Gut Friendly Bounty Bars

 As many of you may know, hubby has multiple intolerances to foods, including nuts and eggs which makes baking grain free things he can eat a real mission!

I decided to get creative with coconut products (something he CAN tolerate) and make a gut healing protein bar that he could take to work and actually enjoy eating.

I was pleasantly surprised when I taste tested the bars after refrigeration, that they tasted exactly like bounty bars (my all time favourite chocolate bar from childhood!)! Double win!

Some of you may not be familiar baking with collagen and think that it's just an ingredient in your face cream. However, collagen is also the most abundant protein in our bodies. It’s found in muscles, bones, skin, blood vessels, digestive system and tendons. It’s what helps give our skin strength and elasticity and when it comes to our joints and tendons, in simplest terms, it’s the “glue” that helps hold the body together. Collagen has many benefits when ingested including improving the health of skin and hair, reduces joint degradation, helps heal 'leaky gut', it can boost metabolism, improves liver health and can protect against cardiovascular disease. Sound like something you want to incorporate into your families diet?

Here's an easy way!

Makes: 8 bars

Time: 20 mins

 INGREDIENTS:

Bars:

• 1/3 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup collagen powder (I use vital proteins)
• 1/3 cup desiccated coconut
• 150g or 1/2 cup melted coconut butter
• 1 Tbsp rice malt syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
• pinch of salt

Coating:

• 100g 70% dark chocolate
• 4 tsp coconut oil (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and combine until a consistency is reached that you can mould with your hands.

3. Make into 8 small sausage-like bars, transfer to the baking tray, then press flat with your fingers keeping the ends round like a bounty bar (alternatively you can press into a glass container then cut into bars when chilled).

4. Transfer bars to the fridge and let chill for 2 hours.

5. Over a double boiler, melt chocolate and coconut oil until glassy (be careful not to burn the chocolate). 

6. Dip the bars into the chocolate so one side is coated.

7. Once all 8 bars are half coated, place remaining melted chocolate into a small ziplock bag (or a sleeve for piping icing) and chop a small hole in one corner. press the bag to drizzle the remaining chocolate over the bounty bars in a zigzag shape.

8. Return to the fridge for a further 30 mins or until chocolate has set.

Bars will last the fridge for up to 2 weeks and the freezer for 3 months.