No-bake Samoa Bars – Vegan & Gluten-free

No-bake Samoa bars are easy, no-bake vegan desserts made of a shortbread crust and topped with a caramel coconut layer. They are gluten-free, dairy-free, and paleo-friendly.

this Recipe

What are no-bake Samoa bars?

These no-bake Samoa bars or girl-scout cookie bars are healthier raw versions of your favorite Samoa bars. It’s a no-bake vegan dessert, 100% refined-sugar-free and gluten-free. A crumbly coconut shortbread cookie bar topped with a chewy caramel coconut layer.

How to make vegan Samoa bars?

All you need to bake no bake Samoa bars are few basic pantry ingredients. Let’s look at them below and at the easy swap ideas if you are missing some ingredients to make this recipe.

• Unsweetened desiccated coconut 
• Almond flour or oat flour, or sesame flour for a nut-free option. If you are concerned about eating raw flour, read my article about the raw flours that are safe to eat.
• Maple syrup
• Coconut oil 
• Unsweetened shredded coconut or coconut chips – toasted is the best! 
• Dark chocolate chips or bar
• Peanut butter or tahini or sunflower seed butter for a nut-free option

To view this recipe a different way, watch my Web Story: Making No-Bake Samoa Bars.

How to toast coconut?

If you love coconut and caramel, this vegan Samoa bar recipe is for you! You will love the moist shortbread bottom layer with sweet chewy caramel.

My tip is to toast the shredded coconut before you add it into the middle layer! This will enhance the coconut flavor of these bars.

To toast shredded coconut, lay a baking tray with parchment paper and spread the unsweetened coconut evenly all over the tray. Make sure the coconut doesn’t overlay to ensure it toasts evenly.

Bake the coconut at 160C (320F) for 5-8 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes until the coconut is golden and fragrant.

You can also toast coconut in a frying pan, under medium heat, with no oil added. Stir the coconut and stop cooking when the color is lightly golden brown.

More healthy no-bake dessert bars

If you love no-bake vegan desserts, I have other delicious vegan bar recipes to try.

No-bake Vegan Millionaire Shortbread

No-bake Peanut Butter Bars

Healthy No-bake Oatmeal Peanut Butter Bars

Made this Samoa bar recipe yet? Share a picture of your creation with me on Instagram!

Your friend, Carine

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No-Bake Samoa Bars

A shortbread base topped with delicious caramel and shredded coconut.

Prep Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 15 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 16 bars

Calories: 269 kcal

Author: Carine

4.87 from 267 votes

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

Shortbread crust

• ▢ 1 cup Desiccated Coconut
• ▢ 1 cup Almond Flour
• ▢ 3 tablespoons Maple Syrup - or agave syrup or coconut nectar or rice syrup
• ▢ ⅓ cup Coconut Oil - melted

Caramel layer

• ▢ ⅓ cup Maple Syrup - or agave syrup or coconut nectar or rice syrup
• ▢ 3 tablespoons Coconut Oil - melted
• ▢ 1 ¼ cup Desiccated Coconut
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
• ▢ ½ cup Peanut Butter - no added sugar, no added oil

Chocolate drizzle

• ▢ 3 oz Dark Chocolate
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Coconut Oil

Instructions

• Cover a 9-inch x 5-inch rectangle baking with parchment paper and let enough paper hanging out on the side of the pan so you can easily pull out the bar from the pan later. Set aside.
• In a medium-size bowl, add the shortbread crust ingredients in this order: desiccated coconut, almond flour, maple syrup, and melted coconut oil.
• Stir with a spatula first, then squeeze with your hand to make sure all the ingredients come together and stick together. It can be slightly crumbly, but that's ok. If it's very dry, add an extra tablespoon of coconut oil.
• Press the shortbread crumble tightly onto the prepared baking dish.
• Freeze 10 minutes while you are making the caramel layer.
• In a small bowl, add fresh runny peanut butter, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Then, combine with a spatula until it forms thick, smooth caramel.
• Stir in the shredded coconut.
• Remove the baking dish from the freezer and spread the coconut caramel layer evenly on top.
• Press the coconut layer firmly with the back of a spoon or spatula.
• Return to the freezer for 10 minutes while you melt the chocolate.
• Melt the dark chocolate with coconut oil, under 'bain-marie' or in the microwave, by 30 seconds burst, stirring between to prevent the chocolate from burning.
• Drizzle the melted chocolate all over the bar and return to the freezer for 2 minutes to set the chocolate.
• Remove the baking tray from the freezer, pull out the bar from the tray using the piece of parchment paper to lift out the bar.
• Cut into 16 squares and enjoy!

Storage

• Store the bars in an airtight box, in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost each square individually at room temperature for 1 hour before eating. It can be eaten half frozen.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 269kcal | Carbohydrates: 14.7g | Protein: 3.8g | Fat: 20.6g | Fiber: 2.4g | Sugar: 9.2g