Healthy Mint Chocolate Krispy Treats
These Mint Chocolate Krispy Treats are crunchy, chewy, sweet, rich, and UBER decadent. You’d never know they’re healthy! Oh yes, these are refined sugar free, high protein, and gluten free too.
Back in college, I was obsessed with Clif bars. But after finally reading the ingredient list and looking over the nutrition label, I decided to step away from them since they’re incredibly high in sugar and not much else. I swapped the energy bars with the Builders bars because, c’mon, they’re freakin’ delicious. Although the Builders bars are still high in sugar, they have less than the energy bars, they’re twice the size, they’re more filling, and for roughly the same amount of calories you get a ton more protein.
Out of all the flavors I tried, the chocolate mint flavor was my favorite. I guess you can say they were inspiration for these delicious Mint Chocolate Krispy Treats. Or maybe I just needed to try a new flavor combination after four failed attempts at making (or trying to make) Snickers Krispy Treats… haha *nervous laugh*
These crunchy and chewy Mint Chocolate Krispy Treats triumph over those storebought Clif Builders bars! These don’t have any refined sugars, they have a natural and refreshing mint flavor, and they’re fun to make (and eat)! Thank goodness this recipe required only two trials to perfect, because if it needed any more I would probably give up on krispy treats altogether. Just kidding. That would never happen 😉
Trial #1:
I made these bars similar to the Peanut Butter and Chocolate Krispy Treats: a krispy treat base, chocolate layer, and icing design on top. It was pretty, but the dark chocolate was way too overpowering (I used 100% cacao unsweetened chocolate). The treats needed to be sweeter. Much sweeter.
Trial #2:
Instead of adding more sweetener to the base, I doubled the icing topping and used it to make a “fondant” layer instead of design on top. Because while an icing design on top of the treats would be pretty, more frosting = more fun. Does that sound good or what?!? Rhetorical question, because I already know the answer. It does sound good, and it is delicious.
Look at these two lovebirds! Sadly, for the guy on the bottom, I ate the cutie here on the top… but it wasn’t a sad moment for me! 🙂
These Mint Chocolate Krispy Treats are refined sugar free, low glycemic, high protein, and gluten free too! Guys, I thoroughly enjoyed these krispy treats. They’re perfectly sweet, crunchy yet chewy, and best of all, healthy!
Healthy Mint Chocolate Krispy Treats
Ingredients
Krispy Treats:
- 5 cups Crispy Brown Rice Cereal
- 60g (⅔ cup) Chocolate Whey Protein Powder
- 168g (½ cup) Raw Honey or Brown Rice Syrup
- 32g (2 tbs) Natural Almond Butter
- 3 oz Dark Chocolate
- 1 tsp Vanilla Paste
- ½ tsp Liquid Stevia Extract
- ¼ tsp Peppermint Flavor
- ¼ tsp Salt
Mint Fondant Layer:
- 68g (¾ cup) Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
- 147g (7 tbs) Agave Nectar
- 28g (2 tbs) Coconut Oil (melted)
- ½ tsp Peppermint Flavor
Mint Chocolate Topping:
- 4 oz Dark Chocolate
- 10g (2 tsp) Coconut Oil
- ¼ tsp Peppermint Flavor
Instructions
For the Krispy Treats:
- Line an 8x8" brownie pan with parchment paper both ways.
- In a large bowl, add the crispy brown rice cereal.
- In a small bowl, add the chocolate protein powder.
- In a double boiler over medium heat, add the honey/brown rice syrup, almond butter, chocolate, vanilla paste, stevia extract, peppermint flavor, and salt. Stir occasionally until the chocolate is completely melted.
- Working quickly now, stir in the protein powder. Scoop the mixture over the cereal, then fold together until completely combined.
- Scoop the mixture into the prepared pan, flatten it out, and press it down..
