These little tasty frozen candy bars fill my sweet tooth, and are an easy way to get a higher amount of coconut oil into my family’s diet. I used coconut flakes, honey (I prefer raw), homemade chocolate, almond extract, dehydrated almonds, and coconut oil. A delicious and natural combination. Though I haven’t had one for years now, Mounds was a favorite candy bar of mine. These remind me a lot of them because they contain the same type of ingredients.
They have definitely been a hit around here. My husband has been taking them in his lunches (packed next to his ice pack), and my toddler loves them, when cut into small pieces.
And who said you couldn’t have candy bars on a “healthy” diet? With a little creativity, we are denied very few things while remaining committed to a nourishing diet.
I blogged about Nourishing Tradition’s Carob (which I made into chocolate) chip recipe here. It’s quite good. The original recipe used rapadura. I decided to use honey for this project. I think it’s a little easier to get to dissolve into the mixture (always a problem with using rapadura in this recipe), but you can really use whatever sweetener you want. If you use a sweetener like honey, be aware that if you were to refrigerate the chocolate mixture instead of freeze it, it would stay a little softer than if you used rapadura.
“Mounds” Candy Bars-makes 12, large
1 1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1/2 cup of coconut oil
1/4 cup of honey (raw is nice)
1 teaspoon almond extract
36 almonds, left whole or chopped (your choice)
1-Melt the coconut oil and honey over low heat until just melted. Whisk to combine. Add the almond extract and coconut flakes.
2-Now take out your muffin tins (you will need a 12 compartment muffin tin). In each compartment, place three almonds, or divide the chopped almonds) Then, divide the coconut mixture, making sure you get an even mixture of coconut flakes and coconut oil. Place in a freezer (make sure it’s on a flat surface), and freeze until hard (about 30 minutes)
Now it’s time for the chocolate! You will need:
3/4 cup cocoa powder (not dutch cocoa)
1/4 cup of honey (I used a scant 1/4 of a cup)
1 cup coconut oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3-Combine these ingredients in a 2 cup glass measuring glass and place in a pot of simmering water. Heat until everything is just melted, and remove from heat. Either whisk briskly, or use a hand blender to combine well (the hand blender is the easiest way to do this).
4-Take out the frozen coconut flakes mixture, and divide your chocolate mixture over it (about two tablespoons per muffin compartment).
5-Put back into your freezer, and freeze until hard (again, about 30 minutes). To get them out, simply slide a butter knife down one side, and pop it out. This is very easy to do, as long as you do it directly from your freezer.
Then, enjoy! (and keep them frozen, they melt fairly quickly)
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I just wanted to let you know I tried these and posted my variations on my blog at http://freshandfeisty.blogspot.com/2010/04/yummy-mounds.html. They were great. Five of us have tried them now and love them! My variations allowed me to be lazy :0 Thanks again for your wonderful recipe and blog!
Hi!
I never really leave comments on blogs, but I had to thank you for this recipe! I am having a hard time giving up my organic baked goods from the healthfood store, which still have (organic) white flour and sugar in them. These delicious ‘candies’ will certainly help 🙂 I am going to try a version with peanut butter or maybe almond butter. I used IF YOU CARE Unbleached muffin papers, so that they would be easy to get out of the pan; it works great- plus, it gives the candies a scalloped edge that is just like a Reeses Cup! Yippie! Thanks again. Sarah
Jenny from April 8th — I used almonds, pecans, and walnuts in mine (different nuts in each cup).
I loved these, thanks for the recipe! http://heal-balance-live.blogspot.com/2010/04/recipe-review-mounds-candy-bars-from.html
Thanks so much for this recipe! They turned out wonderfully and are super healthy. I substituted carob powder for the cocoa powder in equal amounts.
I love your website and all the wonderful information you share, Kimi. 🙂
The gluten and dairy free options are becoming so easy to overcome for my daughter and I.
These look so Yummy! Can’t wait to try them!
These look great! Easy too…can’t wait to try em.
Can they be stored in the fridge instead of the freezer, or will they be too soft? They look divine! 🙂 And I just bought Coconut oil the other day – perfect!
Ok am I the only who had this problem?
I used Raw, organic honey and i could never get the honey and the coconut oil to BLEND together! I tried mixing it really fast, slow etc and it still stayed seperated….so i just made the candy like that but there are spots that are way sweeter than others due to the fact that there are chunks of honey that wouldn’t blend…this was the same for the white layer and the chocolate layer…hmmm, anybody have this problem?
