Date Snickers are an ooey-gooey combination of caramely dates stuffed with peanut butter and crunchy roasted peanuts all covered in decadent dark chocolate with a pinch of sea salt on top.
If you are looking for a delicious sweet treat that is lower in added sugar and made with whole food ingredients, you HAVE to dry these viral TikTok Date Snickers.
Shout-out to my 2 older sisters who did the taste testing on these! I served them with a glass of red wine after dinner and needless to say they were a big hit.
Dates have been called nature’s candy for a reason. They have a caramel-like texture and sweet taste from natural sugar. They also contain fiber, antioxidants, and several other nutrients – potassium, magnesium, and Vitamin B6 to name a few. Proof that eating healthy can taste amazing! 😊
Looking for other nourishing desserts? Try 4 Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Cookies or Protein Cookie Dough Balls. Or top a bowl of vanilla greek yogurt with Easy Air Fryer Pears with Cinnamon or Fresh Air Fryer Apples.
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Why You'll Love Date Snickers
NUTRITION – these are a fun treat that will leave you feeling satisfied without a sugar crash later. Compared to the traditional snickers bar, these have less calories, saturated fat and sugar. They also contain fiber, healthy fats, and iron! Keep date snickers on hand for when that sweet tooth strikes.
TASTE - by far the best part about dates snickers is that they are a DELICIOUS treat! Every single bite is packed with decadent caramel flavor and sweetness with the perfect punch of salty crunch.
CROWD-PLEASER - a great option for a group situation! Make a big batch next time you host a gathering. People are guaranteed to love them as much as the traditional candy bar.
Ingredients
Snicker Dates are made with 5 simple ingredients. Below are some ingredient notes.
*Be sure to check the recipe card at the bottom for exact ingredient measurements and full recipe.
Medjool Dates - chewy dates are the best way to satisfy a sweet tooth without added sugar! I love to use Natural Delights brand of dates for this recipe. Their caramel-flavor is what makes date snickers taste like the real thing. Find dates in the produce section of most grocery stores.
Creamy Peanut Butter - I use natural peanut butter and one of my go-to brands of peanut butter is Justin’s Brand. Peanut butter is high in healthy fats and contains some plant-protein, too! Just a small amount of peanut butter is needed to achieve the traditional snickers flavor.
Crushed Peanuts - Date Snickers Bars wouldn’t be complete without salty peanuts!
Dark Chocolate - melted chocolate chips or chocolate chunks work perfectly. I use Ghirardelli's brand, but any brand works!
Flaky Sea Salt (optional) - flaky salt is optional, but I love adding some at the end to amp up this delicious treat even more. Something about the combination of salt and chocolate really satisfies my sweet cravings.
Instructions
*Below are the instructions for how to make Date Snickers with some visuals that I hope are helpful! Don't forget to check out the recipe card at the bottom for the full recipe.
Step 1: Line a baking sheet or plate with parchment paper for easy clean up. Slice your dates in the middle with a sharp knife. If your dates have pits, remove the pits.
Step 2: Stuff each date with 1 teaspoon peanut butter and ½ teaspoon chopped peanuts for extra crunch. Place the stuffed dates on the parchment-lined baking sheet. To harden the stuffed dates and make them easier to coat in chocolate, refrigerate them for 20-30 minutes.
Step 3: Melt dark chocolate in a small bowl in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until it is melted. Be sure to use a microwave-safe bowl. Dip stuffed dates in the melted chocolate. You can use a toothpick or a spoon to help with the process of chocolate coating.
Step 4: The final step is to sprinkle ½ teaspoon chopped peanuts and sprinkle of flaky sea salt on the top of each date. Serve immediately or store in the fridge or freezer.
Hint: use a piping bag or ziplock bag with the corner cut off to make it easier to stuff the dates with the peanut butter.
Substitutions
- Nut Butter - if you don’t like peanut butter or have a peanut allergy, use the nut butter of your choice. Almond butter or cashew butter work perfectly. If you’re looking for a nut free option, seed butter is a great alternative. Sunflower Butter can be found at most grocery stores or on Amazon. If you don’t feel like stuffing these peanut butter dates with both peanut butter AND chopped peanuts, you could use crunchy peanut butter to make this easy recipe even quicker.
