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    Home » Recipes

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    By: Thomas Published: 26 Oct, 17 Updated: 28 Oct, 21 10 Comments

    RecipePrintComments
    5 from 2 votes

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    Crispy chocolate, buttery salted caramel, and toasty popped grains!

    Doesn't that sound like the perfect way to start the weekend? Salted caramel meets popped amaranth and chocolate in these to-die-for bars. The fact that they all disappeared in a matter of hours proves how good they are!

    This recipe is very easy to prepare, the hardest part is waiting for it to firm up in the fridge.

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    The crust consists of popped amaranth, rice crisps, and oat flour mixed with a sticky sweetener. I went with coconut nectar because I like its subtle caramelized flavor, but you can use maple or brown rice syrup. To help firm up the crust a bit I also added some coconut oil.

    Have you ever tried making your own popped amaranth? It's a fun process, you heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add your raw amaranth. Cover and let it pop! It's THAT easy! And much cheaper than buying popped amaranth.

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    The combination of popped amaranth and rice crisps give these bars a toasty flavor and crispy texture that balances so well with the soft and buttery caramel.

    For the caramel, I went with my go-to caramel base that I used in this Twix Chocolate Caramel Spread, or these Salted Caramel Chocolate Pancakes. It's a mix of 5 ingredients: almond butter, maple syrup, cocoa butter, vanilla, and sea salt.

    Almond butter brings the creaminess, maple syrup the caramel flavor (I recommend using a dark maple syrup for a deeper caramel flavor), and cocoa butter helps firm up everything. Vanilla and sea salt are optional but highly recommended. Who doesn't like a hint of salt with caramel?!

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    Finally, the thin chocolate layer comes to give even more flavor. It's made with only three ingredients: cocoa butter, cocoa powder, and maple syrup. It's super chocolatey, crispy, and perfectly sweet.

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    If you are a caramel lover you will love these bars, they are sweet, salty, buttery, and super crispy!

    If you have a brother like mine around, these caramel bars won't last long! Quick tip: hide them very well in your refrigerator if you don't want them to disappear too quickly! May I recommend putting them under a box of blue cheese? Its stinky smell should keep most of the gluttons away.

    Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars
    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    Popped Grains Salted Caramel Bars

    Author: Thomas
    Popped amaranth bars with a soft salted caramel center, topped with a crispy layer of homemade dark chocolate. Buttery, salty and chocolatey, it's the perfect treat!
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Pin Review
    Servings 8 Large Bars
    Calories 396 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    Popped Grains Crust

    • 1 and ¼ cup oat flour
    • ¼ cup coconut nectar or other sticky sweetener
    • ¾ cup popped amaranth
    • ¼ cup rice crisps
    • 2 tablespoon coconut oil melted
    • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

    Salted Caramel Layer

    • 6 tablespoon maple syrup
    • 6 tablespoon almond butter
    • 6 tablespoon melted cocoa butter
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
    • ¼ teaspoon sea salt

    Chocolate Topping

    • ¼ cup melted cocoa butter
    • 2 tablespoon cocoa powder
    • 2 teaspoon maple syrup

    Instructions
     

    Popped Grains Crust

    • Line a baking dish with parchment paper. I used an 8x4 inch baking dish.
    • In a mixing bowl, combine the oat flour, coconut nectar, popped amaranth, rice crisps, melted coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Mix using a wooden spoon until you get a sticky mixture.
    • Transfer the mixture to the baking dish, cover with another layer of parchment paper and press very firmly using the bottom of a glass. You want the crust to be very firmly packed. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour (or 30 min in the freezer).

    Salted Caramel Layer

    • In a small bowl, combine the maple syrup and almond butter. Stir in the melted cocoa butter, vanilla extract and sea salt. Whisk until fully combined.
    • Remove the baking dish from the refrigerator and pour the salted caramel on top on the popped amaranth crust. Place in the refrigerator for another 2 hours, or until the caramel layer is firm to touch.

    Chocolate Topping

    • Once the caramel layer is firm: in a bowl, combine the melted cocoa butter, cocoa powder, and maple syrup. Pour over the salted caramel layer and slightly rotate the baking dish to distribute the chocolate evenly. Place in the refrigerator for another 10-15 minutes.
    • Once firm, remove from the baking dish. Run a large knife under hot water, pat it dry and carefully cut into bars. I cut mine into 8 large bars but you can definitely cut it into 16 bite-size bars!

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1 gCalories: 396 kcalCarbohydrates: 32.9 gProtein: 5 gFat: 28.4 gFiber: 3.3 gSugar: 17.6 g
    DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Tag @fullofplants on Instagram and hashtag it #fullofplants
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Dawn | KitchenTravels

      October 31, 2017 at 7:07 pm

      Wow, this looks amazing! Do the bars hold their shape at room temperature?

      Reply
      • Thomas

        November 01, 2017 at 5:31 pm

        They do! That's the magic of cocoa butter 🙂

        Reply
    2. Frances

      November 22, 2017 at 10:18 pm

      5 stars
      Have made this twice now and they are so good and so easy to make. I substituted the almond for peanut butter for first time and now the maple syrup for brown rice syrup. Bit cheaper alternatives and still tastes great. Thank you.

      Reply
    3. Rick

      September 25, 2018 at 8:33 pm

      Hey Thomas! This bar looks incredible!!
      I was wondering if there’s any replacer for the oat flour, since the no-gluten options are a bit expensive where I live.
      Perhaps sunflower seed?

      Reply
      • Thomas

        September 28, 2018 at 2:17 pm

        Hey Rick,
        Thanks! I'm not sure sunflower seeds will work here, maybe try brown rice flour, or buckwheat flour.

        Reply
    4. Sara Dagan

      January 24, 2020 at 2:36 pm

      5 stars
      The perfect harmony of sweet-sated combination!
      Thanks to your recipe - I could make use of the amaranth.

      It's so delicious - in less than 48 hours - all gone.

      will definitely make it again.

      Thank you, Thomas, for another great and creative recipe - you are the best!!!

      Have a nice and warm weekend

      Reply
      • Thomas

        January 27, 2020 at 5:33 am

        I'm glad you liked these bars Sara!
        Thanks for your kind words 🙂

        Reply
    5. Ruth

      November 05, 2021 at 8:49 pm

      Hi Thomas,
      Just finished off the last of these bars.
      Really enjoyed them.
      Thank you for the great recipe.

      Reply
      • Thomas

        November 06, 2021 at 9:23 am

        Thanks Ruth! Glad you liked them 🙂

        Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. Chocolate, Caramel & Vanilla Yule Log - Full of Plants says:
      September 2, 2020 at 8:02 am

      […] which is my go-to salted caramel recipe that I used in these epic chocolate pancakes, or these popped grains bars. It’s made with only 5 ingredients: almond butter makes the base, maple syrup gives it the […]

      Reply

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