For the Mint Fondant Layer:
- In a small bowl, stir together all the ingredients until it's completely even (it should be like a thick, sticky frosting).
- Scoop the mixture over the krispy treat base and gently spread it out. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to help level it out.
For the Mint Chocolate Topping:
- In a small, microwave-safe bowl, add the chocolate and coconut oil. Microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring between each one, until completely melted.
- Stir in the peppermint flavor.
- Drizzle this all over the fondant layer, then tilt the pan to make sure the entire surface is coated in chocolate. Refrigerate just until firm (if you refrigerate it for too long, you'll have a hard time slicing clean lines through the chocolate without it breaking).
- Slice into 16 treats, then serve and enjoy!
Store in hands, then mouth the refrigerator 😉
Bring these to a friend’s house, bring these to a potluck, bring these to work. Everyone will love you.
Enjoy!
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With love and good eats,
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– Jess
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Indulge − no strings attached!
You have got to be kidding me! I have been loving on Builder’s bars lately and thinking I HAVE to stop that! I know they are not good for me, although they are a tad better than all the so called healthy protein bars that are available out there, they still aren’t the best, especially not if you are going to have them every day.
And now, here you are, with your FABULOUS recipe to make my very own, even better than the real thing, Builder’s bars? OMG, it’s like a dream come true! You are just phenomenal, Jessica, PHENOMENAL! I so can’t wait to give those a try. They look so good too! Unreal!
By the way, I really love the new look too. I find this font much easier to read than the previous one. Beautiful site, you have my friend. Gorgeous!
Sonia-
You’re so kind! I couldn’t help but smile reading your comment.
Yes, it was time for a change in the blogs’ looks! Hope you get to try these 🙂
-Jess
One can never have enough of chocolate! Yummy!
3 layers of goodness!
Love love love this recipe! Since I found it last month, we’ve made it at least three times. Last time, left the protein powder out of the base to justify one-and-a-halfing the fondant layer. Yum. Love the fondant, tastes so good! Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
Sarah-
Haha, love it! I might try that soon 😉
-Jess
My husband and I love Builder bars! I always have one in my purse for those desperate, low blood sugar moments. These look amazing. Must try! Thank you!
Looks delish! Are your chocolate and vanilla protein powders sweetened or unsweetened?
The protein powder I use is pre-sweetened (either with stevia or evaporated cane juice).
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This sound amazing and can’t wait to try the recipe! I do have a question….in step two it says to combine the protein coffee and salt….. How much coffee and is there a particular type?
Nichole S-
Oops, sorry about that. In the original recipe I had 1/8 tsp of instant coffee in the recipe, but when I made it again, I felt it tasted better without it. I took it out of the recipe but not the instructions! DOH!
Thanks for pointing that out 🙂
I hope you like the recipe!
-Jess
Hi! These look wonderful and I was looking for a DIY replacement of the Builder’s bars! Sorry if this was answered earlier but do you think I could make a large batch of these and then freeze them?
So far, this is a great recipe! If i divide this up, it has about the same protein and fat as the clif bar but nearly double the sugar. How can I reduce the sugar content?
My recipe has ~9g more sugar than Clif Builders bars, but I use low glycemic sweeteners rather than high glycemic cane sugar and cane syrup, seen in Clif. I haven’t tried this, but I suppose you can substitute 1/4 cup of the rice syrup in the krispy treats with 1/4-1/3 cup of almond butter (or another neutral tasting nut butter, like cashew butter). Hope this works! 🙂
Rice Krispies used to be one of my favorite treats! The fact that this recipe includes TONS of chocolate makes it even more amazing! Would you think this recipe works with vegan protein powder and maple syrup?
I haven’t tried this with vegan protein powder so I can’t be sure, although my gut tells me that won’t work. I have tried maple syrup though, and I find that the krispy treats are much stickier and aren’t as crunchy. I think maple syrup has a higher water content than honey, so maybe the rice krispies soak it up?
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