Just made a batch of these and they are absolutely DIVINE! I’m going to have to work hard not to eat the entire batch in one sitting!
I just made these today and they are really great! However, I think it is more of almond joy- almond joy has nuts, mounds don’t– because sometimes you feel like a nut… Anyway, very tasty but I messed up freezing the almonds before so popped them up in the pan a little unfrozen to mix with the chocolate. Very tasty!
I made these today, and they are truly DELISH! Thanks so much for posting this recipe…I really enjoy reading your blog :o)
I can’t get over how wonderful these are. I must admit that I was a bit shocked. Mine aren’t freezing through on the bottom all the way though and I also had a really hard time blending the honey and coconut oil. I ended up using a hand blender and just scooping it quickly into the tins.
I used min muffin tins and they are just enough for 2 or 3 bites. I also did half with almonds and half without. Next time instead of putting the almonds on the bottom I will probably put them between the coconut and chocolate layers. Not everyone in my house is a fan of the almond extract flavor so i think next time I’ll use vanilla in both the oil/honey and the chocolate mixture.
I have made these twice now and they are so good! 🙂 A warning to those who may not be used to coconut oil though- the oil is very good for you and helps clear your system but don’t eat too much at one time or you will not feel very well. I would eat no more than one and maybe start out with 1/2. 😉 A very tasty dessert!
Using a double boiler to melt the coconut oil and the honey should help those who had problems getting the two to blend together. If you don’t have a double boiler, a stainless steel bowl set in the water should work. Also why would anyone use carob powder instead of cocoa? Cacao or cocoa is so good for you and the taste is so much better!
Why not use dutch cocoa, Anyone?
@Joyce, dutch cocoa is alkali-processed in a way that removes a lot of the antioxidants, I believe. Some people are allergic or sensitive to cocoa, or are avoiding the stimulants so they use carob powder. I agree that chocolate tastes much better, but if you can’t eat it then carob is usually a decent option.
Coconut oil is heart healthy.. right?! I came back for the recipe! =) I need to buy the oil… otherwise I am set! I will let you know how mine turn out… I am going to use a mini muffin pan… as I love love it!! nobody in my house likes coconut… so these treats will be 100% mine!! he he!!
Wow! I made these today and they are really delish! I used mini muffin pans with still 3 almonds in them and they work perfectly. One word of advice, use muffin tin papers.
Hi, I sort of made these on Wednesday. I say “sort of” because I only did the first part, not the chocolate, due to time. I also changed the recipe slightly. I increased the flakes and the oil by half, left the honey the same, changed the almond extract to vanilla and added peppermint, didn’t use any almonds, but I did add coconut flour (hoping this would make them less prone to melting), and some cinnamon and ginger. I think they are very good. I had to tell my kids that they couldn’t have any – they are only for me because I’m on a diet.
They are very good. I am enjoying them and the coconut flour does help them hold their shape and not melt in your hand before you can eat it. Their taste reminds me a little of a “peppermint patty” except for the added cinnamon and the missing chocolate coating.
Oh my gosh Kimi… these are unbelievable!!! Thanks for the fabulous recipe. Like some other readers, I subbed vanilla extract for the almond. I also took others’ advice and put the almonds on top of the coconut mixture- worked perfectly, and used paper muffin cups- no melty mess. 🙂
These were awesome! Didn’t have the almonds ready to go so just left them out. Made them as minis also. I have to limit everyone in the house to one a day!
Just an FYI for anyone who is interested…this homemade chocolate works great drizzled into homemade ice cream. I had some left after making the treats, and made a mint goats milk ice cream with my raw goats milk and raw eggs. After the initial freezing from the ice cream maker, I stirred in the extra chocolate – it made nice shards of chocolate in the finished product and I knew exactly what my “chocolate chips” were made of.
I made these tonight and they are wonderful! I didn’t make the chocolate, but used 72% dark that I melted instead (will try it next time though!). I also added a couple tbs of coconut butter (nutiva coconut manna) and instead of raw honey used coconut nectar (coconut secret brand). I will absolutely make these again, thanks for the wonderful idea!
I have never had good luck at getting them out of the muffin tin. I think i got one out whole this time. Any suggestions or what i might be doing wrong?
I also tried to combine the coconut oil and honey with very little success. I’ve tried several times, but it’s never worked that well. This time, I have some raw honey that’s crystalized, so it’s a kind of soft paste. I thought that might help the two emulsify better, and I guess it did a little, although some spots are still much sweeter than others.
