With a can of pumpkin in my hand, I was on a mission to make something tasty. I didn’t feel like cookies or cake or pie or fudge (WHAT?!), so I hopped on Pinterest and scoured the site for pumpkin treats I could make right here, right now.
Then I got distracted by quotes. And cute kitten pictures. And the next thing I knew, an hour had gone by and I hadn’t looked at a single pumpkin recipe. Focus, Cassie! Focus.
Okay. I will focus. Search “vegan pumpkin dessert”. Find lots of cookies, cakes, pies and fudge. NONONONOTHANKYOU. After searching for almost another hour (OMG WHAT IS HAPPENING, PINTEREST?!), I finally stumbled upon a recipe that looked yumz!
These no bake chocolate coco pumpkin bars. Okay FINE, these will do. As if I was settling or something. Man, I am grouchy when I’m on Pinterest too long.
Whipped up a batch, ate them all in 2 days. Didn’t share with my fam. They went bonkers. Made more, with slight changes to the recipe. They ate them, and I was the best mom/wife ever again. Awesome. I always knew I was the best. Score!
These guilt-free treats are so good. And they’re pretty! And you all know how much I loves me some pretty food. It makes my soul happy.
So today I encourage you to make some pretty food. It’s the weekend! Celebrate with some chocolate & coconut pumpkin bars. Preferably in front of the TV with a super scary movie playing. Halloween is coming and it’s time to scare yourself. And eat tasty fall treats. YES PLEASE.
- 10 dates, pitted
- 1 cup almonds
- 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ cup shredded coconut
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- 1 small banana
- ¼ cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tbsp agave
- ½ tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- Add dates, almonds cocoa powder and 1 tsp of cinnamon to your food processor. Process until it all comes together into a ball.
- Transfer the mixture to a 9x5 baking dish and flatten it out in the pan. Set aside.
- In small bowl, combine the shredded coconut and coconut oil. Mix well until thick (you may need to add more coconut oil or shredded coconut to get it to a spreadable consistency). Spread this mixture on the chocolate almond mixture in the pan.
- Add the banana, pumpkin puree, agave and 1 tsp cinnamon into your food processor and process until smooth. Pour over top of the coconut mixture and smooth it out so that it covers the entire dish.
- If desired, sprinkle some coconut on top.
- Freeze for 60 minutes or until set. Cut into squares and serve. Store in the freezer. Remove for a few minutes to thaw before eating.
Emi says
November 4, 2016 at 4:43 AMThough very pretty, the flavour and texture weren’t great, even after being left to thaw for a bit. But with some salt sprinkled on top and popped in the microwave for a bit, the flavours came out a bit and the texture became nice and indulgent.
Catherine says
November 15, 2015 at 10:02 PMI’d love to make these but can’t have bananas. Is there something else that might mix well with the pumpkin?
Natasha Derksen says
October 5, 2016 at 10:06 PMMaybe some apple sauce and dates? Apple sauce is much thinner than bananas but date paste would be a bit thicker – so together they might even out. The dates would help with sweetness (that bananas would add).
Can’t hurt to try! 😉
Emily says
October 8, 2016 at 11:30 PMYou could totally use ground flaxseed! You can purchase ground flaxseed or you can blend your own. (I think most types of bananas do not go well with pumpkin.) Flaxseeds, when grinded, are typically used to thicken or bind foods. If you are trying to “thin out” the pumpkin, then you should soak the ground flaxseeds in water (I believe it’s about 1/4cup of water per two teaspoons of flaxseed) for a few minutes before adding the water and flaxseed to the pumpkin purée.
Tapioca starch/tapioca powder/cassava flour/whatever it’s called may also work very well. However, I don’t really know how to use it, aside from making tapioca pearls (aka boba).
Maggie says
October 9, 2015 at 1:31 AMWhen does the vanilla and pumpkin spice get added? Did you modify the coconut mixture?