I have a sneaking suspicion that this weeks Chocolate Caramel Muesli Bar is going to be popular. I’ve had a few requests for a healthy caramel slice recipe and though it looks nothing like the sugar laden three layer slice, it is a super delicious, nourishing caramel choc treat.
As a kid I spent every weekend at my nan’s house and we cooked and baked together- a lot! Most of my childhood memories are centred around tending to our chickens and ducks, digging for potatoes (my favourite job as the kids in my favourite Enid Blighton book ‘The Faraway Tree’ used to dig for potatoes) and long sessions of cooking in her old wood-fired stove, always experimenting, always creating ‘new’ recipes and searching for delicious flavour combo’s.
However as an adult, whilst I’ve always loved cooking meals, it wasn’t until I had kids (and they started school) that I baked again. Once my youngest noticed all the biscuits and crackers her friends had in their lunchbox (and wanted the same) I realised the only thing I could do was to get my bake on again. The rest they say, is history!
A healthy-ish treat
I always try to inject as much nourishment as I can into all of my recipes, including sweet treats. I’ve made this Chocolate Caramel Muesli Bar nut-free so it’s good for the school lunchbox. The seeds and wholegrains really help to add protein, good fats and a bit of sustenance to this sweet treat. My kids feel like they’ve hit the jackpot with this slice – it’s a new favourite.
Take a look at the variations (below the main recipe) for suggestions to alter the recipe to suit many dietary requirements.
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A sweet, sticky muesli bar that freezes really well for a quick, easy to pack lunchbox snack.
- 125 grams butter, cubed
- 170 grams (½ cup) sweetener (rice malt syrup, maple syrup or honey)
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate soda
- 120 grams (1 cup approx.) mixed seeds (I used sunflower seeds and pepitas)
- 120 grams (1 cup) wholemeal spelt flour
- 200 grams (2 cups) rolled oats or quinoa flakes (or a mixture)
- 30 grams (4 tbs approx.) raw cacao or Dutch Process cocoa
- 115 gram (⅓ cup) sweetener (rice malt syrup, maple syrup or honey)
- 120 ml (½ cup) full-fat coconut milk (I used Ayam brand)
- Good pinch sea salt
- Pre-heat the oven to 180℃ / 350℉.
- Begin with the caramel.
In a small pot mix the sweetener, coconut milk and sea salt and bring to a bubbling simmer. Simmer rapidly (it looks a bit foamy on top) for about 10 + minutes or until the caramel starts to thicken. Remove from the heat and allow to cool (it will further thicken as it cools).
- Whilst the caramel cooks/cools, make the slice.
- In a small pot melt the butter and sweetener, mixing to combine. Add the bicarb and stir well.
- Place the seeds in a food processor and grind into a meal. Add the flour, oats (or quinoa flakes) and cacao and mix until well combined.
- Add the butter/ sweetener mix and process to combine. The mixture should come together into a coarse dough.
Line a small tin (27cm x 18cm) with baking paper. Press ⅔ of the mixture into the base of the tin and press very down firmly with wet hands. I like to make sure the outer edges sit a little higher than the middle so I get an even coverage without the caramel making its way down the sides.
Top with the caramel. It is not a thick layer as a traditional slice would be, rather a randomly gooey, thin layer. More caramel means a lot of sugar which is why I've kept it minimal.
Crumble the remaining dough over the caramel pressing lightly.
Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until just golden brown.
Allow to cool in the pan, refrigerate until firm and then cut into slices (chilling it allows for it to be sliced without crumbling).
Heat the sweetener, coconut milk and sea salt, 10-15 minutes, temp varoma, speed 3 (cap ajar or off so the steam can escape) or until it thickens (this can vary a bit). You can set this aside to cool and use the bowls without washing it.
Grind your seeds and set aside. No need to rinse the bowl.
Melt the butter and sweetener 1 minute, temp 90, speed 3 or until melted and combined. Add the bicarb and mix 5 seconds speed 3.
- Add the rest of the base ingredients and the butter/sweetener and mix 15 seconds, speed 4. You may need to scrape the sides a few times to fully combine.
- Assemble as above.
- Airtight in the fridge or freezer. You can pack in school lunch boxes from frozen.
