These Protein Bars Without Protein Powder are simple post-workout snacks loaded with over 11g of natural protein, 9 grams of fiber, and almost 3mg of iron.
While the whole recipe is just below, don’t miss all my tips further down, including ingredient swaps, my cooking tips, and step-by-step shots!
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Protein Bars without Protein Powder
These Protein Bars With Protein Powder are simple post-workout snacks loaded with over 11g of natural protein, 9 grams of fiber, and almost 3mg of iron.
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Servings: 6 bars
Calories: 251.3 kcal
Ingredients
- 1 can Black Beans - 15-oz can (425g) drained, rinsed (note 1)
- ¼ cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- ¼ cup Peanut Butter - (note 2)
- ⅓ cup Maple Syrup - (note 3)
- 1 cup Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats - (note 4)
Chocolate Layer – optional
- ¼ cup Chocolate Chips - (note 5)
- ½ teaspoon Coconut Oil - (note 6)
Instructions
- In a food processor, add drained, rinsed black beans, cocoa powder, peanut butter, maple syrup, and oats.
- Process at medium to high speed until it forms a chocolate paste. You will have to stop the food processor 2-3 times, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, and process again. You want all the black beans to be puree, but you will still see pieces of oats; that's normal.
- If the batter is too wet – you should be able to squeeze the batter into a ball. If it's too wet, add a bit more oats, and process to incorporate.
- Press the batter onto a pieces of lightly oiled parchment paper, place another piece of parchment paper on top, and press to form a flat top. Shape into a rectangle.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil. Microwave in 30-second bursts, stir between, until it's fully melted.
- Pour the melted chocolate on top of the bar, leaving the sides free from melted chocolate to make it easier to cut.
- Place the bar 12 minutes in the freezer to set the chocolate layer.
- Place the bar on a chopping board, cut into 6 even bars.
Notes
Note 1: The recipe works with any canned, drained beans like chickpeas, lentils, or navy beans. However, black beans are the best option to add the most protein to the bars.
Note 2: Or almond butter or cashew butter. If nut-free, use sunflower seed butter.
Note 3: You can also use agave syrup or date syrup.
Note 4: Use gluten-free certified oats if needed, or toasted quinoa flakes. If you don’t digest raw oats very well, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line the oats in a single layer on a large baking sheet and bake on the center rack for 12 minutes. Cool down completely before using in the recipe.
Note 5: It’s optional. This adds crunchy chocolate bites and pieces to the bars. Use sugar-free chocolate or 85% chocolate to decrease sugar, if needed.
Note 6: The oil helps melt the chocolate, but it’s optional to use it. Other oil options are light olive oil, avocado oil.
Storage: Store the bars in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge the day before.
Nutrition
Serving: 1bar (no optional chocolate layer) | Calories: 251.3kcal | Carbohydrates: 36.1g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 9.4g | Saturated Fat: 3.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3.2g | Sodium: 50mg | Potassium: 474.2mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 16.3g | Vitamin A: 4.2IU | Calcium: 60.6mg | Iron: 2.8mg | Magnesium: 107.5mg | Phosphorus: 216.1mg | Zinc: 1.9mg
Ingredients and Substitutions
This paragraph gives you all my tips about picking the right ingredients. For the full recipe with measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post!Go to Full Recipe
You only need 5 simple ingredients to make this recipe. Here’s how to pick and swap them.
- Black Beans – These are the base for the bars, providing a good source of plant-based protein and fiber, and they also give the bars a fudge-like texture. You can also use chickpeas, lentils, or navy beans.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder – This gives the bars their rich chocolate flavor and a beautiful dark color.
- Peanut Butter – This helps bind the ingredients together, adds healthy fats, and contributes to the protein content. Almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter are fine if you prefer.
- Maple Syrup – This is a natural sweetener for the bars. Agave syrup or date syrup also work well here.
- Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats – These add structure and fiber to the bars. If you’re looking for a gluten-free option, use certified gluten-free oats or toasted quinoa flakes.
- Chocolate Chips – These are optional and add a lovely crunchy chocolate topping. You can use sugar-free or 85% chocolate if you want to reduce the sugar.
