All About The Kale's "Nearly Naked" Bars... and Bites!

All About the Kale’s “Nearly Naked” Bars

We LOVE Nakd bars. They’re nutritious and healthy, and very tasty….

…but it’s no secret that a healthy lifestyle can soon start breaking the bank so why not swap to our ‘Nearly Naked Bars’? They’re super easy to make and cost a fraction of the price!

Our take on the Nakd snack bars are made from the same natural ingredients. They’re gluten and dairy free and also contain no extra nasties (less if anything!) What’s more, you can have them anyway you want them, bars, balls, bites, the possibilities are endless…

Most of our “Nearly Naked” bars can be made using this basic “Simply Nearly Naked” recipe. This is most similar to the Nakd Cocoa Delight bar

To make your favourite flavoured ‘Nearly Naked’ variation, add the additional ingredients accordingly, as described below:

Simply Nearly Naked

50g dates

50g cashews

20g raisins

2 tsp raw cacoa powder (plus a little extra for dusting!)

Method:

Pit your dates (if needed) and add to your food processor along with the cashews, raisins and cacao powder. Blend until a fine crumb. If you’re making a variation, add the extra flavourings last. Shape into balls or bars, or whatever shape you’re going for. Dust your shapes with some raw cacoa powder- put cacao powder onto a clean plate and roll your shapes in it. Enjoy!

(Note: If your mixture is a little dry, add a teaspoon of boiling water at a time until the mixture holds. Alternatively, if your mixture is a little too sticky, add a little flour- such as coconut or almond - until you’re good to go!)

Variations:

Cocoa Orange: Add ½ tsp of Orange Extract (try Nielsen-Massey’s Pure Orange Extract or Flavorganics Orange Extract). You can also add a little bit of orange zest if you fancy

Bakewell Tart: Omit the cacoa powder and add 10g of dried cherries and ½ tsp of almond extract (try Nielsen-Massey’s Pure Almond Extract or Flavorganics Almond Extract)

Cocoa Mocha: Add ½ tsp of Pure Coffee Extract (try Nielsen-Massey’s Pure Coffee Extract or Flavorganics Coffee Extract)

Cashew Cookie: Use 65g of dates and 65g of cashews, omitting the raisins and cacoa powder.

Gingerbread: Omit the cacoa powder and add ¼ tsp of ground ginger, ¼ tsp of ground cloves and ¼ tsp of ground cinnamon.

Strawberry Crunch: Omit the cacoa powder and add 20g of puffed buckwheat and 10g of dried strawberries

Banana Crunch: Omit the cacoa powder and add 20g of puffed buckwheat and 10g of dried banana chips

Cocoa Mint: Add ½ tsp of Pure Peppermint Extract (try Nielsen-Massey’s Pure Peppermint Extract or Flavorganics Peppermint Extract)

Tip: Any nuts can be used in place of cashews, try almonds or pecans, or using a mixture for a bit of a mix-up

Check our ‘Stockists’ Page for where to buy Flavorganics and Nielsen-Massey extracts!

Snigger Bars

So I had a rare evening with no plans and despite getting home late from work, decided to dedicate my last remaining hours of brain functionality to my passion. The kitchen. Snigger Bars Loosely based on the famous 'Marathon' or 'Snickers' Bar I grew up with whether it was pre-swimming practice or post-country walk snack but this time, it's better... I made mine with almonds, but feel free to use peanuts or cashews, or... any nut of your choosing!

Ingredients:

The Nutty Bit:

65g Buckwheat Flour

80 ml Agave Syrup

150g almonds (I use whole, but sliced works well!)

The Squidgy Bit:

15 dates- pitted

Water

Vanilla essence

Pinch of salt

2 tbsp of melted Coconut Oil

The Chocolatey Bit:

60ml melted cacoa butter

30g cacoa powder

60ml Agave or Maple Syrup

Method: Using a blender or food processor mix the flour, with the roughly chopped nuts and syrup. Grab little handfuls and roll in to shapes. Sausage shaped or balls -it's totally up to you. Place on baking parchment on a dish and whack in the freezer.

Whilst your shapes are chilling, whizz up 15 dates, a dash of vanilla essence (say 1/2tsp) and the melted coconut oil. Add water sparingly until you have a creamy caramel. I was lazy and used the larger bowl and blade on my mixer to save washing up so it was chunkier than usual! We love diversity though, so whether you like yours as smooth as cashew butter or chunkier like crunchy peanut butter, it's a-okay with us! You should be able to spread the date mixture over the chilled nutty bit. I find it is quite easy to 'roll' the spread over the nut shapes for even coverage.

Place your snigger shapes back in the freezer whilst you make your raw chocolate. It is as easy as melting the butter, stirring in the powder and the syrup. As always, feel free to swap the cacoa butter for coconut oil and swap the syrup for a sweeter of your choice, whether it maple, pomegranate, date, agave etc... Evenly coat the snigger shapes with the melted chocolate and chill again... or at least try to, before devouring.

I like to play around with the textures and consistency of these Snigger bars. Pulse the nuts a little more or less whilst making the 'nutty bit' for a smoother or crunchier texture. Likewise with the 'Squidgy Bit' date caramel.