Toffee Protein Bars
These toffee protein bars are a soft, date-sweetened baked snack topped with a glossy vegan toffee sauce, made with plant-based protein, vegan butter, walnuts and whole grain flour. They are sweet and satisfying, but they also give you a real dose of protein and energy, which makes them perfect for that mid-afternoon slump when you still have things to tick off your to-do list. If you are looking for sweet, protein-rich treats that come together quickly, these are for you.
Why I keep making these bars
I don’t know about you, but since the cold season started, I feel the need to indulge in some snacks that will offer me a big dose of energy, somewhere around the middle of my working day. Especially now, when the days are getting shorter and shorter and it gets dark at 5PM here. I look outside the windows and it’s completely dark, but I still have some things left to tick off my to-do list for the day.
So I ended up trying everything, chocolate, fruit, biscuits. But I quickly discovered that protein bars are the best solution for me. For me, this is the best combo ever: when you eat something that’s very tasty and sweet and at the same time you get plenty of benefits for your body. If you want to dig into why this matters on a plant-based diet, I wrote more about proteins in the vegan diet.
The ingredients, and why each one is here
The bar base leans on a few workhorse ingredients. Here is what each one brings:
- Dates are the heart of the toffee flavor. Boiling them with the almond drink and vanilla until soft turns them into a caramel-like paste that sweetens the bars naturally and keeps them moist.
- Plant-based protein powder. For today’s recipe I used Tri Blend Select from Herbalife Nutrition, with Coffee Caramel flavor. It folds into the batter and is the reason these bars actually count as a protein snack. And I’m not sure if you know this, but peas are a great protein source, even though that might sound a bit surprising.
- Vegan butter and brown sugar form the base both for the bars and the toffee sauce. The brown sugar adds that deep, molasses-y toffee note.
- Whole grain flour or a gluten-free mix gives structure so the bars hold together when sliced.
- Walnuts add crunch and a bit of richness against the soft, sweet crumb.
- Baking powder lifts the batter just enough so the bars aren’t dense.
How to get them right
The most important step is softening the dates properly. Boil the chopped, pitted dates with the almond drink and vanilla for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly until they fully break down. If they are still chewy, they won’t blend evenly into the batter and you’ll get firm bits instead of that smooth toffee body.
When you bake, use the toothpick test: insert one into the center, and if it comes out dry the bars are ready. If there is still wet batter clinging to it, give them another 5 to 10 minutes. Every oven runs a little differently, so trust the toothpick more than the clock. Let the bars cool fully before slicing, otherwise they’ll crumble while they’re still warm and soft.
Getting that glossy toffee sauce
The sauce is what turns these from a good protein bar into a treat. Add the vegan butter, brown sugar and almond drink to a pan and heat until the butter is completely melted and the sugar has dissolved. Then bring it close to the boiling point over low heat for about 5 minutes, without stirring. Not stirring matters here: agitating a hot sugar syrup can encourage the sugar to recrystallize and turn grainy, so you want to leave it alone and let it gently reduce into a smooth toffee.
Let the sauce cool in the fridge for about 15 minutes so it thickens, then give it a good mix before pouring it over the bars. Ah, let me mention a small detail as well: pour it on just before serving so it stays glossy and the bars don’t go soggy in storage.
Make-ahead and storage
Let me give you a little bit of advice as well. I usually like to prepare a bigger batch of protein bars, which I then store in the fridge for the next days. This way, I know I’ll always have some bars on the side for whenever I’m craving something sweet or whenever I need a big dose of energy and protein, regardless if it’s breakfast time or snack time at the office. So I recommend you do the same.
Keep the cut bars in an airtight container in the fridge, and store the toffee sauce separately so you can warm or stir it and pour it over fresh each time. If you love this style of snack, you might also enjoy my homemade vegan protein bars or, for a no-bake option, these raw carob hemp truffles. And if you are after a warm, spoonable version of this flavor, my vegan sticky toffee pudding scratches the same itch.
More protein-packed ideas
If you are building meals and snacks around protein, there is plenty more to explore. These bars sit nicely alongside an intense workout high protein smoothie on a busy training day, and you can browse my full collection of high-protein vegan recipes when you want to mix things up. If you are still deciding which powder to keep in your pantry, my notes on the best vegan protein powders might help.
These being said, I really hope you’ll try this recipe for toffee protein bars. If you do, please rate the recipe below and leave a comment telling me how your toffee sauce turned out and whether you went whole grain or gluten-free with the flour. I’m very curious!
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Toffee Protein Bars
Ingredients
For the bars:
- 80 g Tri Blend Select Coffee Caramel from Herbalife Nutrition
- 100 g vegan butter
- 80 g brown sugar fine
- 200 g dates
- 250 ml almond drink or other plant-based drink
- 160 g flour whole grain or gluten-free mix
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 100 g walnuts chopped
For the sauce:
- 50 g vegan butter
- 100 g brown sugar fine
- 25 ml almond drink or other plant-based drink
- ½ Tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C.
- To prepare the bar mixture, cream the vegan butter with the brown sugar.
- Remove the pits from the dates and finely chop them. Add the chopped dates to a saucepan together with the almond drink and vanilla extract. Boil for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the dates are soft.
- Add this date mixture to the vegan butter and sugar. Add the flour, baking powder, chopped walnuts and Tri Blend Select Coffee Caramel powder, and mix well.
- Grease a baking tray with vegan butter, then line it with baking paper.
- Pour the batter into the tray and bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Do the toothpick test: if the toothpick comes out dry, the bars are ready. Otherwise, leave them in the oven for 5-10 more minutes, then let them cool.
- Add the sauce ingredients to a pan. Heat until the vegan butter is completely melted and the sugar is dissolved. Bring the mixture close to the boiling point over low heat for 5 minutes, without stirring. Leave the sauce to cool in the fridge to thicken (about 15 minutes). Mix well before pouring it over the bars.
- Cut the bars and serve them with a little sauce.
Notes
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Every ingredient is plant-based: vegan butter, brown sugar, dates, almond drink, whole grain or gluten-free flour, walnuts, baking powder, vanilla extract, and a plant-based protein blend. There are no eggs, dairy or honey, so the bars and the toffee sauce are both fully vegan.
Yes. The recipe calls for 160 g of whole grain flour or a gluten-free mix, so simply swap in a 1:1 gluten-free baking blend. Just double-check that your protein powder, baking powder and vanilla extract are also certified gluten-free if you are sensitive.
I used Tri Blend Select from Herbalife Nutrition in the Coffee Caramel flavor, which pairs beautifully with the toffee. Any neutral or caramel-flavored plant-based protein blend should work, though the exact flavor and texture will shift slightly depending on the blend you choose.
Keep the sliced bars in an airtight container in the fridge for the next few days. I recommend storing the toffee sauce separately and pouring it over fresh each time, so the bars stay firm rather than going soggy in storage.
Once the butter has melted and the sugar dissolved, you bring the sauce close to boiling over low heat for about 5 minutes without stirring. Stirring a hot sugar syrup can cause the sugar to recrystallize and turn grainy, so leaving it undisturbed keeps the sauce smooth and glossy.
Usually it is because they were sliced while still warm. Let them cool completely before cutting so the crumb sets. Also make sure the dates were boiled until fully soft, since under-softened dates leave the batter uneven and more likely to fall apart.
Sooo delicious and fun to make!