This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This No Bake Cookie Dough Bars recipe is sponsored by Wholesome Sweeteners. As always, all opinions are my own.
These no bake Cookie Dough Bars are vegan and made without refined sugar. They are chewy and indulgent, and only take 15 minutes to put together (plus an hour of anxious peeking into the fridge to see if they’ve set). If you love cookie dough, these bars are for you!
These cookie dough bars are so good! You and I both know that there’s nothing like devouring a spoonful of raw cookie dough. The kids want it all, but when raw egg is added to the mix you know they shouldn’t, and it’s hard to say no when it’s right there in front of you begging to be tried. Well, fret about eating raw eggs no longer friends. These no bake cookie dough bars that taste just like the real deal — but they’re healthier!
What’s the secret? Nutty goodness. Mix together almond flour and oat flour then mix in warmed peanut butter with Wholesome Allulose liquid sweetener for a cookie dough extravaganza. Of course, you can munch away before your cookie dough bars are set in the fridge — just don’t forget to drizzle that hot and gooey chocolate sauce on top for pure bliss.
“OMG I made these cookie dough bars today and they are magical!!! Thank you for this delicious recipe! 😋” – Kathleen
Table of Contents
- Recipe at a glance
- Ingredients you’ll need to make cookie dough bars
- Popular substitutions & additions
- How to make no bakr cookie dough bars
- Tips for making the best no bake cookie dough bars
- WHAT TO SERVE WITH VEGAN COOKIE DOUGH BARS
- How to store no bake cookie dough bars
- Frequently asked questions
- For more no bake recipes:
- For more bars recipes
- No Bake Cookie Dough Bars Recipe
Recipe at a glance
Cuisine Inspiration: American
Primary Cooking Method: No Bake, Chilled
Dietary Info: Vegan, Gluten Free
Key Flavor: Cookie Dough
Skill Level: Beginner
Summary
- No Bake: These cookie dough bars require no baking, making them a perfect dessert for hot summer days when you want a sweet treat without heating up your kitchen.
- Vegan: Made with vegan ingredients and no dairy or eggs, these bars are suitable if you’re following a vegan diet or looking for plant-based dessert options.
- Gluten-Free: The recipe uses oat flour, which is naturally gluten-free, making these bars a great choice if you experience gluten sensitivities or have celiac disease.
- Chilled Treat: These cookie dough bars are great for preparing ahead of time. They just simply need to be chilled in the fridge for at least 2 hours for all the flavors to meld and solidify.
Ingredients you’ll need to make cookie dough bars
While you can skip the chocolate topping, I do prefer it for a more well round bar.
For the Base
- Oat flour: Oat flour serves as the main dry ingredient in the base. It provides a tender and crumbly texture to the bars while adding a mild oat flavor, complementing the cookie dough theme.
- Almond flour: Almond flour adds a nutty richness to the base and helps create a dense and chewy texture in the bars. It also enhances the overall flavor profile with its subtle almond notes.
- Sea salt: Sea salt is used to balance the sweetness and enhance flavors in the base.
- Creamy peanut butter: Creamy peanut butter not only binds the base together but also infuses it with a slight nutty taste. Its creamy texture enhances the cookie dough-like consistency.
- Wholesome Allulose: Wholesome Allulose acts as a natural sweetener, providing sweetness without adding extra calories. It contributes to the cookie dough’s sweetness while maintaining a lower glycemic index.
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla extract is added to impart a warm vanilla flavor typically found in regular chocolate chip cookies.
- Chocolate chips: Chocolate chips are a classic addition to cookie dough and are mixed into the base to create pockets of rich, chocolatey goodness throughout the bars.
For the Topping
- Chocolate chips: Additional chocolate chips are used in the topping to create a smooth and decadent chocolate layer. They not only add a luscious flavor but also contribute to the appeal of the bars.
- Creamy peanut butter: Creamy peanut butter in the topping complements the nutty flavors in the base. It helps create a creamy and velvety texture in the chocolate topping, making it easy to spread.
- Coconut oil: Coconut oil is added to the topping to create a glossy and shiny finish while providing a hint of coconut flavor. It also helps the topping set and firm up when chilled, making it easier to cut into squares.
Popular substitutions & additions
- Nut Butter: If using peanut butter isn’t an option, be sure that whichever nut butter you choose is super creamy. Some nut butter, like almond butter, can be slightly gritty and rough in texture.
- Mini Chocolate Chips: For a wider distribution of chocolate chips throughout the bars, use mini chips!
- Flaky Salt: Moldon flaky salt is a nice addition to give that sweet and salty contrast.
- Topping additions: These cookie dough bars offer the perfect chocolate canvas to all sorts of your favorite toppings. These are not limited to sprinkles, dried fruits, pretzels, small candies, candy canes, and edible glitter.
- Coconut Flour: You can substitute coconut flour for almond flour, oat flour, or both. However, you’ll have to play around with the ratios and adjust the peanut butter and sweetener. I have not tested it before, but I have seen others make some gluten-free cookie dough bars with coconut flour.
How to make no bakr cookie dough bars
Start by warming the peanut butter, then mixing in liquid Allulose. I love that it has a mild sweetness that is about 75% as sweet as sugar. But the best part is that it behaves like sugar in that it dissolves well and instantly mixes and helps bind the cookie dough. Plus there’s no bitter aftertaste, like some other zero-calorie sweeteners.
The consistency should be thick, creamy and pretty smooth.
Next, mix together the almond flour, oat flour and salt. And add the peanut butter and sweetener mixture on top. It will be tough to mix, so you can use your hands to make it easier. Finally, add the chocolate chips, and you’re on your way to the best better-for-you cookie dough bars.