Maybe coconut flour would help them emulsify? And I know it’s not a very good option, but I’ve been wondering if a tablespoon or two of dry milk might work. I’ve read a few other recipes for Mounds/Almond Joy, and most of them seem to call for sweetened condensed milk instead of coconut oil, so I wonder if (and I know this negates the whole ‘getting more coconut oil into your diet’ thing…) somehow replacing the oil with a cream and honey mixture (as a healthier sweetened condensed milk substitute) might work.
Oh, but now I’m just thinking out loud. I want a healthier Almond Joy alternative, though, so I am fully committed to making this work! 😀
Lisa, I usually either take the muffin tins out of the freezer for a couple minutes and let them warm up *just* enough on the counter, then tap them out/use a butter knife to help them along, or I pour a little hot water onto a cookie sheet and set the muffin tin in it for a few seconds until they loosen, run a butter knife around the edges, and tap them out. Don’t know if that will help, but maybe.
love these! they are awesome,but i will have to say i have had side effects from eating too many. im pregnant and i have found that a little bit of them make me feel great!extra energy,no queasiness, and i dont have as hard of a time with cravings and all that,but when i fist started out i ate 2ish in a small amount of time and i kid you not, i hit the couch and slept(comma like) for 2 hrs. this has happened now twice!lol, they are good but there can be some “side effects”
hmm, sure wish someone had taken the time to figure out the nutritional info~ I made these yesterday ~ I wonder if I can successfully cut back the amount of coconut oil. They are very good. Mini’s would probably be better for me! But, they are yummy!
I’m dying to try these but I’m currently out of honey. Is there a way to substitute regular sugar (I know, I know!) and have them turn out okay? I’m not sure how to do it…
These were SOOOOOOOOOO good!!! OH MY GOSH!
I absolutely love these and am making them for the second time right now with my 2 and 5 year old. I used vanilla extract for everything and used the mini cupcake tin. I made some with almonds and some the original mounds style (just coconut and chocolate). So delish!!!! thanks!
Delicious! Thankyou! I used my silicone muffin cups and they came out perfect!
Are coconuts a nut or a fruit? Should we presoak before using as with other grains, seeds and legumes………
I have to tell you that I have made these plenty of times and love them. Even if I have tweaked the recipe, I give you all the credit. I am always looking for healthier dessert recipes that are gluten-free so I always come to your site for inspiration (and for any other meals).
Hi
I am little confused
You say dehydrated almonds before the recipe
but in the recipe there is no mention of dehydration
Could you please clarify
Thanks!
Nancy
I just made these and they are so delicious! I’m new to your blog and enjoying it. Thanks for the recipe. I used a mini muffin pan to make them smaller, using 1 almond per muffin cup, though next time I think I will use 2. Also, I think for me personally, I don’t need the chocolate top to be quite so sweet so next time I will reduce the honey a bit. Also, I subbed half butter for the coconut oil in the chocolate mixture because I was running low on coconut oil and this worked fine. I already know I need to put these down in the basement freezer so that I won’t be tempted to eat them all the time!
Yummy! Thank you. These are so tasty. I have to be careful not to eat too many – otherwise the coconut oil gives me too much die off. Great way to get the coconut oil in.
Ahhhh . . . . I love recipes that I can feed friends and have them exclaim, “These are so good!!” – and then completely shock them by telling them what they are eating is actually good for them. 🙂
I was lazy today and stirred 2 tbsp cocoa into the coconut mix itself instead of doing chocolate on top. now that I think about it . . . I’m wondering how the addition of cocoa nibs with the nuts would work. Gonna have to try that next time . . . . like, in two hours when I’ve transfered whats left of this batch into freezer bags. 😀
CJ,
What a great idea!
I made these the other day and they tasted amazing!!! I put them in silicone muffin molds and they were very easy to remove. It’s hard to believe they are healthy! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Is there a handy dandy “PRINT” button? I can’t see it … Thanks, my favorite combo, coconut and chocolate!!!
Great recipe! The only changes I made was adding a pinch of salt to both the coconut and especially the chocolate mixture. It really brings out the flavors 🙂 I too made them in silicone muffin molds and they came out wonderfully. Like some of the other commenters suggested I think I will put the almonds on top of the coconut mixture so I can have more control of where they are (so they won’t all be on 1 side of the candy).