Gluten-free
Substitute the spelt for gluten-free flour and the oats with quinoa flakes (rolled quinoa).
Dairy-free and vegan
Substitute the butter with coconut oil.
Nutty
The seeds can be substituted with any nuts. I love this with chopped hazelnuts or pecans or walnuts.
Coconut-free
Replace the coconut milk in the caramel with regular cream.
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I'd love to hear how your kids like this slice? I have a feeling it is going to be very popular. Comment and/or rate this recipe below (it really helps my recipes to reach more people so thanks in advance).
Mahité Breton says
Oh my, Georgia, that sounds so good, I’m drooling!
Georgia Harding says
It is very yum Mahité G x
Rachel Griffin says
This is DELICIOUS! I’m going to begrudgingly share it with my kids!! Not sickly sweet at ALL, which even ‘wholefoodie’ ones can be. (probably as they are full of dates). I also loved the seeds through it, gives it great texture. Definitely going on rotation here. 🙂
Georgia Harding says
Ha ha Rach – it was a recipe I worked on for ages to get the sweetness right. Thrilled you loved it and thanks for the star rating too G x
Jacqui says
Can’t wait to make this for our first week back to school! Thanks for making life easy! I’ve decided to only refer to your site for school lunches rather than overwhelm myself with the amount of recipes and sites available about the topic!
You have everything covered, Thankyou for your wonderful recipes!
Georgia Harding says
Oh thanks so much Jacqui – yes this online world can be very overwhelming for sure. Other than the time I spend online with Well Nourished (which is a lot) – I rarely spend time online (I’d rather be outdoors or reading a good novel ha ha!). You’re very welcome, I love cooking and sharing Gx
Erin says
We really loved this slice too. I added some nuts to the seeds as this first yummy batch was just for home, but will do but free for my husbands school lunches. (He’s a teacher) Thank you so much for yet another delicious recipe. A not so sweet treat with nutritional substance. 👍
Erin says
Oops, nut free. 😳😂
Georgia Harding says
Autocorrect does this to me ALL the time lol! G x
Georgia Harding says
Beautiful – it is nice with nuts when you are able. But also just as good without, glad you loved it and thanks so much for rating it G x
Emily says
I made this and it’s delicious! Just a question – how thick shoudk the caramel be? Mine didn’t go very thick…the fridge helped thicken it a bit. It was still delicious but wondering if the caramel shoudk be oozy or quite thick and chewy?
Georgia Harding says
Hi Emily, glad you enjoyed it. It sounds like your caramel may have needed a bit more of a rapid simmer or a bit longer. It should be the consistency of a thick syrup. I’ve purposely made it a thin layer to keep the overall sugar content of the slice reasonable (I can be a bit of a scrooge with sweetener). On the slice it forms a thin slightly gooey layer through middle – you can always double the caramel for a thicker layer too. Hope that helps G x
Holly F says
I had the same issue. My caramel didn’t thicken even after 10.5min in the thermomix. I used Coconut Oil and Maple Syrup. Maybe this combination just needs a bit longer. Still tastes amazing though!
Georgia Harding says
Hi Holly, glad you enjoyed it. Just to point out, the caramel is a combo of sweetener and coconut milk (not coconut oil) so that would perhaps explain it not thickening lol G x
Marisa says
Georgia. For the thermomix method, do I need to ground the seeds before step 2?
Georgia Harding says
Ooops – I have seeds preground so forgot that step. Will update now cheers, G x
Marisa says
Thanks. My 3 girls loved it.
Georgia Harding says
Yay – thrilled Marissa. Thanks for your feedback and rating G x
Tracey says
Another delicious recipe! Will definitely make this again, thanks for sharing Georgia.
Georgia Harding says
Thrilled you liked it Tracey, you’re very welcome G x
Kirsty says
i have no choice but to give this recipe 5 stars as my extremely fussy master 8 yr old ate two pieces!!! Have packed it in his lunch box today too.
Georgia Harding says
Yay – thanks so much. Thrilled he loved it Kirsty G x
Louise says
I made this last weekend and it has been a big hit with Miss 12 and Master 6. Does a week of morning teas for two with the occasional piece for me too. Very easy in the thermomix and slices with nice sharp edges after resting in the fridge overnight. Thank you for this recipe Georgia it’s a winner.
