I found myself making and snacking on these no bake bars all the time during my first few months postpartum with Sidney, and with baby #4 on the way, I can’t wait to make them again.
These chocolate quinoa crunch bars are loaded with nutrition, naturally sweetened with honey, and covered in dark chocolate + sea salt. A healthy snack that feels indulgent because they literally taste like a candy bar. My favorite.
The best part? There’s no baking required. So, let’s get to it!
Ingredients in pistachio quinoa bars
We’re packing these delicious bars with healthy fats from nuts, omega-3s from flaxseed meal, and so much more. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Almond butter: be sure to use a natural, drippy almond butter to get the right texture.
- Honey: for a delicious hint of sweetness in these bars. I also like to add vanilla extract to bring out that sweetness.
- Rolled oats: rolled oats help hold the crunch bars together. Feel free to use gluten-free rolled oats to keep the bars gluten-free.
- Quinoa: we’re using uncooked quinoa in these bars for a delicious crunch and boost of protein.
- Flaxseed meal: add in some nutritious omega-3s with flaxseed meal!
- Nuts: you’ll love the flavor that pistachios and roasted cashews give these quinoa crunch bars.
- Dark chocolate bar: for creating that yummy chocolate topping for the bars. You can use dairy-free chocolate or dark chocolate chips, too.
- Coconut oil: a bit of coconut oil will help the melted chocolate harden over the bars.
- Sea salt: sprinkle a little fancy sea salt on top for that sweet & salty combo.
Easy ingredient swaps
There are a few simple ways you can make these chocolate quinoa bars your own:
- For the almond butter: feel free to use peanut butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter.
- For the honey: swap it for date syrup to keep the bars vegan (then be sure to use vegan chocolate).
- For the nuts: you can really use nuts you’d like! Almonds are also delicious in these bars.
Looking for a nut-free bar?
Try my delicious Toasted Quinoa, Dried Fig & Dark Chocolate Nut Free Granola Bars! They’re crunchy, perfectly sweet, and 100% nut-free.
Can I add protein powder?
I haven’t tested this recipe using protein powder, but you might be able to swap some of the flaxseed meal with your favorite kind. Again, I haven’t tested it, so let me know if the comments if you experiment! I wouldn’t recommend simply adding protein powder to the base because the mixture will be too dry.
How to make quinoa crunch bars
- Toast the oats & quinoa. Add the dry quinoa and oats to a pan, and toast over medium low heat on the stovetop until slightly golden.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, mix the wet ingredients until smooth. Add in the toasted oats and quinoa, along with the flax and nuts. Stir until well combined.
- Press into a pan. Dump the mixture into a loaf pan lined with parchment paper, spread it out evenly, and press the mixture firmly into the bottom of the pan.
- Add the chocolate. Break up the chocolate bar into chunks and microwave in a bowl with the coconut until melted. Pour the chocolate over the bars, then tilt the pan to coat them. Add chopped pistachios on top.
- Chill, top & enjoy! Place the pan in the fridge for at least 4 hours to harden, then sprinkle with sea salt, cut into squares or bars, and devour!
Storing these chocolate quinoa crunch bars
- In the fridge: store these bars covered in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. When you’re ready to eat them, just let them come to room temp for about 5 minutes so that they soften a bit.
- In the freezer: place the chocolate quinoa crunch bars in the freezer for up to 2 months in an airtight container. I’d recommend separating the bars with parchment or wax paper as well. When you’re ready to eat them, let the bars thaw in the fridge and then bring them to room temp as described above.
Tools you’ll need
Get all of my go-to kitchen tools here!
More no bake snacks you’ll love
- Chocolate Protein Brownie Bites (with a nut-free option!)
- No Bake High Protein Peanut Butter Cereal Bars
- Peanut Butter Protein Cookie Dough Bites
- Vegan No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
- PB&J Energy Bites
Get all of my no bake snacks here!
I hope you love these delicious salted dark chocolate pistachio quinoa crunch bars! If you make them be sure to leave a comment and a rating to let me know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Salted Dark Chocolate Pistachio Quinoa Crunch Bars
Ingredients
- ½ cup (128g) natural drippy almond butter (or sub peanut butter or sunflower seed butter)
- ⅓ cup (111g) honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup (48g) gluten free rolled oats
- ⅓ cup (60g) uncooked quinoa
- ⅓ cup (40g) flaxseed meal
- ⅓ cup (37g) shelled pistachios
- ¼ cup (28g) roasted cashews or almonds
- For the dark chocolate topping:
- 1 (2.5 ounce) dark chocolate bar, dairy free if desired (or sub ⅓ cup dark chocolate chips)
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped pistachios, for sprinkling on top
- Maldon sea salt, for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Line an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Add quinoa and oats to a medium pan and place over medium low heat. Toast quinoa and oats in the pan for 3-6 minutes or until quinoa begins to turn a slight golden brown color. You can also toast them on a pan in the oven at 325 degrees F for 8-10 minutes. Once done toasting, set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the almond butter, honey and vanilla until smooth. Add in the oats and quinoa mixture, along with the flaxseed meal, pistachios and cashews. Stir until well combined.
- Add mixture to the prepared pan and spread out evenly, then press mixture down in the pan very firmly.
- Next break up the chocolate bar into chunks. Add the chocolate and coconut oil to a microwave safe bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals until melted. Pour over the bars, tilting the pan to evenly coat the bars with chocolate. Add a few tablespoons of chopped pistachios on top. Place the pan in the fridge for 4 hours or until the mixture has completely hardened. Remove the bars from the pan, sprinkle with sea salt and cut into 8-10 squares or bars. Store bars covered in the fridge.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on July 13th, 2020. The recipe was updated on January 16th, 2026, and the post was republished with new photos on January 26th, 2026.