If you’d like to have a layer of chocolate topping, you can melt plain chocolate chips on top. For a smoother and thicker consistency, I like to mix chocolate chips, peanut butter and coconut oil.
Then you can transfer the mixture to a baking dish and smother it with the warm melted chocolate layer. The hard part now is letting this cool in the fridge for a couple hours to allow the chocolate to harden and the flours to absorb all the wet ingredients and solidify.
“Sooo delicious! Just made a batch, super simple, love the use of healthier ingredients. I used maple syrup instead of allulose. Excellent!” – Jade
Tips for making the best no bake cookie dough bars
- Use creamy peanut butter and heat it through for best consistency. While you can use other nut butters, I found it was tricky with almond butter, for example, because it wasn’t as creamy and smooth. Heating it up will help it blend well with the flours.
- Add water into the dough to help bind it if necessary. Since Allulose is not as sticky as other forms of liquid sweeteners, it may be necessary to add a couple tablespoons of water to the base mixture to help make it more sticky and dough-like. This will not affect the taste though.
- Line the baking dish with parchment paper for easy clean up and removal. Make sure there is overhanging piece on the sides, which you can use to lift the cookie dough bars from the baking tray.
- Grind oat flour and almond flour finely. While you can buy oat flour and almond flour, it is cheaper to make them at home, and it’s as easy as throwing oats in a blender or blanched almonds in a blender. However, make sure to process them until they are flour-like. It will help everything blend better together.
- Set the cookie dough bars in fridge, not freezer. While it works just fine in the freezer, I find that the chocolate will crack when you try to cut it with a knife. If refrigerated, the chocolate cools slower and won’t crack when cut.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH VEGAN COOKIE DOUGH BARS
How to store no bake cookie dough bars
When stored in an airtight container, vegan cookie dough bars will last up from 5-10 days in the refrigerator. An ideal recipe for making ahead of time for family events.
Can I Freeze No Bake Cookie Dough Bars?
You can also freeze the bars after they’ve been set; just wrap them securely in plastic wrap or foil and place them in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 2 months.
Frequently asked questions
These cookie dough bars are made without condensed milk, refined sugar or any other processed ingredients. The almond flour provides a ton of vitamins and minerals and the oats provide fiber. These are gluten-free treats that the whole family will love, and they are much better for you than some traditional cookie recipes!
If the bars are too hard, let them sit at room temperature for a few minutes before cutting. This will soften them slightly and make slicing easier. In addition, using a sharp knife that’s been warmed under hot water will help to make clean cuts through the cold chocolate.
If the chocolate topping is too thick, try adding a bit more coconut oil to thin it out. Coconut oil helps to create a smoother, more spreadable consistency.
For more no bake recipes:
For more bars recipes
There’s no need to be tempted by eating raw cookie dough next time you bake cookies. Try my eggless healthy cookie dough bars for a gluten-free, dairy-free, low-sugar treat made with wholesome ingredients. They are seriously little bite sizes of heaven! Thank you Wholesome Sweeteners for sponsoring this No Bake Cookie Dough recipe.
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good No Bake Cookie Dough Bars recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
No Bake Cookie Dough Bars
Video
Ingredients
For the Base
- 1 ½ cup oat flour
- 1 cup almond flour
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3/4 cup Wholesome Allulose
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
For the Topping
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
Instructions
- Line a 9×9 inch square baking pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oat flour, almond flour and sea salt until well combined.
- In another large microwave-safe blow, add the peanut butter and heat in the microwave for 30-60 seconds until it’s melted and smooth. Whisk the Allulose and vanilla extract into the peanut butter.
- Add the dry ingredients on top of the wet ingredients and stir well to fully combine. Then fold in the chocolate chips, keeping in mind the mixture will be thick. Transfer mixture into the prepared baking pan and press evenly into the pan.
- To make the chocolate topping, melt the chocolate chips, peanut butter and coconut oil in the microwave or on the stove. Stir until smooth. Spread over base until smooth.
- Chill in the refrigerator until completely firm, about 2 hours. Allow to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before cutting. Cut into 16 squares and serve or store in the fridge.
Notes
- Instead of oat flour, you can use almond flour; and vice versa.
- Instead of chocolate chips, you can use a chocolate bar of choice.
- Instead of peanut butter, you can use another nut butter, but make sure it’s heated and creamy for easier mixing.
- Instead of Allulose, you can use any other liquid sweetener
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
It is sooo good. Easy recipe to follow. I didn’t have almond flour and used 1/2 cup of oat flour for the lack of almond flour. It turned out delicious. Will make it again 🙂
Thank you so much!
I was pleasantly surprised by these cookie dough bars! I was looking for a snack for my teen daughter to take to school, and we were both a little bit skeptical of this recipe. We thought that the peanut butter taste would be overpowering. We were completely wrong! These bars are the perfect snack, and they actually taste pretty similar to actual cookie dough.
I am so happy to hear that you and your daughter enjoyed them! I Love the idea of making these for a school treat!
I have to say, I was extremely skeptical when I found this recipe because I usually don’t like healthified cookie dough recipes and I thought the peanut butter taste would be overpowering. I was very pleasantly surprised. Of course the peanut butter is noticeable, but in a great way. It is by far the best healthy-ish cookie dough recipe I’ve ever tried, and I will definitely be making it again. I used blue agave instead of allulose because that was what I had on hand.
Glad you still gave it a try and enjoyed it! Yay!!
Hey yumna! Great recipe! I was just wondering if I could use honey instead? And if so, how much?
Yes you can, and 3/4 cup works well!
OMG I made these cookie dough bars today and they are magical!!! Thank you for this delicious recipe! 😋
So glad to hear it! Thank you!!