Raw Bounty Bars

Are you a coconut lover? Well, this is definitely a recipe for the die-hard fans of coconut...and those who adore the coconut + chocolate combo like myself! But I must say my parents loved these raw Bounty bars even though they are not very keen on anything coconutty, perhaps I'm slowly taking them to the "not-so-dark" side?

Anyways, I wanted to do a variation of my yummy Coconut Bon Bons recipe, something more coconut-packed but still paired with dark chocolate so it was very clear that a homemade (and way healthier) version of the famous Bounty bars was the best idea. There are so many raw bounty recipes all over the internet, some are more elaborated and others are too simple for my taste so I simply tweaked my original recipe and ended up with these delicious little treats. They are perfect to serve after a summer gathering with friends, I love serving all kind of finger foods at parties and celebrations and these make the perfect small dessert when you are full but still there's room in your tummy for something sweet.
Btw, what was your favorite childhood chocolate bar/snack? I was a big fan of Twix though I've never eaten as much as my school mates (lol), my mom always packed healthy food in my school breakfasts. When I grew up I developed a big passion for Snickers...until I learned to read the ingredient labels. ;-p
So here I am, making my own chocolate treats at home and  enjoying a lot. I hope you like my version and if you try them at home, please do let me know!

¡Receta en español aquí!

Raw Bounty Bars
(yield: 15 bars approx.)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut.
1/2 cup coconut cream.
2 tablespoons agave syrup.
2 tablespoons coconut oil.
- For the chocolate coating:
1/2 cup raw cacao powder.
1/2 cup cacao butter, melted.
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup.

Notes:

- For a 100% raw recipe make sure your agave syrup and coconut oil are labelled as raw. Of course if you are a purist you will have to use room-temperature coconut oil instead of the cacao butter for the chocolate coating. But it tastes so much better with cacao butter!

- If you don't have cacao butter you can use coconut oil instead. Also, as cacao butter is quite pricey, you can use half cacao butter and half coconut oil.
- After sitting in the fridge for a couple days they might become a little hard so simply let them rest at room temperature for a few minutes. 

Directions

Place all the filling ingredients in the bowl of your food processor and pulse until a cohesive dough forms. Using your (clean) hands shape the coconut filling into 15 bars approximately, depending on the amount of dough you use per bar. I scooped around 1 tablespoon of coconut mixture for each bar.

Transfer to a lined baking sheet and let them harden in the freezer while you make the chocolate coating. 

For the chocolate coating, simply stir together all the ingredients in a small bowl until fully combined. 

Dip each coconut bar into the chocolate coating and quickly transfer them to the lined baking sheet or a cooling rack. Repeat the process to coat all the bars with a second layer of chocolate (thus a thicker coating). You will have leftover chocolate sauce, store in an airtight container and use it for pancakes, crèpes, ice creams, etc.

Store the bounty bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator or in the freezer if you don't plan the eat them all in the same week (which will be really hard not to).