Medjool Date Take 5 Bars

Take 5 Bars are definitely not one of the most popular candy bars around, but they should be! They have a delicious combination of salty pretzels and peanuts mixed with sweet, creamy peanut butter, and caramel, so if you like a sweet and salty combination, this bar is for you! While the store-bought versions are delicious, they are not very nutritious, so we have created a quick, simple, and more nutritious recipe that both you and your kids will love this Halloween. 

These home-made Medjool Date Take 5 Bars are vegan, refined sugar-free, and have the option to be gluten-free if you use gluten-free pretzels. These bars are going to become a favorite staple that you will want to always have around! Here’s how you make them:

Ingredients

Date Caramel

• 1 packed cup (about 13 dates depending on their size) Coachella’s Best Organic Medjool Dates (you can buy these here!)
• 2 tbsp almond or coconut milk

• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp salt

Other Ingredients

• 35 pretzel squares (you can use gluten-free pretzels in order to make this recipe gluten-free!)
• ½ cup peanut butter
• ⅓ cup dry roasted peanuts (we used unsalted but either works!)
• Half a bag of semi-sweet dark chocolate chips
• 1 tbsp coconut oil

Directions

1. Cut your Coachella’s Best Organic Medjool Dates in half and remove the pit.
2. Place your halved dates in a bowl and either cover with hot water or add room temperature water and microwave for 60 seconds.
3. Let the dates soak in the hot water for about 2-3 minutes.
4. Drain out the water from the dates and pat dry.
5. Add all of your soaked Medjool dates, almond milk, peanut butter, vanilla, and salt into a blender or food processor and blend until there are no chunks left and you are left with Date Caramel (we recommend starting at a slower speed and stopping to scrape the sides of the blender whenever needed)
6. Remove your Date Caramel and place it in a bowl.
7. Line a baking sheet or large plate with parchment paper and spread out all of your pretzel squares on top.
8. Spread peanut butter (you can use creamy or chunky) on top of each pretzel - this is going to be your first layer.
9. For your second layer, add a dollop of Date Caramel on top of the peanut butter.
10. Take your whole peanuts and place them in a large ziplock bag. Roll over the bag with a rolling pin in order to crush them into smaller pieces.
11. For the final layer, sprinkle the crushed peanuts on top of the bars and gently press them into the caramel so that they do not fall off.
12. Place the baking sheet or plate with your bars into the freezer and chill for at least 30 minutes.
13. Add your chocolate and coconut oil into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 30-second intervals, mixing in between.
14. Once the chocolate has completely melted, place one of the bars in the chocolate and use a fork to completely coat the bar.
15. Remove the bar with the fork, allowing the excess chocolate to drip off and place back onto the parchment paper.
16. Once all of the bars are coated, place them back in the freezer for 10 minutes or until the chocolate has completely hardened.
17. Enjoy!

We hope you enjoy these Date Take 5 Bars just as much as we do! Make sure to share your recreation of this recipe and don’t forget to tag us on Instagram @coachellasbestdates.