Keto Chocolate
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This keto chocolate is an easy candy bar recipe made with just 3 ingredients. Crispy, chewy, and ready in 5 minutes, each bar has just 2 grams of net carbs.
Can you eat chocolate on keto?
As you’d expect, standard grocery store chocolate and chocolate candy bars are not keto-friendly. They are loaded with sugar. One small candy bar has more carbs than someone on a keto diet can have in a week.
While there are some keto-friendly chocolate brands, they are extremely expensive. A standard keto candy bar is over $8- simply not worth it.
Luckily, you can make your own at home for a fraction of the cost. Here’s why I love this keto bars recipe:
- 4 Ingredients. Technically, you don’t even need the almond butter, but I love how firm the bars are when using it.
- Ready in 5 minutes. No baking required. The hard part is waiting for them to firm up.
- Just 2 grams of net carbs per serving. I tested a few combos to keep the carbs as low as possible.
- Easy to customize. Add flavor extracts, nuts, seeds, coconut, or my favorite- crumbled keto chocolate chip cookies.
- Affordable. Make them yourself, and you pay a fraction of the cost of buying the pre-made kind!
I’ve been making these for years, and they’ve become the most requested treat I bring to parties- everyone I’ve served them to says they taste like a keto crunch bar.
★★★★★ REVIEW
“So yummy. One of the best keto bars I’ve ever eaten.” – Bibi
Key Ingredients
Here’s what goes into this keto bar recipe, along with my kitchen notes. Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
- Unsweetened chocolate– Also known as Baker’s chocolate, these candy bars are 100% unsweetened and have very few carbs. On their own, they are not edible, but when mixed with sweet ingredients, they add the chocolate element necessary.
- Sugar free maple syrup– Skip the expensive store-bought kind and make your own keto maple syrup. I don’t recommend granulated sweeteners because they leave the bars gritty.
- Coconut oil– Choose the refined variety to avoid any coconut flavor. I also tested these with unsalted butter, and it worked well.
- Almond butter– Smooth and drippy almond butter with no added sugar. Peanut butter and nut-free alternatives also work. I sometimes make it with sunflower seed butter.
- Crushed nuts and seeds– Optional, but I like using chopped almonds and pepitas to make these taste like crunch bars.
How to make keto chocolate bars
Start by adding the chocolate, syrup, coconut oil, and almond butter to a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave everything in 30-second spurts until the chocolate has mostly melted. Gently mix until smooth.
Next, fold through your crushed nuts and seeds until combined. Transfer into a square pan and refrigerate for thirty minutes, or until firm.
Once firm, slice them into chocolate bars.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Melt in increments. Microwave the mixture in 20-second spurts to avoid burning the chocolate.
- Bars over chips. Avoid using chocolate chips, as they don’t melt anywhere near as well as a chocolate bar.
- Measure by weight, not volume. 1 1/2 cups of chopped chocolate weigh about 8 1/2 ounces, which is useful if you’re working from a bar rather than measuring by volume.
- Candy molds. Pour the mixture into candy molds instead of a pan for individual chocolate bars that look professionally made. I do this for Christmas and Halloween.
- Add a caramel drizzle. Before refrigerating, I like to drizzle some keto caramel sauce over the top. It seeps into the bars beautifully before it sets.
Flavor variations
The base recipe acts as a blank canvas, so here are some tested variations worth trying:
Milk chocolate– Use keto milk chocolate chips instead of unsweetened chocolate.
Peppermint chocolate– Add 1/2 teaspoon of pure peppermint extract to the mixture. I make this every Christmas- it’s a fun holiday dessert.
White chocolate– Use sugar free white chocolate instead of unsweetened chocolate. Just a warning, though- the bars will be very sweet.
Toffee chocolate– Fold through half a cup of crushed keto candy pieces. My partner can polish this version off on his own.
Orange chocolate– Add 1/2 teaspoon of orange extract to the mixture. This is such an underrated combination (hello, Terry’s chocolate orange).
Storage instructions
To store: This keto chocolate is stable at room temperature in a sealable container. It will keep well for up to four weeks. If you’d like it to keep longer, store it in the refrigerator.
To freeze: Place leftovers in a ziplock bag and store it in the freezer for up to six months.
Frequently Asked Questions
The only keto-friendly Hershey’s products are their Dutch-processed cocoa powder (2 grams net carbs per serving) and dark cocoa powder (1.5 net carbs per serving).
The lowest carb candy bar is Ghirardelli unsweetened baking chocolate, which has just 3 grams of net carbs per serving.
There are just 2 grams of net carbs in these keto bars.
Keto Chocolate (Crunch candy bars!)
Video
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened chocolate 8 1/2 ounces
- 1 cup almond butter Can sub for any nut or seed butter of choice
- 1/2 cup keto maple syrup
- 1/4 cup coconut oil optional * See notes
- 3 cups nuts and seeds optional
Instructions
- Line an 8 x 8-inch baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a microwave-safe bowl or stovetop, combine your chocolate, almond butter, sticky sweetener and optional coconut oil and melt until combined.
- Add your nuts/seeds of choice and mix until fully combined.
- Pour the chocolate mix into the lined baking dish and spread out using a spatula. Refrigerate or freeze until firm.
- Slice into chocolate bars.
Notes
Nutrition
More keto chocolate recipes to try
- Keto chocolate cake– Moist, rich, and full of chocolate flavor.
- Keto brownies– I make these brownies far too often. Even non-keto friends love them.
- Keto fudge– Just two ingredients are needed to make this rich and creamy fudge.
- Keto chocolate mousse– It’s light, airy, and needs just 3 ingredients.
Hi Arman, it would help to know the weight of the chocolate. A cup of chocolate pieces can vary so much in weight.
Thank you
It looks good. What kind of oil that I can use and I can’t have coconut oil.
Try melted butter.
Def gonna try this recipe!
Hello.
Can I simply omit the sweetener? I don’t need a substitute, I just find the chocolate to be plenty sweet on it’s own.
Thank you!
Sure can- the chocolate will be more firm.
Hi just make in mini muffin pans
The best chocolate bar I’ve had hands down.
I’m going to make these this afternoon, I’m excited to try them after reading through the comments.
I’m going to use sugar free Jiff peanut butter and try them in my silicone pampered chef bar pan . Thank you!
Second recipe I’ve used from you and so far it’s 2 for 2. These are addictive! I used sugar free honey for the sweetener which worked fine. I also threw in some coconut because I had some on hand. Thank you and I look forward to trying more of your recipes!
Arman, I made these, except used natural peanut butter instead of almond butter & they are delicious – It’s hard to believe they are Keto – Carole
Thanks, Carole!
Just love these keto crunch bars and am addicted. Regarding freezing, I make them with store bought chocolate, how long should they keep for and will they need to defrost before eating?
They can keep the same, 6 months 🙂 Thaw it for an hour or so, or you might break your teeth 😉
Can I use other oils? And can I use peanut butter instead?
Yes to peanut butter, I’ve only tried coconut oil
Can I use peanut butter instead of almond butter?
Also what would be a good replacement for coconut oil? I don’t like the taste of coconut
Sure can! Use refined coconut oil, it has no coconut flavor!
Silly question – but isn’t maple syrup and agave syrup basically just sugar? Doesn’t seem sugar-free to me. It actually could be very bad for diabetics. Am I missing something here?
Sugar free maple syrup has been used 🙂
Yummmm I’ve just gone low carb and absolutely love this! My two daughters and other none LC family members absolutely love it too. Perfect recipe, may have made this 4 times in the past month 😳
Easy and very satisfying recipe!
What about maple/monk fruit syrup?
You can try!