- Coconut Oil – This helps the chocolate chips melt smoothly for the topping. Light olive oil or avocado oil also work.
How to Make Protein Bars Without Protein Powder
This recipe is super simple to whip up in just a few minutes.
Pour the black beans into the bowl of a food processor.
Add the rest of the base ingredient and process for a few minutes.
Combine the batter into a large dough block.
Melt the chocolate chips with coconut oil and pour on top of the bar.
Carine’s Tips
Let me share a few more tips for perfect protein bars.
- Prep Your Beans – Make sure your black beans are really well-drained and rinsed before adding them to the food processor. Too much moisture can make the batter too wet and harder to shape.
- Achieve Smoothness – When processing the mixture, be patient and scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl multiple times. You want a very smooth paste from the beans, even if the oats still have some texture.
- Adjust Consistency – If your batter feels too sticky or wet after processing, don’t worry! Just add a tablespoon more of rolled oats at a time and process again until it’s easier to handle and you can form a ball.
- Quick Set – For a faster set on the chocolate layer, you can place the bars in the freezer. Just don’t forget them in there!
Thanks for the recipe. While I think these are more accurately high fiber energy bars rather than protein bars, since protein to calorie ratio is low, they serve my purpose as a healthy high fiber snack while hiking.
I made two batches so far. I really like them with cashew butter and honey instead of peanut butter and maple syrup, and I added 1/2 tsp ground vanilla bean and 1/4 tsp each of cinnamon and cardamom. Since the dough is easy to handle, I also kneaded in a total of 1 cup of mixins – about equal parts each of mini chocolate chips, pumpkin seeds, and chopped pecans. I do think the vanilla and spices add a nice flavor and, more importantly, mask the beany flavor.
I hike quite often and will definitely keep a stash of these in the freezer. Thanks again.
These bars are delicious, nutritious, and easy to make. I will definitely be making them again.
Thank you so much!
Can you use Pb2 peanut butter for this bar? How would you do it with it?
Probably, but if you rehydrate it before adding, it’s not gonna firm up the bars as much. You might need more oats to bring the batter togehter. And if you don’t rehydrate it, the bars would be dryer and need more liquid .
Just wondering if the beans should be cooked or straight from a can? Thanks!
Beans straight from the can are already cooked beans. So you open the can, drain, and use as is.
Hi! Is it possible to leave out the peanut butter? If so, what would I need to substitute, if anything?
The peanut butter firm up the bar and add proteins too. Swaps are tahini, sunflower seed butter, almond butter or cashew butter.
Thanks! I LOVE peanut butter. I just prefer to try this without the peanut butter taste. I’ll try one of your suggestions!
I understand, peanut butter flavor is sometimes overpowering. Let me know how it goes!
hi how long would they last
will they survive intact in a lunchbox or fall apart once warm
They stay perfectly intact in my kids lunchbox. We pack at 7am and they usually have them around 10.30 am.
I loved the taste! I was wondering though what are the dimensions (length x width) of the entire bar before adding the chocolate layer and before cutting. I found the larger I made it as I didn’t think it was probably too thick the tougher the consistency and wondered if I spread it too thin?? I realize you can probably make it any size but I think knowing the approximate measurements would have given me more confidence and peace of mind
I didn’t measure but I would say mine are about 20 cm x 12 cm before cutting into bars. My bar are rather thick, that’s how I like to eat them.
Just made these for the first time. I found the texture too smooth and wondered if this would work adding chopped dried fruit?
Yes, you can add dried fruit. It won’t make the bar less smooth, maybe try adding 1/2 cup chopped nuts if you want a crunchy texture.
They are very tasty! I didn’t have any maple syrup, so added some honey instead. Definitely will make again! Thanks!
Thank you!
I made substitutions based on my needs, but these were delicious! I substituted toasted quinoa flakes for the oats as you had suggested. For the maple syrup I used half a teaspoon of pure monk fruit extract along with a little over a third of a cup of water. For the topping I used only Ghirardelli unsweetened baking chocolate, along with a little coconut oil. I also used mostly carob powder in the bars themselves. I will definitely make them again and will probably also make batches using your recipe as it had originally been written to share with friends and family members as well!
Thank you!