Raw Bounty Bars

Coconut Filling
2 cups / 175g unsweetened desiccated coconut
¼ cup / 60ml coconut oil, melted (virgin coconut oil if you have it)
2 Tbsp. coconut nectar (substitute with honey or maple syrup)
1-2 Tbsp. raw honey or maple syrup (depending on how sweet you like it – you can also use coconut nectar)
¼ tsp. fine grain sea salt
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
1 Tbsp. water

Raw Chocolate
1/4 cup / 60 ml melted coconut oil
2 Tbsp. / 30ml melted cacao butter
1/3 cup / 30g raw cacao powder
1/4 cup raw honey
a couple pinches salt, to taste

Directions:

1. In a double boiler (or a glass bowl over a pot of simmering water) melt coconut oil. Remove from heat and add coconut nectar, honey, sea salt and vanilla seeds, whisk to combine. Set aside.

2. Place coconut in a large bowl and sprinkle the tablespoon of water over top, stir well. Pour the coconut oil mixture over and fold to combine, using your hands if necessary. Taste for sweetness and adjust if necessary.

3. Line a 7×7” (18x18cm) baking pan with plastic wrap, leaving plenty of extra to hang over the sides. Press the coconut mixture firmly into place, especially around the edges. (If you don’t have a baking pan, just use the plastic wrap as an edge, pulling it up around the open ends, pressing firmly to ensure it is compact.) Wrap edges around coconut and place in the freezer to firm, at least 30 minutes, up while you make the chocolate.

4. In a double boiler (or a glass bowl over a pot of simmering water) melt coconut oil and cacao butter. Add honey and whisk to combine. When completely uniform, remove from heat and sift in cacao, and add sea salt. Taste for sweetness and saltiness, and adjust accordingly.
On an open work surface, place a piece of parchment paper underneath a cooling rack (and oven rack will work just fine, but it helps if whatever you choose fits into your freezer). Make space in your freezer for the rack to fit.

4. Remove coconut from the freezer, unwrap and cut into 12 bars of equal size. Round off the ends by slicing off the corners if you like (this is just for aesthetic reasons, but it’s up to you!). One by one, place a coconut bar into the liquid chocolate and turn over a couple times to coat. Remove with a fork, allowing any excess chocolate to drip back into the bowl, then place on the cooling rack. Repeat with remaining bars. Once all the bars have been done and they  re no longer dripping, place rack in the freezer for the chocolate to harden, about 15 minutes. Remove from freezer and repeat the process, giving each bar with one more coat of chocolate. Return bars to the freezer.

5. If you have any chocolate remaining, remove chocolate bars from the freezer and drizzle it over top in a design that you like (it’s fun to do with a plastic sandwich bag – simply slice a teeny corner off of one end and pipe chocolate onto the bars). Return to the freezer to firm up completely, at least one hour. Then remove bars from rack and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to two months.