PEP cool mint patties were one of my favourite candy bars growing up. Oh, and Junior Mints. And York Peppermint Patties! Gah. And Wonderbars, but that’s another story. Peppermint and chocolate are a match made in my taste buds heaven. Oh, and don’t tell me chocolate and peppermint is only for the holidays…pssshhh, I don’t know who makes these rules, but I don’t want to hear such nonsense. It’s like saying you can’t play Christmas music in October!
I even had a chocolate peppermint Glo Bar to highlight my love for them – “peppy-mint”. Not surprisingly, it’s one of my favs. I decided it was a good idea to make a dessert bar that would taste just like a peppermint patty. It’s been way too long. Plus, it’s no-bake meaning no summer hot flashes! I had one of those earlier Monday. Don’t ask me why I thought it was a good idea to make soup…or muffins…
First things first, I have a P.S.A. to share.
I don’t know how this chocolate bar eluded me for so long, but I tried it this weekend and I almost DIED in ecstasy. Creamy, dark – but not bitter at all – did I mention creamy? and fair-trade? I can’t believe I only bought one. Rookie mistake!
Edited to add: While the bar I purchased didn’t list any dairy products, from what some of you have told me below, the new US label contains milk powder. I found some info from the company website explaining why and posted it in the comments below if you are interested.
Obviously, I used this chocolate for the bars and proceeded to rock my face off. Then, I walked around with a smudge of chocolate on the corner of my mouth for who knows how long. After putting in a 12-hour work day yesterday, I plopped down on the couch kicking my heels up and Eric kindly pointed out that I had a rolled oat stuck on the top of my foot. This was in addition to 3 cooking stains on my shirt and chocolate on my face. Hot.
Luckily, he’s used to it.
The good news is these bars are worth it. And odds are, you aren’t as messy as me.
Step 1 involves processing ingredients like almonds, walnuts, oats, cocoa powder, sweetener, etc until a ball of dough forms.
Then you press it into an 8-inch pan lined with parchment paper. The dough is very sticky so cover the dough with a piece of parchment paper before attempting to spread it out.
Finally, melt chocolate with a touch of coconut oil and peppermint extract. Spread it over top and freeze the whole thing for about 10-15 minutes. Oh, and sprinkle some flaked coconut on top if you wish! It adds a nice crunch…and it’s so darn pretty in a photo.
Cut into bars and serve chilled with a glass of almond milk. You’ll swear you’re eating a peppermint patty!
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No Bake Peppermint Patty Bars
Yield
12 small bars
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Chill time
10-15
Total time
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats, processed into a flour (or 2 cups oat flour)
- 1/2 cup almonds
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 4-5 tbsp cocoa powder, to taste
- 1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt, or to taste
- 2 tbsp packed brown sugar
- 2 tbsp almond milk
- 5 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
- 75 grams dark chocolate (about 3/4 chocolate bar)
- 1 tsp coconut oil
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- Flaked coconut, to garnish (optional)
Directions
- Line an 8-inch pan with two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way. Set aside.
- If making oat flour, add 2 cups rolled oats into a high speed blender. Blend on high until a flour forms.
- In a food processor, add almonds and walnuts. Process until a very fine crumble. Add oat flour, cocoa powder (start with 1/4 cup for now), salt, and brown sugar. Process until combined.
- Add in the maple syrup and almond milk. Process until a ball forms. Add another tablespoon of cocoa powder if desired. Process in the 1/4 cup rolled oats and chocolate chips until combined.
- Take mixture and crumble it all over the prepared pan (it will be very sticky but not to worry). Now place parchment paper over top and press down evenly with your fingers. Use a pastry roller to smooth it out. Once smooth, place in freezer while you melt the chocolate topping.
- Add chocolate, coconut oil, and peppermint into a small pot. Melt on low until most of the chocolate has melted and remove from heat. Stir. Remove pan from freezer and pour melted chocolate on top. Smooth out with spatula. Sprinkle on coconut (opt.) and place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes, or until set. Slice into 6 narrow rows and then in half to make 12 bars. Serve chilled with a glass of almond milk. Store in the freezer.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
No, there isn’t any fresh mint in the bars as the picture suggests, but it sure does make a nice accent in the photo. Feel free to use fresh mint processed into the bars if you want a double peppermint kick! I tend to think of these ideas after the fact…
My vegan friend just sent me your blog because we just started eating vegan. We were already dairy and gluten free so I was worried that taking the eggs and meat out would be boooorrrring. But nope not with blogs like yours. So much good stuff. I’m trying to avoid sugar to but these might be worth the days we splurge. Gonna try them out.
