With a flaky shortbread base, a gooey caramel center, and a rich chocolate topping, these Homemade Vegan Twix Bars are a decadent treat!
I just realized I never told you all the good news...
My Vitamix works!!
If you missed the story, you can read about how I burnt out my Vitamix here. For a week I was pretty distraught over it (as much as this even-keeled girl can be), because I kept thinking of all the time and effort this situation was going to require of me as I would need to ship my blender from China into a Vitamix facility to get it fixed. I knew I had a 7 year warranty, which I was extremely grateful for, so that knowledge at least put me more at ease in regards to the financial cost of everything.
Unfortunately, when I e-mailed Vitamix letting them know my Vitamix had stopped working and asking what next steps I should take to get it fixed, they informed me that, since I had purchased it from the UK (I needed one that worked on 240V), I would have to ship it to the UK using my own money and then they would only ship it back to a UK address.
Well that's unfortunate.
At this point I tried not to "freak out" and I just started praying and praying that my Vitamix would start working on its own and that I wouldn't have to spend all that money to get my precious blender working again. About a week went by and my blender still didn't work, but I continued to pray. I was still in contact with Vitamix, asking if they would allow me to ship my blender to a facility in China instead of the UK to get it fixed. If they held firm on their policy and still required me to ship it to the UK, I didn't know how I would get it back to China, considering they would only ship it back to a UK address and I didn't know anyone in the UK who could then forward it on to me.
And can we just stop and think about how much this whole process would cost?! Shipping sure ain't cheap to and from China and it often takes a LONG time.
When it seemed like the only option left would be to suck it up and spend the money, I got one last e-mail from Vitmaix saying that there is a reset button on the bottom of my machine and I could try pressing that and seeing if it worked. HELLO!?! Why didn't you tell me that earlier?! Sure enough, I pushed the button and held my breath as I tested my blender one last time...
BRETT!!!!!!!!!
THE BLENDER WORKS!!!!!
Those were the first, loudly squealed words that came out of my mouth as soon as I heard the blender lock in place and the blades start to whirl. Brett was back in our bedroom and only heard the loud shrieking part of my exclamation, so at first he thought I had hurt myself. I ran back and, with a look of disbelief still on my face, told him that the reset button worked and the blender worked again!!
I couldn't stop smiling. I was so ecstatic that I wouldn't have to go through all that hassle to get it fixed! My prayers had been answered! Many of you may think it's coincidence--that the reset button had been there the whole time--but I've prayed about "little things" and seen those prayers answered too many times to know that God answered my prayers. He is so gracious!
Brett was happy too, but not nearly as happy as I was. Later he told me that that's the loudest he's ever heard me scream.
Yeah, I get pretty excited over my kitchen appliances.
But how sad would it have been to not have a blender just when spring is arriving here in China. No smoothies. No banana ice cream. No hummus. No Homemade Pumpkin Puree.
No Homemade Vegan Twix Bars?!?!
Now that would have been sad. Thankfully, however, because I now have a working blender, I was able to blend up some sweet, gooey dates to make the caramel filling to these Homemade Vegan Twix Bars.
Did I mentioned these only require 6 INGREDIENTS?! With a melt-in-your-mouth shortbread base, a gooey date caramel center, and a rich chocolate topping, these Homemade Vegan Twix Bars are to die for. They take about 30 minutes to prepare and are stored in the freezer, making them last forever. Everyone that I've shared these Homemade Vegan Twix Bars with fell in love at first bite, just like I did.
I really hope you can give these Homemade Vegan Twix Bars a try! If you do, let me know your thoughts! Leave a comment or take a picture and tag #theconscientiouseater on Instagram.
📖 Recipe
Homemade Vegan Twix Bars
Ingredients
Shortbread Layer
- 1 cup spelt flour
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup coconut oil melted
Caramel Layer
- 2 cups pitted dates soaked for 15 minutes
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted
- pinch of sea salt
Chocolate Layer
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup cocoa powder*
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Instructions
- Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place your dates in a bowl and cover with hot water, allowing them to soak for 15 minutes while you prepare the shortbread base.
