Vegan Twix Bars (Gluten-Free)

These Vegan Twix Bars are just as delicious as the real thing: a crunchy shortbread base topped with fudgy caramel coated in silky chocolate! They’re not too sweet, much healthier than the traditional version and easy to make. They make excellent edible gifts for Valentine’s Day, Easter, Christmas, and everything in between! They’re also refined sugar free and gluten-free.

My Vegan Snickers Bars were so popular I decided to make some more vegan chocolate bars! These Vegan Twix Bars have a shortbread base inspired by my Gluten-Free Vegan Shortbread Cookies recipe with a caramel layer inspired by my Vegan Millionaire Shortbread recipe.

How is the shortbread made?

The shortbread is made using a combination of ground almonds (almond meal) and brown rice flour.

You need to use brown rice flour, not white rice flour. Using white rice flour would create a soft cookie (like my Sugar Cookies) rather than a crunchy shortbread cookie.

Where can you buy brown rice flour?

If you can’t find brown rice flour in your local supermarket, you’ll be able to find it in local health stores or online.

How is the vegan caramel made?

The vegan caramel is made using blended cashew nuts for creaminess, coconut sugar for a toffee-like flavour, and cacao butter for a fudgy texture.

You can get hold of both coconut sugar and cacao butter online, in local health stores or large supermarkets.

How to make these Vegan Twix Bars

Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe.

• Mix together the ingredients for the dough in a glass mixing bowl.

• Transfer the mixture to a one-pound loaf tin.

Tip: Line the tin with greased baking paper to make it easier to remove after.

• Use your fingers to push the mixture all the way to the edges, then use a spatula to press down on it until the surface is completely even.

• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and firm to the touch.

Tip: Be careful not to burn it, but you want to bake it for as long as possible for it to have a crunchy texture.

• Leave to cool as you make the caramel, although it doesn’t matter if it hasn’t cooled completely before putting on the caramel.

• Place all the ingredients for the caramel into a food processor.

Tip: If your food processor isn’t very powerful, it may have trouble with the cacao butter. In this case, melt the cacao butter first using a bain-marie before adding to the food processor.

• Whizz until completely smooth – you might need to mix it around a few times.

• Transfer the caramel onto the shortbread base, pushing it all the way to the edges.
• Use a spatula to press down on it until the surface is completely even.

• Place in the freezer for about one hour until completely firmed up.

• Making sure the caramel has firmed up completely, slice into 8 bars.

How to coat the Twix Bars in chocolate

• Break up the chocolate into small pieces and place in a bowl with the coconut oil.

Tip: Using a wide-bottomed bowl makes it easier to dip the bars into the melted chocolate.

• Place the bowl over a pan of boiling water and stir regularly until melted.

Tip: Make sure not to overheat it as the chocolate will ‘split’ if you heat it too much.

• Use a small fork to carefully lift the bars one at a time into the melted chocolate and spoon the melted chocolate over the bar until it has been completely covered in melted chocolate.

• Use the fork to lift the bar out of the melted chocolate and onto a rectangular baking tray lined with baking paper.

• Drizzle the remaining melted chocolate over the top of the bars to decorate, if desired.
• Place in the fridge for a couple of hours until the chocolate has hardened completely.

How long do these Homemade Twix Bars keep for?

They keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a few days.

Substitutions you can make to this recipe:

• You can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc.
• You can replace the coconut oil with coconut butter.
• The ground almonds (almond meal) can be replaced with ground walnuts or ground sunflower seeds.
• You can replace the almond butter with peanut butter, cashew butter, sunflower seed butter or tahini.
• For a refined sugar free version, use a refined sugar free chocolate.

Substitutions to be careful of:

• The brown rice flour CANNOT be replaced with white rice flour or any other gluten-free flour – it is essential for the shortbread base to keep its shape and texture.

More vegan chocolate treats:

• Healthy Snickers Ice Cream Bites
• Matcha Chocolate Truffles
• Chocolate Truffles
• Hazelnut Chocolate Truffles
• White Chocolate Truffles
• Strawberry Chocolate Truffles
• Chocolate Bars
• Snickers Bars

If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog, I’d really love to hear any feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo @rhiansrecipes #rhiansrecipes on Instagram! Thank you.

Vegan Twix Bars (Gluten-Free)

These Vegan Twix Bars are just as delicious as the real thing: a crunchy shortbread base topped with fudgy caramel coated in silky chocolate! They're not too sweet, much healthier than the traditional version and easy to make. They're also refined sugar free and gluten-free.