- Nuts - feel free to substitute with the nuts of your choice.
- Chocolate - if you aren’t a dark chocolate person, use semi-sweet chocolate instead.
Variations
- Vegan - make it vegan by using a vegan dark chocolate.
- Dairy-free - do you struggle with dairy intolerance? There’s plenty of dairy free chocolate chips or meltable bars on the market!
- Lower sugar - want to make this nutrient-rich dessert even lower in sugar? Drizzle the dark chocolate on instead of fully coating the dates. You’ll still get some chocolate in every bite, but use a little less overall.
- Nut free - make this recipe nut free by using sunflower or another seed butter and replacing chopped peanuts with sunflower seeds.
Storage
Fridge: store your chocolate dates in the fridge for up to 1 week. To prevent them from sticking together, layer them in an airtight container with parchment paper in between layers.
Freezer: freeze chocolate covered dates for up to 6 months in a freezer-safe container.
Expert tips
- Use a piping bag or cut the corner off a ziplock bag to make stuffing the dates with peanut butter easier.
- After stuffing with peanut butter and chopped peanuts, close the dates as tightly as possible to keep it all held together.
- Refrigerating the dates after stuffing them with peanut butter and peanuts for about 20 minutes helps to harden them a bit and makes them easier to cover in the melted chocolate!
- If you prefer less chocolate, simply drizzle melted chocolate on top of the peanut butter stuffed dates.
FAQ
While healthy means something different to everyone, Date Snickers are a healthier alternative compared to the classic candy bar. Date snickers are lower in refined sugars, saturated fat and calories. They also contain fiber, antioxidants, healthy fats, and iron.
You can find dates in the produce section or the dried fruit and nut aisle of most grocery stores. You can also find them in the bulk section or purchase them on Amazon.
I suggest using Medjool dates to make date snickers! They are larger and have a sweeter flavor than the deglet variety. My favorite brand to use is Natural Delights Medjool Dates. You can find them on Amazon.
Related
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Looking for Nutrition Education?
Check out some of my educational posts you may enjoy.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! I would love to hear from you! If you made this recipe, please leave me a review below or tag me in a photo or story on Instagram....I LOVE knowing there’s people out there trying out my recipes! 🙂 IG: @mallorythedietitian.
📖 Recipe
Easy Date Snickers Bars (TikTok Dessert Recipe)
Equipment
- piping bag optional
Ingredients
- 12 Medjool Dates I use Natural Delights brand
- ¼ cup creamy peanut butter I use Justin's Brand
- ¼ cup chopped peanuts
- ¼ cup dark chocolate chips Ghirardelli 60% cacao baking chips are a good option
- flaky sea salt, to taste Maldon is a great brand
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet or plate with parchment paper for easy clean up. Slice your dates in the middle with a sharp knife. If your dates have pits, remove the pits.
- Stuff each date with 1 teaspoon peanut butter and ½ teaspoon chopped peanuts for extra crunch. Place the stuffed dates on the parchment-lined baking sheet. To harden the stuffed dates and make them easier to coat in chocolate, refrigerate them for 20-30 minutes.Tip: use a piping bag or ziplock bag with the corner cut off to make it easier to stuff the dates with the peanut butter.
- Melt dark chocolate in a small bowl in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until it is melted. Be sure to use a microwave-safe bowl. Dip stuffed dates in melted chocolate. You can use a toothpick or a spoon to help with the process of chocolate coating.
- The final step is to sprinkle ½ teaspoon chopped peanuts and sprinkle of flaky salt on the top of each date. Serve immediately or store in the fridge or freezer.
Notes
- Use a piping bag or cut the corner off a ziplock bag to make stuffing the dates with peanut butter easier.
- After stuffing with peanut butter and chopped peanuts, close the dates as tightly as possible to keep it all held together.
- Refrigerating the dates after stuffing them with peanut butter and peanuts for about 20 minutes helps to harden them a bit and makes them easier to cover in the melted chocolate.
- If you prefer less chocolate, simply drizzle melted chocolate on top of the peanut butter stuffed dates.
Laura
OMG my life is changed!!!!! I had a bunch of dates leftover from making stuffed dates at the holidays and wanted to use them up but am cutting back on refined sugars. These are literally SO good even my hubby said they're better than a snickers bar. Will def make agian.