These Gluten Free Chocolate Cookie Bars have a dense cookie base with chocolate and coconut on top! They are gluten free, vegan, nut free (except for coconut), and lower in sugar than the original recipe.Gluten-free, vegan; Free of: nuts (except coconut), dairy, eggs, soy
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line an 8x8-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside
In a medium bowl, beat together the vegan butter, brown sugar, baking Stevia, flaxseed, and vanilla with a hand blender until mixed well
Add the oats, flour, and salt to the butter mixture and beat again until well blended and a thick dough forms
Spread the cookie dough into the bottom of the prepared pan evenly
Bake for about 23 minutes
Allow to cool for at least 15 to 20 minutes, then gently press down on the cookie base evenly with a spatula (this helps it to stay together better and not crumble later when the bars are cut)
In a small microwaveable bowl, add the chocolate chips and the coconut oil and melt in the microwave by heating for 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each time, until the chocolate is completely melted
Spread the chocolate evenly over the cookie base and sprinkle the coconut on top of the melted chocolate
Allow the bars to cool completely and let the chocolate completely set up before cutting into bars
Once the chocolate is set, cut into 16 bars
Enjoy!
Notes
If you want to make these without stevia, you can use all sugar in this recipe (1/2 cup)