Georgia Harding says
Glad you and your kids enjoyed it Louise. It’s definitely worth chilling well before cutting. You’re very welcome G x
knaxgurke says
Made this with a friend on the weekend and it was absolutely delicious! We both independently went for it as a midnight snack coming back from the pub to celebrate me getting my PhD. (She opted to microwave it and top it with a dollop of whipped cream, whereas I later discovered that it possibly tastes even better out of the fridge.)
Also: Because we didn’t have enough rice syrup we used glucose for the base and carefully added water to get it to a good consistency and that (obviously ;)) worked just fine, in case anyone is wondering.
Georgia Harding says
Glad you enjoyed it- huge congrats on your PhD! Thanks also for your tip re swapping to the RMS G x
Vanessa says
Hi Georgia, I can’t wait to make this for little miss 3yo however I am super confused about the measurements for example 1 cup is always = 250mL or 250gm so when I read the grams in this recipe, it’s about half the normal measurement. Would I end up with a bigger choc caramel slice if I follow the cup and tbsp measurements rather than the grams?
Georgia Harding says
Hi Vanessa, grams are a measurement of weight so 250g water or milk (for eg;) is one cup, but 340g rice malt syrup is 1 cup (as the syrup is much heavier than water). Flours/ ground seeds/ oats are lighter so 120g flour is approx. a cup. Hope that makes sense? Grams are always the most accurate for baking, though this recipe will work with either measure. Enjoy G x
Courtney Elkins says
Georgia, this is divine!!! I made a double batch and baked it in a Pyrex dish. Once it cooled, I just sliced up and popped the Pyrex lid on 🙂 And oh my was it yummy! My two young boys, my husband and I all devoured it, so thank you!
Georgia Harding says
Hi Courtney – I just love your tip to bake and then store in the pyrex dish. Just brilliant. So pleased you enjoyed them and and thanks so much for taking the time to comment and rate the recipe G x
Paula says
These are incredible
Clare says
This is so delicious. I make it for the kids but I think I eat just as much of it as they do. It freezes well too. Highly recommend.
Georgia Harding says
Ha ha – I find myself doing the same with my favourite recipes. So glad you all love it Clare and thanks for rating the recipe G x
Rae says
This is lovely. I made it straight after seeing the recipe and it’s yum. I didn’t know you could make caramel sauce like this, I could have eaten that alone. I’ll keep it flat next time instead of building up the sides so I have caramel on every bite!!
Georgia Harding says
Ha ha – the caramel sauce is a little dangerous! Glad you enjoyed it Rae (just a tip, if its too flat the sauce runs down the sides and you loose it all to the side pieces so maybe keep a tiny little lip on the edges) Gx
Wendy says
Another winner! Everyone in the fam loves this, and it’s going in the preschool lunchbox tomoz. The caramel is a revelation! Thanks heaps.
Georgia Harding says
The caramel is a dangerous revelation 🙂 So glad they all enjoyed it Wendy. Thanks for the feedback and for rating the recipe too G x
Aneta says
My daughter is obsessed with that recipe. She wants me to make it all the time:)
Not sure if I do something wrong but it always turns out very crumbly and bit on the dry side, last few times I made it with spelt flour and oats and today I made gluten free version, I added less quinoa flakes than in the recipe, it wasn’t dry but still very crumbly. Any suggestions why? Thank you Georgia
Georgia Harding says
Okay so dry to taste or to cut Aneta? If it’s to taste you can always add slightly less dry ingredients. If it crumbles when you cut it – make sure it is very cold (so refrigerate for a few hours before cutting it) and cut with a large sharp knife and it will cut very neatly. Hope this helps and thanks for rating the recipe too G x
Aneta says
Thank you Georgia. I think it is dry to cut not to eat, it’s difficuly to leave it in the fridge for too long cause everyone wants to eat it:)
Georgia Harding says
Ha ha funny – maybe e blast freeze it then, will make a huge difference to the crumbliness G x
Anna Fallon says
Hey Georgia, can we replace the spelt flour with normal wholemeal flour? I just dont have any of that flour at my fingertips.
