Now, I’m a huge chocolate fan, but it’s got to be real, dark chocolate with minimal ingredients. My favorite chocolate to bake with is Hu Gems. They don’t use any refined sugars or cane sugar, instead, they use organic unrefined coconut sugar, along with only two other simple ingredients: organic cacao and organic fair-trade cocoa butter. These Samoa Cookie Bars, by Hu, are a recipe that I think you all will love.
Right now Hu Kitchen is offering my list 15% off all of their products until the end of July. Just go to hukitchen.com/dr-hyman and enter the code DRHYMAN at checkout.
Ingredients:
Shortbread Cookie
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
Caramel Coconut Layer
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted
- 1/2 cup almond butter (or nut/seed butter of choice)
- 1 cup pitted medjool dates, soaked for 10 mins
- 1/4–1/3 cup water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup Hu Gems
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Mix together all the cookie ingredients.
Press the dough into the bottom of a loaf pan lined with parchment paper. Alternatively you can roll/cut or press into individual cookies.
Bake for 13-15 minutes (a little less for cookies, try 11-12) at 350ºF until golden brown. Cool.
Combine the soaked and drained dates, almond butter, vanilla, and salt in a food processor. Process slowly adding water as needed until you have a thick smooth paste.
Pulse in the toasted coconut.
Spread on top of the cookie base. Refrigerate or freeze until firm.
Melt the Hu Gems.
Slice the bars into 8-12 squares (depending on how big you want them).
Dip the bottom of each in the melted chocolate. Drizzle the tops with remaining chocolate.
Chill until set, then eat!
Keep leftovers in the fridge.