These Healthy Homemade Butterfingers are gluten free, vegan friendly, and are made with only six simple ingredients. They’re the perfect balance of sweet and salty with an addicting crunchy peanut butter filling. They taste like the real thing, maybe even better!
I love remaking classic childhood recipes and treats but with simpler, better for you ingredients. Butterfingers were one of my favorite childhood candies so I had to come up with a recipe! Not everyone loves them but there’s something about the salty peanut butter flavor and chewy center that made these one of the best! Not only is this version super easy to make, it’s also fun, and a great at-home fix for any cravings.
Why You’ll Love These
- Healthier – The original candy bar has a long list of ingredients, a lot of added sugars, oils, and additives. These bars are made with single ingredient items to keep things as simple and whole as possible for a healthier treat option.
- Delicious – Did I mention these might be better than the store-bought candy? Try and see!
- They store well – Store these in an air tight container in the freezer and when you’re ready to enjoy, take one out and let it thaw before taking a bite! If you keep these in the freezer, they should last a month or two. If storing in the fridge, they’ll last a week!
- Dietary friendly – Depending on what ingredients you use, this recipe can be gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar-free.
What You’ll Need
- Peanut butter – any nut/seed butter will work but will slightly change the flavor. Look for a natural, runny nut butter. I love Kirkland Organic Peanut Butter or this one from Whole Foods!
- Maple syrup
- Corn flakes – I used this gluten-free cereal from Whole Foods and here’s another to try. You can use regular corn flakes or frosted!
- Vanilla extract
- Peanuts
- Chocolate chips – you can use dairy free.
- Coconut oil
- Sea salt
How To Make
- In a large mixing bowl, add peanut butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and sea salt. Mix and set aside.
- In a blender or food processor, add the corn flakes and peanuts. Pulse a few times until crushed and in crumbled pieces. You can also place these ingredients in a plastic bag, close it, and hit it with the back of a wooden spoon to crush into tiny pieces. Either works!
- Once you’ve gotten small crumbled pieces, add the peanut/corn flake mixture to the peanut butter mixture and stir until you reach a firm, dough-like consistency.
- Line a tray with parchment paper. Begin to roll the dough into balls and form into candy bar shapes, rounding the edges. (Tip: use a cookie scoop like this one to make even-sized bars). Place each bar on your plate or tray and repeat until all of the dough is used.
- Place the tray in the freezer for about an hour, until the bars are set.
- To make the chocolate coating, add the chocolate chips and coconut oil to a small bowl. Microwave in thirty-second intervals, stirring between each, until fully smooth and melted.
- Remove the bars from the freezer and carefully dip each into the melted chocolate. (Tip: it helps to use a fork to move the bar so it’s fully covered in chocolate and remove it from the chocolate bowl – it will be hot!)
- Once all bars are covered in chocolate, set the tray back in the freezer for at least thirty minutes to an hour to harden. Enjoy!
Recommended Tools
- Glass mixing bowls – Perfect for mixing wet and dry ingredients.
- Baking tray – My go-to for putting no bake treats in the freezer.
- High speed blender – If you don’t have or want a food processor, this works just as well!
- Cookie scoop – A less messy way to get even-sized bars.
- Silicone spatula – Great for mixing a thick, sticky, dough-like texture like this.
More Nostalgic Recipes
Single Serve Blueberry Poptart (Gluten Free, Vegan)
Homemade Rice Krispies (Gluten Free, Dairy Free Option)
Healthier Crunch Bars (Gluten Free, Vegan)
Healthy Homemade Butterfingers (Gluten Free, Vegan Friendly)
Ingredients
- 1 cup peanut butter (or any nut/seed butter)
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 + 1/4 cup corn flakes (plain or frosted)
- 1/4 cup peanuts
- 1 + 1/2 cups chocolate chips (can be dairy free)
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Add peanut butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and sea salt to a large bowl. Mix and set aside.
- Add corn flakes and peanuts to a blender or food processor and pulse a few times until crumbly. (See instructions above for another method)
- Once blended, add the peanuts/cornflakes to the peanut butter mixture and stir until you reach a dough-like consistency.
- Line a tray or plate with parchment paper.
- Roll the dough into balls and form into bar shapes. Place each bar on the tray. Place in the freezer for about an hour.
- Make chocolate coating by melting chocolate chips and coconut oil in the microwave for 30 seconds, stir, and repeat until fully melted.
- Remove the bars from the freezer and dip each one in the melted chocolate.
- Set back in the freezer for 30min-1hr to harden. Enjoy!
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