Absolutely delicious! . Served this to our workout group, some are GF and every person asked for the recipe. Didn’t have flax meal the first time I made it and subbed in protein powder 1-1. This one is definitely on repeat. Thank you.
Perfect! So glad everyone loved these!
For the recipe Salted Dark Chocolate Pistachio Quinoa Crunch Bars, can I substitute the flaxseed meal with ground chia seeds or something else? I believe the flaxseed meal is being used as a binder-type item in this recipe. Thank you.
You could try adding some more oats, a mix of oats and quinoa, or even protein powder! Just ensure that the the mixture feels like it’s sticking together well when you press it in the pan.
Well, along with her amazing sea salt chocolate chip cookies these bars are insanely good. I found the recipe a few months back and have now probably made them about a half dozen times. They are the bars to take on a hike, the “I didn’t eat and am starving and have no time bars”, they are the, I crave peanut butter and chocolate bar and the I don’t want to eat something good for me that tastes like the box treat. These are so good, they take no time to put together and you just need to be patient while they set up. I do use Trader Joe’s natural peanut butter with honey, but other than that everything is as the recipe calls for. The salt on the top is also a lovely finish. We make smaller bars, so maybe get 12 or so out of the pan and they are perfectly sized. We wrap them in waxed paper individually, twist the ends and put them in the freezer. By the time we walk to the end of the block they are thawed enough to eat. It’s a great way to store them so we always have the treat we love that actually has good stuff in them. They are the bars you wish the store bars tasted like, Alas, you won’t get this taste from any store bar. Kudos to Monique on another sure-fire winner!
Amazing! One of my go-to snacks, too. So glad you love them!
OMG — why is this SO good??? Had to substitute the pistachios for extra almonds due to my son’s allergy, but otherwise made exactly as directed — and they are absolutely fabulous!
I love that they taste completely decadent, while still being made from such wholesome ingredients. The quinoa, flax and oats make them filling and crunchy, and the dark chocolate gives them that real “treat” feeling without being overly sweet. I also adore that they include protein, fibre and healthy fats instead of just sugar. Genius recipe — thanks so much for sharing!
The best snack or treat! So happy you love these!
The best energy bars EVER. That quinoa crunch takes the texture to another level👌👏. These are a must make for postpartum months 😍. I made a double batch and froze them, so it is so convenient for me to have a really good and healthy snack for my daily stroller walks. 12\10
Absolutely! So glad you’ve been loving them for walks (I do, too!)
Such a tasty snack. The perfect blend of sweet, salty, crunchy, and creamy.
Absolutely! Glad you loved them 🙂
I haven’t made this recipe yet, but most definitely will once my other bars have all been eaten… I love ginger and would use chopped crystallised ginger on top of the chocolate…
Also toasted puffed quinoa instead of just quinoa grain…
Sounds amazing! Let me know if you give them a try 🙂
I was drawn to this recipe because of picture and ingredients so I thought I’d give it a go…I after reading some of the reviews, I substituted maple syrup for the honey, added toasted almonds instead of cashews,and substituted vanilla protein powder for flax meal,
They were really easy to make and DELICIOUS!!! I would definitely make them again and easy enough to substitute other nuts and possibly dried fruit.
Thank you for the recipe!!!
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
Omg these were so delicious! At first when I saw the recipe I thought the flavor profile may taste similar to energy balls I have made from the website, but WOW these had a totally different and delicious flavor!! Such a great healthy treat!
YES one of my fav bars to make! Glad you loved them!
These came together super quick and were really easy! I love them. I made them to take into work and have already had a couple people ask me for the recipe.
Amazing! Glad they were a hit!
So good!
Glad you enjoyed!
I am not usually a fan of no bake desserts but these are 12/10 delicious and addicting!! And so easy to make!
So happy to hear that!
These look amazing! Can’t wait to try. Just a couple of questions.
1. I thought flaxseed needed liquid to expand but there’s none in the base ingredients?
2. Can I used popped quinoa instead of toasting ordinary quinoa as I have a big bag to use up?
Thanks in advance!
Hi! Flaxseed won’t really expand – it’s just a nice nutritional booster that helps hold the bars together. I think these should work with popped quinoa, but please note that I haven’t tested it. Let me know if you give it a try!
These are delicious and keep well in the fridge for quick snacks
Absolutely!
These are absolutely the best!, chewy, nutty, high protein bars. We love to take them on hikes. My mouth is watering just thinking about these!
Such a great hiking snack!
This is fantastic! Perfectly sweet and satisfying! I used roasted almonds in place of the cashews because thats what I had on hand. They were a big hit in our house!
Perfect! Such a great snack or treat!
So easy and so good!
Perfect snack or treat 🙂
I made these for the family for Valentine’s Day. To quote my six year old grandson, “These are amazing!” They are a delicious treat that you can feel food about indulging in.
So happy to hear that!!
These look amazing! Could I used popped quinoa instead of raw quinoa? Also could I sub maple syrup for the honey to make it vegan?
I think those swaps should work just fine!
DELICIOUS and exceeded my expectations !! I made The recipe just as she listed and they were incredible. This will be staple in our household moving forward!
Amazing! I’m glad they were a hit!
So so so yummy
Glad you enjoyed!
These are amazing! Sort of taste like a special k bar but with all healthy ingredients! I love to have these on hand for when I want a sweet treat or dessert.
Absolutely! Such a great sweet treat 🙂