I know I’ve mentioned my affinity for coconut before- see here and here.  Recently, the Clif bar company came out with a coconut chocolate chip bar and I was happy to try it out.  Wow.  Other than the holiday flavors, this kind is definitely the best I have had and I would eat one every day- if I could afford to!

I decided to attempt to replicate these bars at home.  I knew I wouldn’t achieve perfection but I wanted to make something similar.

In the interest of full disclosure, my first attempt at these was a failure.

it looks good...

I think I knew this batch was not destined for greatness when the batter was so thick that I had to press it into the pan.  I couldn’t turn back at that point so I baked them anyway.  I’m still eating these bars and they’ve grown on me- they are much more cake-like than a Clif bar.  But, I wanted to make something a little more palatable to share.  The second time around, success.

Mock Clif bars: Coconut Chocolate Chip

What allows these to have such a strong coconut flavor without too much coconut is using coconut extract.  I can’t afford the real stuff but the two buck bottle at Wal-Mart works for me!

2 flax eggs- 6 tablespoons of water + 2 tablespoons ground flax (or Egg replacer or eggs)

1/4 cup maple syrup these are not very sweet at all- add more based on your preference

1/2 cup coconut milk you might be able to replace with coconut yogurt- let me know if that works!

1 teaspoon coconut extract

3/4 cup quick cooking oats

3/4 cup whole wheat flour you could use coconut flour or some protein powder here instead but a. it’s expensive and b., I wanted to use what I had on hand

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup shredded coconut

1/3 cup chopped chocolate chips

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tablespoon coconut milk

+Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

+Set up flax eggs I found this helpful link- I didn’t wait an hour, just long enough until I had to use them

Before

after

+Sift or whisk oats, flour, soda, salt and coconut together

+Mix “eggs”, maple syrup, coconut milk, and coconut extract together

+Combine dry and wet, mix+Add chocolate chips+Pour batter into an 8X8 baking pan

+Bake for 15 minutes+While bars are cooling, whisk powdered sugar and coconut milk together+Pour frosting into plastic bag, snip a tiny cut in the corner of the bag and ice away!

These are no Clif bar but they are a tasty replacement with a delicious coconut flavor- enjoy!