If you have extra bananas sitting around at home, here’s an easy homemade chocolate and banana protein bars recipe you can make using chocolate protein powder and mashed bananas. The texture of these chocolate bars is soft and creamy, with a rich chocolatey flavor. The addition of chopped nuts gives it a nice crunchy texture, too, and it’s a perfect way to incorporate more protein and fiber into your diet in a sweet, healthy way.
Here’s why I love this recipe
- no-bake
- easy to prepare
- high-protein
- high-fiber
- low calories
Ingredients used to make Chocolate Banana Protein Bars
**I’ve linked some of these ingredients to amazon.com to give you an idea of what they are, but you should also be able to find them in your local grocery store (usually, the natural & organic food section). They are also affiliate links, which means that I earn a commission as an Amazon Associate if you decide to purchase the items. The price will be the same for you, link or no link 🙂
- Protein Powder – You can use any protein powder for this, but for this recipe I used a plant-based chocolate protein powder, like this one below. You can also use vanilla protein powder, too. Just add an extra teaspoon of cocoa powder.
- Coconut Flour – you can use any brand of coconut flour for this recipe. Here is a brand of coconut flour I like to use.
- Bananas – fresh, and preferably ripe. We’ll be finely mashing the banana with a fork.
- Sugar of Choice – I used monk fruit sweetener in this recipe to keep this recipe low-sugar and low carb, but raw cane sugar, coconut, date, and maple sugars are perfectly acceptable substitutes.
- Dark Cocoa Powder – any kind works, but I like using the dark chocolate kind (like this one) for this recipe.
- Chocolate Chips – you can use any chocolate chips in this recipe. I like this lower sugar, stevia-sweetened brand
More Banana Recipes (HERE)
Step by Step
How to Make Homemade Chocolate Banana Protein Bars
STEP 1
Mash the bananas with a fork.
STEP 2
Mix all ingredients together except the chocolate we’ll use for the coating.
Do a quick taste test. If you prefer to have a sweeter protein bar filling, you can add additional sweetener here (preferably a granulated or powdered kind, so it does not affect the texture).
STEP 3
Shape the dough into a flat, rectangular shaped mound. For the best results, wrap in plastic wrap, then let it rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
STEP 4
Slice into bars, then coat in melted chocolate
STEP 5
Drizzle with additional chocolate, and sprinkle with extra chopped nuts and dehydrated banana chips if desired.
STEP 6
Enjoy!
Recipe Variations and Optional Add Ins:
- Feel free to experiment with natural flavoring / extracts. Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract (I didn’t feel like it was essential so I left it out in this recipe), or other flavorings or extracts, such as lemon extract or cream cheese extract.
Just keep in mind that some extracts contain alcohol, and since this is a no-bake recipe, the alcohol won’t have a chance to fully evaporate. If serving this to kids, or if you’re sensitive to alcohol, be sure to use non-alcoholic extracts or flavorings. Here are some non-alcoholic brands, here: non-alcoholic vanilla extract
How to Make this Healthier
- Make this even healthier by adding a handful of nuts, seeds and old-fashioned oats to add texture and nutrition. Even better, add a tablespoon of ground flaxseed, hemp seeds, or chia seeds.
What Can You Do with Leftover Melted Chocolate?
It’s always a good idea to melt a little more chocolate than you need so that you can ensure proper coating, but what do you do with the leftover melted chocolate? Melted chocolate hardens in cold water, so it makes it a pain to clean if there’s a lot left over. Here’s what I do when that happens. Stir in chopped nuts or seeds to make nut/seed clusters! All you have to do afterward is drop spoonfuls of this chocolate-nut-seed mixture and let it harden. It’s one of my favorite snacks to eat when I’m craving something unhealthy but feeling deserving of something indulgent 🙂
How to Store Chocolate Banana Protein Bars
- Because of the fresh bananas, it’s best to store these protein bars in the fridge. Keep covered in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.
- You can also freeze these protein bars, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or in an airtight container, up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge before enjoying.
SEE MORE OF MY PROTEIN RECIPES HERE
Final Tips
- Coconut flour and protein powders are all very different depending on brands, so if you find that the dough is too soft, add more coconut flour; if the dough is too thick, add a teaspoon or more of water, honey or liquid sweetener of choice.
Chocolate Protein Bars Made Using Mashed Bananas
Ingredients
Protein Bar
- 1/2 cup chocolate protein powder
- 1 Tbsp cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup mashed banana more if needed
- 1 cup almond flour
- 2 Tbsps chopped nuts
Deco
- 1/2 cup melted chocolate
Instructions
- Mix together all the protein bar ingredients together, except the chocolate we'll use for coating
- Do a quick taste test and add sweetener if desired. Since the bars will be coated in chocolate, I tend to keep the filling less sweet.
- Shape dough into a rectangular mound, then wrap in plastic wrap or an airtight container, and let the dough set in the freezer for at least 30 minutes, until quite solid.
- Slice into bars.
- Melt chocolate chips in the microwave in 20 second bursts until melted, stirring in between.**
- Dip the protein bars into the melted chocolate and then set it aside on a clean parchment paper. Drizzle with more chocolate if desired.
- Let the chocolate set before enjoying.
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