Crunchy Chocolate Hazelnut Bars

Since these are chocolate and hazelnut flavored bars, using hazelnut butter is a must. It will help you get that nice balanced nutty flavor that you’re looking for. You can, of course, use any other nut butter of your choice instead of hazelnut butter, if that’s what you want, then peanut butter and cashew butter are excellent choices. If you’re using any of these nut butters, but still want that hazelnut flavor, you can throw in some chopped hazelnuts along with the almonds, and you should be good. 
You could also entirely swap the nut butter and use seed butter instead - it all depends on your personal preference. 

This recipe calls for the use of honey, which isn’t just a natural sweetener but also acts as a nice binding agent for the other ingredients. If you don’t want to use honey, you could opt for agave syrup or maple syrup instead. They work wonderfully in sweetening the mixture and also help the other ingredients stick together well - just like honey does. 

There’s so much more you can add to these hazelnut bars depending on what you have at hand. Here are a few good ideas to get you going. 

Dried fruits: Adding dried fruit into these hazelnut bars is great because it doesn’t just lend that nice chewy texture, but also offers some natural sweetness. You can use dried cranberries (or practically any berries of your choice), chopped dried figs, and even raisins if you want. 

Nuts and seeds: Chopped or crushed nuts and seeds are a great way to bump up the nutritive value and texture of these hazelnut bars. You can throw in anything from almonds, cashews, pistachios, peanuts, pecans, and macadamia nuts to seeds like hemp seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and flaxseeds into the mixture. 

Others: Mini chocolate chips, sprinkles, mini caramel chips, and butterscotch nibs are all excellent choices to consider adding to making these bars. 

There’s a reason why coconut oil is added into both of the layers that make up these crunchy chocolate hazelnut bars. The oil helps bind the ingredients together and solidifies when it is refrigerated, which helps the bar get its shape. Without it, the almond and oats layer would crumble and fall apart, and the chocolate would melt when at room temperature. 
You could use butter as an alternative, but coconut oil is definitely the recommended choice. 

Oat flakes are what make up the bulk of these crunchy chocolate hazelnut bars. They are super healthy and act as an excellent source of fiber and beta-glucan. As an alternative, you could use rolled oats or quick oats, or even some oat flour if you want. If you don’t want to use any form of oats, using any nut flour or meal is your best bet. And of course, a little protein powder can really help you get the texture right. 

It is best to refrigerate your leftover chocolate hazelnut bars to help them stay fresh for a longer period. You can wrap the individual bars in parchment paper and stack them in an airtight container to refrigerate them for up to 3 weeks. 
These bars are freezer friendly too, so if you want to make them in a big batch and store them for longer than 3 weeks, you could do that too.