I love the look of these and many other desserts on your site. Unfortunately I am deathly allergic to nuts, so I can’t make a lot of the yummy looking ones like these. Would love to see more recipes that are vegan and nut free.
I made the peppermint patty bars recently and they are amazing!
I wanted to comment on some alternative chocolate bars for those, like me, who cannot eat soy. Soy ingredients are in 99% of the chocolate bars that I have looked at, but I finally found a soy free brand and it is SO good! And I used it in this recipe. The brand is called Alter Eco. The bar that I used in this recipe is called Dark Velvet. It does list organic butterfat and whole milk powder as the last 2 ingredients (beware, those of you who do not eat any dairy), but some of their products that have a higher cacao percentage, like Dark Blackout, do not have any milk products. www.alterecofoods.com I get these chocolate bars at whole foods.
I just made these and they were AMAZING! My first “raw” dessert, and I am eager to try more. I’m not keen on mint so I omitted that and the glaze on top and put dates along with the chips inside. SO GOOD! Thanks for sharing.
Hey Angela,
Love your blog!
I tried this recipe and though it was delicious the dough was very crumbly and not at all sticky as you describe in your post. I followed your instructions exactly.. Any tips??
From a fan and fellow Canadian from Montreal.
Hi Marie, It sounds like the oils didn’t release enough. I would try processing them a bit longer next time and if it’s still dry add a touch of almond milk to help it adhere. Goodluck!
I made these last night and I messed up the instructions. This morning I tried one bite of this dessert and I loved it! I can’t wait to share this yummy dessert with friends and family. Thank you!
I don’t know if you’ve discovered or not, but I thought I would share with you that Green & Black’s makes a mint chocolate bar that is to die for!!
I can’t wait to try out this recipe to share with friends!
LOVED these bars. Yum. Perfect holiday treat. Don’t know what I’d do without your recipes:)
Happy Holidays!
have you tried making these completely from scratch by using raw cacao? let me know so can try it. i will also give it a try next wkend all from scratch, i’ll keep you posted.
Just had one for a weekend dinner dessert and it was fabulous. I made a 1/4 of the recipe as it’s just me and I don’t have a freezer to store them in right now but the recipe scales easily. Like some other commenters the mix was a little crumbly maybe from lack of food processor so not so much smooshing together! Anyway, easily remedied with a touch more non-dairy milk. I do love raw recipes but this is a great no-bake alternative as it’s a little less rich with the oats as opposed to all nuts :)
I made these as a last minute treat to bring to a potluck dinner and they went over extremely well! The hosts were not vegan but absolutely loved these bars. It took me a total of 25 minutes to make them and this endeavor created very little dishes. I tried using the Trader Joe’s truffle chocolate bar for the top coating and it made a perfect thick shell with just right amount of crunch for my liking. Thanks so much for this one! It’s been only 4 days since I made these at home and my husband is already requesting the next batch. Good news for him is that I want them again soon too :)
These look so delicious! I can’t eat oats though, they give me a really sore stomach. Can you please recommend a substitute for the oats? I really want to make these!! :-)
Hey Stephanie, can you tolerate spelt or quinoa flakes? Those might work in this recipe, but im not certain. good luck!
can these be rolled into balls instead?
These are chilling in the fridge and they look yummy! We added an extra 1/8 tsp of peppermint extract, skipped the rolled oats, and crushed the nuts by hand (we maintain a very low-tech household)! Excited to munch later!
Just made these…. They are delicious
These are THE BOMB! Satisfied my chocolate craving for sure!! I used the new dark chocolate chips that have mint filling (made by Toll House I think).
Oh, my goodness, chocolate and mint are 2 or my favourite things so I literally want to reach into the photos and grab one of these patty bars! Guess I’ll just have to make some now instead:-)
I hope you enjoy them if you make them Camilla! They’re one of my fave treats :)
Hi there! Can we feature your No Bake Peppermint Patty Bars in our round up post on Abbey’s Kitchen?
Let me know!
Hi Ina, for sure! I just ask that the recipe isn’t reported (a link is fine) and that there is photo credit provided to Angela Liddon. Thank you in advance!