For the 2nd week of our bake-off challenge, we plated up healthy dessert bars with plenty of chocolate.

The Great Vegan Bake-Off got a choco-LOT sweeter this week! Missed week 1? We made gourmet pizzas, get your slice here! Week 2 is all about dessert bars and the possibilities are endless.

But we kinda bent the rules a bit…

Somehow both of us showed up with a no-bake recipe, and ones that involved dates and almond butter. Great minds think alike right? We know it’s supposed to be a baking competition but in our defense, The Great Canadian Baking Show gave their contestants a daifuku mochi technical challenge. And during their dessert bars episode, several bakers also took the no-bake route. Although we adore dark chocolate, please don’t be bitter.

‘Half Baked’ Bars

Chew: These bars are inspired by my favourite ice-cream flavour by Ben & Jerry’s… Half Baked! Well, that was my favourite, until they recently came up with a plant-based peanut butter cookie + brownie one. I mean, what else could a girl want?! But it’s kinda funny because when I eat ice-cream, I pretty much want as many chunks as possible, so I always ask myself… do I actually like ice-cream so do I just like the idea of ice-cream? Probably the latter, cause I feel like if you gave me a choice between a cookie or ice-cream, I’d always choose a cookie unless the ice-cream has cookie chunks in it hahahahhaa. Then that’s a different story. I don’t understand myself sometimes either. But about these bars, they have been my favourite no-bake thing I’ve made since probably 12th grade, so it’s been a while and that’s saying a lot because no-bake things are a frequent occurence for me when I’m too lazy to preheat an oven ;). A fudgey bottom brownie layer with a cookie dough top layer, and believe it or not, all the ingredients are good for you! So good I’ve been eating them for breakfast with a glass of almond milk all week. Again… what else could a girl want? :))

Full recipe HERE

Maca Twix Bars

Leung: These are superfood candy bars so feel free to eat a whole bar, or two! Macadamia nuts make up the ‘butter-y’ biscuit base, then a gooey layer of maca date caramel follows, which is all encased in a crisp coating of dark chocolate and a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt. What’s maca? It’s my new favourite superfood! Maca is a root, originally from Peru, that’s high in minerals like iron and copper and said to help with hormonal balance. Most importantly for this recipe, it tastes kinda malty! So think of these bars as the lovechild of Twix and Malteasers.

Full recipe HERE

You be the judge

Pizza week was a tough race, but the masses have spoken and Chew’s Sage Béchamel Kabocha Pizza had the most pizzazz, giving her a lead in The Great Vegan Bake-Off! Candied walnuts and pumpkin are hard to turn down.

As per last time, you have one week to cast your votes for your favourite dessert bars on this Facebook poll.

Coming up next week

The cold is coming… Grab your fuzzy socks, a warm blanket, and your best pals, we’re making cozy casseroles!