3.2 from 5 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: homemade twix, twix bars, vegan twix

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 8 bars

Calories: 414kcal

Author: Rhian Williams

Ingredients

For the shortbread:

• 30 g (1/8 cup) coconut oil (or sub coconut butter)30 g (1/8 cup) coconut oil (or sub coconut butter)
• 5 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other similar sweetener)5 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other similar sweetener)
• 75 g (2/3 cup) ground almonds (almond meal) *75 g (2/3 cup) ground almonds (almond meal) *
• 75 g (2/3 cup) brown rice flour **75 g (2/3 cup) brown rice flour **
• Pinch saltPinch salt

For the caramel:

• 75 g (1/2 cup) cashew nuts (soaked overnight in cold water or in boiling water for 15 minutes)75 g (1/2 cup) cashew nuts (soaked overnight in cold water or in boiling water for 15 minutes)
• 50 g (1/3 cup) coconut sugar50 g (1/3 cup) coconut sugar
• 1 tablespoon smooth almond butter (or sub any other nut or seed butter)1 tablespoon smooth almond butter (or sub any other nut or seed butter)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch saltPinch salt
• 20 g (0.7 oz) cacao butter *** (or sub coconut oil or coconut butter, though this will give it a coconut taste)20 g (0.7 oz) cacao butter *** (or sub coconut oil or coconut butter, though this will give it a coconut taste)

For the chocolate:

• 200 g (7 oz) dark chocolate **** (ensure vegan/gluten-free if necessary) 200 g (7 oz) dark chocolate **** (ensure vegan/gluten-free if necessary)
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil1 teaspoon coconut oil

Instructions

For the shortbread:

• Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius (340 degrees Fahrenheit)
• Place the coconut oil in a large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave
• Add the maple syrup, ground almonds, brown rice flour and salt and mix well – add a splash of plant-based milk if it’s looking too dry to combine
• Transfer the mixture to a loaf tin lined with greaseproof baking paper – I used a one-pound loaf tin
• Use your fingers to push the mixture all the way to the edges
• Use a spatula to press down on it until the surface is completely even
• Bake in oven for 25 minutes until golden brown and firm to the touch – be careful not to burn it, but you want to bake it for as long as possible for it to have a crunchy texture
• Leave to cool as you make the caramel, although it doesn’t matter if it hasn’t cooled completely before putting on the caramel

For the caramel:

• Drain the soaked cashew nuts
• Place into a food processor with all the other ingredients
• Whizz until completely smooth – you might need to mix it around a few times
• Transfer the caramel onto the shortbread base, pushing it all the way to the edges
• Use a spatula to press down on it until the surface is completely even
• Place in the freezer for one hour to firm up completely

For the chocolate:

• Making sure the caramel has firmed up completely, slice it into 8 bars
• Break up the chocolate into small pieces and place in a bowl with the coconut oil (using a wide-bottomed bowl makes it easier to dip the bars into the melted chocolate)
• Place the bowl over a pan of boiling water and stir regularly until melted – make sure not to overheat it as the chocolate will ‘split’ if you heat it too much
• Use a small fork to carefully lift the bars one at a time into the melted chocolate and use a spoon to spoon the melted chocolate over the bar until it has been completely covered in melted chocolate
• Use the fork to lift the bar out of the melted chocolate and onto a baking tray lined with baking paper
• Drizzle the remaining melted chocolate over the top of the bars to decorate, if desired
• Place in the fridge for a couple of hours until the chocolate has hardened completely
• Keeps in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a few days

Notes

*You can alternatively use almond flour.

**You MUST use brown rice flour – white rice flour won’t create a crunchy shortbread-like texture.

***If your food processor isn’t very powerful, it may have trouble with the cacao butter. In this case, melt the cacao butter first using a bain-marie before adding to the food processor.

****For a refined sugar free version, use a refined sugar free chocolate.

Nutrition Facts

Vegan Twix Bars (Gluten-Free)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 414 Calories from Fat 252

% Daily Value*

Fat 28g43%

Saturated Fat 13g65%

Cholesterol 1mg0%

Sodium 20mg1%

Potassium 311mg9%

Carbohydrates 38g13%

Fiber 5g20%

Sugar 19g21%

Protein 7g14%

Vitamin A 10IU0%

Calcium 62mg6%

Iron 4mg22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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