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There’s No Trick-or-Treating Required To Enjoy These Delicious Plant-Based Snickers

Kells McPhillips

October 14, 2020

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Want to make your own plant-based (and with some tweaks, vegan) Snickers bars? Yes, please.

In a recent poll, I determined that Snickers are America's favorite type of Halloween candy. Okay, so the one subject in the poll was me—but that doesn't mean that Snickers aren't a national treasure of the caliber of Michelle Obama, black leggings, or Friends. And leading up to the spookiest time of year, Sashah Handal, a baker at Roberta’s Brooklyn, has a low-glycemic, healthy Snickers recipe you're going to want to add to your candy bucket.

Experts In This Article

Sashah Handal, Barry’s Bootcamp instructor certified in personal training, HIIT, indoor cycling, and TRX

On the latest episode of Well+Good's Alt-Baking Bootcamp, Handal shows how to reformulate the classic candy bar in three delicious layers using ingredients like dates, almonds, maple syrup, cocoa powder, and dark chocolate. These definitely aren't the usual suspects you'd spot while strolling the candy aisle at CVS, but the swaps make the recipe lower in sugar and plant-based (and you can even swap out the honey for maple syrup or agave for a completely vegan recipe).

First, Handal reaches for dates, a gooey sugar alternative that she uses in both the crunch base layer and the sticky caramel center of the Snickers bar. Dates have a lot going for them. A two-piece serving has just as much potassium as a whole banana, plenty of phosphorus and calcium to keep your bones strong, and a decent amount of fiber (about 3 grams per serving). What's more, they effortlessly recreate that chewy, rich texture you love so much in a Snickers.

To make the dates even sweeter, Handal adds honey as a lower-glycemic alternative to white sugar that won't cause an energy slump later on. She also recruits other pantry staples like coconut oil, dark chocolate, almonds, pecans, and more to really round out your homemade Snickers so it makes you nostalgic for nights spent in itchy nylon Power Ranger costumes.

Trust me, you're not going to want this one in a "fun size." Watch the full video to see Handal whip up the recipe from start to finish.

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