY cooled – approximately one hour.
How To Store Homemade Protein Bars
Store these homemade protein bars in the refrigerator or freezer. They should not be kept at room temperature for more than a day. Store the protein bars in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks or in the freezer up to 3 months. You can eat them right out of the refrigerator. If you freeze them, be sure to thaw them before eating.
Substitutions For Chocolate Protein Bars
Here are the substitutions I recommend for this recipe. As always, any substitutions, changes or additions you make will change the nutritional data you see in the detailed recipe card below.
- Peanut Butter – Any nut butter works! Almond butter, sunflower butter, cashew butter, tahini would all work with this recipe.
- Bananas – I have not tested this recipe without the bananas and they are the ingredient that binds the protein bars together. You can try replacing one banana (not both) with 1/2 cup of applesauce or avocado, or replacing with 2-3 egg whites. If you try this, please let me know in the comments as this helps others!
- Protein Powder – Use any chocolate protein powder that you like. I used the Garden of Life Plant Based Protein Powder. But there are MANY protein powder options on the market – I listed some of my favorites above. I recommend you buy the single protein powder packets to find what you like.
- Vanilla Extract – Use almond extract, chocolate extract or omit.
- Cocoa Powder – Cacao powder may be used instead
- Chocolate Chips – Use dairy free if needed.
- Optional Add-Ins – Raw nuts, raw seeds or dried fruit could easily be added to this protein bar recipe.
More Protein Packed Recipes To Try
Healthy Chocolate Protein Bars
Ingredients
- 2 bananas, very ripe
- 1 cup peanut butter, unsalted with no sugar added
- 1 cup chocolate protein powder
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons chocolate chips, or dairy free chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare an 8-inch by 8-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Blend all ingredients except chocolate in a food processor or blender. Scrape down the sides and blend until smooth.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish and smooth into an even layer. The batter will be sticky. Wetting a spatula with a small amount of water can help with this. Add the chocolate chips on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes then remove from the oven and cool at room temperature at least 1 hour before slicing into bars.
- Store the bars in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks or in the freezer up to 90 days. My low calorie cookbook has another protein bar recipe and other protein snack options.
Notes
- Use a quality protein powder for this recipe. If you use a protein powder that has no flavor or you don’t like the taste of the protein powder mixed with water, then you certainly will not like protein bars with that protein powder.
- I do not recommend using whey protein powder for this homemade protein bar recipe. The whey will really alter the texture of the bars from chewy to stiff.
- Use very ripe bananas with the recipe to add the right amount of sweetness to the recipe. Bananas with brown spots are perfect.
- Test the batter before baking to ensure it has the right level of sweetness. Since some protein powders have sweeteners added to them and some do not, you may need to adjust the sweetness of this recipe by adding in maple syrup or another sweetener.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just tried a batch of these they turned out perfect with just the right amount of sweetness, much better than off the shelf protein bars.
Glad you enjoyed them!
I made these for the first time. The bars have a strong banana flavor. I may use one banana next time and maybe add a little bit of honey.
Can PB2 be used instead of peanut butter?
I have not tried it so I cannot say if it will work. It may not be enough fat to hold the bars together as PB2 has reduced fat.
Listed as “low calorie” and peanut butter is the main ingredient.
So let me get this straight. Because one of the ingredients is peanut butter it shouldn’t be listed as low calorie? This is disordered thinking. Just because something has peanut butter in it, doesn’t mean it can’t be low calorie. These protein bars are low in calories.
Hello,
Do you think I can replace the peanut butter with dulce de leche (caramel spread)?.
I would not recommend that as a substitute.
This worked out very well. I didn’t have a full cup of PB on hand so I used some tahini. I think this is a clever way to use protein powder.
Hello Megan. If I just wanted to make dough balls and bake them that way, how long would you recommend I cook them for?
I don’t know. I didn’t make them as balls. If I were making like energy balls, I likely would not bake them just chill. But I have not tested it that way so I cannot guarantee how that will turn out.
Please add the step where you add the chocolate chips in to the recipe card. Thanks.