Vegan Coconut and Banana Bars with Pecan and Date Crust

Passover is a wonderful opportunity to improvise new recipes using Kosher-for-Passover ingredients that are abundant in supermarkets.

Even though I don't strictly keep kosher, I enjoy playing with all the wonderful abundance that comes with the holiday:

Rice flour pasta, peanut cookies, coconut cookies, and more.

In general, it seems like the entire Passover holiday relies on this wonderful tropical nut, and I especially love using it to make

a variety of dishes that can be enjoyed during Passover and all year round.

The taste of coconut always takes me back to my post-army trip to the Far East,

and I love combining it with tropical flavors like pineapple, rum, or in this case, bananas.

A bit about the recipe:

For the base of the bar, I used pitted Medjool dates, which both create a sticky mass that holds the bottom of the bar and provide a wonderful sweetness.

Instead of Medjool dates, you can use the same amount of date paste.

To create a nice bite and add high-quality fatty acids, I used pecans, chia seeds, and flax seeds.

If you don't like one of the ingredients, feel free to swap them for seeds or nuts you prefer.

The soft, creamy texture of the bar comes from the coconut cream.

I used a high-fat cream (21%) that I chilled thoroughly in the refrigerator. Coconut cream with a lower fat percentage will not harden and won't create the necessary texture, so it's best to avoid it.

If you want to replace the bananas, you can use the same amount of frozen pineapple — it will turn into Piña Colada bars (mental note to make a post about that in the future 😉).

I used a cupcake tin to create individual bars that make it easy to track calories and fat — of course, you can make the recipe in one large tray.

Sweet and tropical.

How to eat it?

Half a vegan coconut banana bar about an hour and a half before a workout can be a wonderful energy snack thanks to its available carbohydrates.

Since it contains a high amount of fat, it is not recommended to eat the bar immediately before a workout, as it may cause digestive discomfort.

Nutritional values by clinical dietitian and fitness trainer Noam Bachar:

One bar weighing 130g (out of 6) contains:

300 calories

3g protein

39g carbohydrates

15g fat (of which 9g is saturated fat)

Vegan Coconut Banana Bars

Prep Time 5 minutes

Servings 6 bars

Calories 300 kcal

Ingredients

For the crust

• 10 Pitted Medjool dates 170g
• 3 tbsp Pecans 48g
• 1 tbsp Chia seeds 6g
• 1 tbsp Flax seeds 12g
• 1 level tbsp Cocoa powder 7g
• 1 tbsp Coconut oil for greasing the pan 10g

For the banana-coconut layer

• 2 Ripe bananas 200g
• 1/2 tin Coconut cream (21% fat), thoroughly chilled in the fridge 100g
• 1/2 cup Shredded coconut 40g
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract 5g
• A few crushed pecans for garnish Optional

Instructions

1. Make sure to thoroughly chill a tin of high-fat coconut cream in the refrigerator beforehand.

2. In a food processor, blend all the crust ingredients until a sticky dough forms.

3. Thoroughly grease a muffin tin with coconut oil.

4. Using your hands, flatten a small amount of the date and pecan dough into each cup.

5. Prepare the coconut and banana cream:

6. Mash the bananas with a fork.

7. Add half of the coconut cream tin (use only the solid white part, discarding the liquid at the bottom).

8. Add the shredded coconut and vanilla extract, mixing well until it's a smooth paste.

9. Fill each cup with the coconut banana mixture, garnish with some crushed pecans, and refrigerate for at least an hour.

10. Carefully remove each bar with a spoon and enjoy!