- Prepare the shortbread base by mixing together the spelt flour, melted coconut oil and maple syrup in a bowl until smooth. Pour the batter into your prepare pan, using a spatula to smooth it out, and then place the baking pan in the fridge.
- Next prepare the caramel layer by thoroughly draining your soaked dates and placing them in a food processor or high speed blender with the coconut oil and a pinch of sea salt. Process until smooth. Take the baking pan out of the fridge and pour the caramel over top, smoothing it out with a spatula until the entire shortbread base is covered. Now place the pan in your freezer while you prepare the chocolate topping.
- For the chocolate topping, melt ¼ cup of coconut oil in a small sauce pan. Once melted, turn off the heat and stir in the cocoa powder and maple syrup until a smooth, chocolate sauce forms. Remove the baking pan from the freezer and evenly spread the chocolate mixture over the caramel layer.
- Place the bars back in the freezer for around 3 hours until the chocolate layer sets and the caramel layer becomes more solid.
- After a few hours you can carefully lift the entire dessert out of your pan using the parchment paper and carefully cut the large square into 16 smaller squares. I found that using a sharp knife, starting slowly, and cutting straight down helped.
- Store the bars in the freezer in an airtight container and serve them straight from the freezer. They won't be frozen solid, but the cold keeps the caramel from becoming to soft and they're perfect for eating!
Notes
**Be sure to store these bars in the freezer.
CHERYLL RIQUIER says
looks good
Faith says
Thanks Cheryll!
Nicole says
Hi, I love your recipe but have just one quick question! I've never used spelt flour - is this a flour that doesn't need to be cooked? Thanks 🙂
Faith says
Hey Nicole! Thanks for your question. To be honest, I thought all flours we're safe to eat uncooked as long as they're stored properly, but I've never done research on it. You should be fine though!
Tammy says
Thanks for the yummy recipe although I have to say they taste like Dad's goody rings more than a twix bar.
Faith says
Glad you liked them Tammy!! And now I wish I could try your Dad's baking!!
Ruth Spivey says
Hi
New admirer here:)
Can I use a different flour? Coconut or other gluten free?
I'd like to know before I try, because I'd like this recipe to be as delicious as it looks!! Especially because twix is/was my favorite shelf candy.
Faith says
Hey Ruth! Thanks for commenting! I've only tried these with spelt flour but I'm sure gluten free all purpose flour would work. Not sure about coconut though! Let me know what works for you so others can know!
Yo Mama says
Hey, Faith. I love your dessert recipes! They give me ideas on what to serve my gluten-free/dairy-free friends (though my friends that aren't gluten and dairy free like your desserts as well).
I'm assuming the dates you used were fresh, right? I haven't had any success in finding fresh dates here. Could I use dried dates if I soaked them a little longer?
Congrats on being #6 on YouQueen Top 23 Vegan Bloggers to Follow!
Faith says
SO glad I can help Mama! Gluten free AND dairy-free is hard to bake for, but I'm sure you can use gluten-free flour in these bars for sure! To be honest, I'm not really sure what dried dates are. I'm thinking they're the less juicy, more dried dates unlike Medjool dates?? I'm pretty sure dried dates are what I used in this recipe, because ours are smaller and harder. I just soaked mine in boiled water until super soft and then just tried to get rid of the excess water. Maybe when we skype you can show them to me! Thanks for the congrats too!
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit says
These couldn't be any easier! And I couldn't want to go crazy dessert monster on them and devour the whole stack any more than I do right now! 😮 Hey, it's totally reasonable to eat like 4 in celebration of the Vitamix revival right?! 😉 I'm so happy it's working again, I would be just as ecstatic!
Faith says
Haha I'm kicking myself now for sharing them with my friends...not enough left for me to celebrate with!! 🙂
Barb says
Great story, so glad the Vitamix saga had a very happy, hope-filled ending !
Faith says
Me tooooo!!! Such a relief!
Alyssa @ renaissancerunnergirl says
These look scrumptious, and I'm so happy your solution was a simple one!
Faith says
Thanks Alyssa! And wow, me too!!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
I think that deserves to be called an Easter miracle 😉
Faith says
Haha thanks Rebecca! I agree;)