Like a popsicle, these coconut bars are topped with a paleo caramel, chopped peanuts and enrobed in dark chocolate. Plus, they’re loaded with collagen peptides for an extra, cool boost.
We’re always down to try new food products or food additives we haven’t come across yet. Like us, you’ve probably heard the social media sphere buzzing about collagen peptides for awhile now. We had to give it a try! 
Collagen is an important building block of amino acids that our bodies need to grow healthy hair, maintain our skin, nails, bones, and even our gut health. Adding collagen to our diet helps to keep our body running smoothly on the inside and in turn, keeps things looking beautiful on the outside. We especially love the workout benefits of collagen and love that it helps the body recover after exercise. Trust us, one of these cool coconut bars are perfect after a good workout.
Vital Proteins makes a slew collagen products that you should be sure to check out. They also make a gelatin that is great for baking and pastry purposes. Plus, they have creamer powders that are perfect in your coffee and a matcha tea collagen powder… uh… YUM.
For this recipe, we used their Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides which are easy for our bodies to digest and utilize right away and are sourced from grass-fed, pasture-raised bovine hides to ensure a high quality and sustainable source of nutrients.
We whisked some of the collagen into the bar base, which happens to be dairy free, and you can’t taste of detect it at all. Unlike the Vital Proteins Gelatin, this powder will not gel your liquids. If you’d like more of a creamy ice cream texture instead of a crisp, popsicle consistency, throw the mixture in your ice cream machine before spreading into a pan to form the bar shape. These coconut bars can be made on a stick to be like a popsicle too!
They end up tasting like glamorous, sweet, chocolate-dipped popsicles. The perfect summertime treat!
Disclaimer: We were not paid to create this post. However, Vital Proteins did send us a free sample to make this recipe. We had so much fun making these bars and truly love the benefits of collagen peptides.
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Boosting Frozen Coconut Bars
- Yield: 0 About 10 bars 1x
Ingredients
Dairy-Free Caramel
- 1 can (13.5 oz full-fat coconut milk)
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 1 tsp coconut oil
Coconut Bars
- 4 scoops or about 4 tablespoons Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides
- 1 c. milk or cream of choice (dairy or non-dairy both work We used a cashew milk.)
- 1 14- oz. can full-fat coconut milk
- 1/3 c. honey
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- 1 cup peanuts (salted and chopped)
- 3 cups dark chocolate chips (for dipping)
Instructions
Make the caramel sauce.
- Combine the coconut milk and coconut sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, keeping a constant eye on it as it can boil over. Then immediately lower the temperature, keeping the sauce at a light simmer.
- Simmer for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir frequently at the end of cooking to incorporate any caramel bits on the side or bottom.
- Once the sauce has turned a dark amber and has thickened, remove from heat and stir in the coconut oil. Allow to cool.
- Refrigerate until use.
Make the coconut bars.
- Sprinkle the Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides over the 1 cup of milk and stir to combine. Set it aside for 3-5 minutes to bloom.
- Add the coconut milk and honey. Whisk to combine.
- Pour the mix out into a container with lid and place it into the refrigerator until chilled.
- Process the *chilled ice cream base according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. An average of 15-20 minutes minimum churn time is recommended. Spread ice cream into a sheet pan or cake pan lined with plastic wrap, press chopped peanuts into the top and spread caramel over top and freeze until set. OR Skip the ice cream machine and pour into a sheet pan or cake pan lined with plastic wrap for more of a popsicle texture. Once slightly set, press peanuts into the top and spread with the caramel.
- Once fully set, remove from freezer and cut into bars. Leave as bars or peirce with wooden sticks to make into pops. Place back in freezer for a few minutes so they are cold when you go to dip them.
- Melt chocolate in a bowl over a double boiler.
- Dip bars from freezer in chocolate. Place on a wire rack on a sheet pan and place back in freezer until set.
- Enjoy!
Notes
You can use any caramel for these bars, but if you are looking for a dairy-free caramel, use the one listed in the recipe.