Georgia Harding says
Yes no worries at all G x
Heather says
I have made this a few times and we love it,
I made it with the grd3-6 kids weekly cooking group I take at OSHC. The kids were fascinated by the caramel, and loved the slice. They especially loved the raw base layer exclaiming that we could just eat it like this. I try to give them little tastes along the cooking journey..
Thanks again for another brilliant recipe.
Georgia Harding says
I love hearing about your work with your group of school kids – I think you are amazing Heather and I’m honoured you share my recipes with them. As always, I appreciate your feedback G x
Jessica says
This was a hit with my girls!!! It’s almost gone already 🙂 yum
Georgia Harding says
Fabulous Jessica, glad they loved it G x
Hayley says
This is SO amazing, I made it today, and my son whom is usually quite “selective” about what he eats loves it… and has been secretly sneaking it from the fridge!! I am soooo happy I can send him something homemade to school, which he’ll eat, no DEVOUR :0) Thank you!!! (I ended up needing to re-simmer my caramel as I don’t think I simmered it at a high enough heat the first time and shouldn’t have stirred it now and again.)
Georgia Harding says
Yay – that’s so awesome Hayley. Thrilled he loved it too and thanks for rating the recipe G x
Shaz says
Oh wow!! Amazing, the caramel is out of this world!!
Georgia Harding says
So glad you loved it Shaz, appreciate your feedback G x
Barb McLeod says
Made a double batch of this beautiful slice. OMG it’s amazing! Frozen into pieces so I don’t overeat☺. Made it with butter but wondering how do you think it will go with macadamia oil Georgia? Ps have your books and they are awesome😍
Georgia Harding says
Hi Barb, so glad you loved it, it’s certainly worth a double batch for sure. I think it would be lovely with macadamia oil if nut-free isn’t required. Thanks so much for your feedback and support (and thrilled you are loving my ebooks too). G x
Annie says
I love this! Not too sweet, with a bit of crunch and half-healthy too. I only had coconut cream, delicious! Fingers crossed my sweet toothed daughter likes it too😉 thanks for sharing Georgia
Georgia Harding says
You’re welcome Annie. So glad you enjoyed it and 🤞 your daughter did too! G x
Annie says
Five ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Georgia Harding says
Oh and thanks for rating it!!! G x
Julie says
Fantastic recipe, thanks! I found the base a bit dry and crumbly too when cutting up, but just read a comment above about refrigerating first. Passed the taste test by my caramel slice loving fussy 10 year old – I just have to stop eating it myself! I really appreciate all of the hard work you put into your recipes and books. I use your site and books a lot, with many of your recipes on high rotation in our house, especially the healthy snacks, brekkies and baked goods for the kids. Thanks again Georgia.
Georgia Harding says
That’s so great. Yes every slice/ cake slices best when chilled. Thrilled you are enjoying my recipes and ebooks. You’ve make my day thanks Julie, Georgia x
Carrie says
Hi Georgia,
my salicylate intolerant daughter I think would love this recipe – except for the coconut milk which is high salicylates…what would be the best replacement for this? Cream?
thank you!
Carrie Partington says
please excuse my message- just saw the replacements at the bottom:)
Georgia Harding says
👍
Katrina says
This looks amazing!!!!! Can’t wait to try it tonight. Just wondering if I could substitute the spelt flour for an almond meal? I don’t like the taste of gluten free flour, and don’t have any spelt on hand. What about buckwheat or coconut flour?
Thanks in advance!
Georgia Harding says
I’d go with a mix 50/50 almond meal and buckwheat Katrina, enjoy G x
Emily says
Another brilliant recipe, thanks Georgia! My 10 year old made this in the Thermomix and we’ve all been enjoying it. Thrilled to pop it in lunchboxes as a treat. She’s desperate to try your chic-dipped orange biscuits next! xx
Georgia Harding says
So glad you all enjoyed it Emily and that your 10 year old managed to make it too. Thanks for your comment and the 5 stars, G x
Emma says
This looks delicious – wondering if Brown rice flour or coconut flour will work? It’s the only nut-free flour I have in the house.
I’m going to be brave and try the substitute anyway, because I’m motivated to make it now 🙂
Georgia Harding says
Sorry for the late reply, what did you go with Emma? G x