Vegan Peanut Butter Ice Cream Bars

I recently read a graphic novel called Bake Sale by Sara Varon. I saw this book on the sale rack at my university book store and I had to buy it! This book was so cute and some really nice themes in it about friendship and perseverance. It also included some recipes that are made in the story.

One thing the main character of the book does everyday in their bakery is try out new recipes so I was inspired to try something new out as well!

A few weeks ago I picked up a can of coconut cream from the store with the intention of making something with it. It didn't know what at first but after seeing many coconut ice cream recipes I decided to try out an ice cream bar!

These bars are gluten free and vegan! The filling is so good and creamy. You can tastes the coconut as well as the peanut butter and they complement each other decadently. The topping is simple yet puts everything together. 

My favorite thing has to be the base though. There's something about dates and oats that just can never go wrong.

Make sure to allow these bars to warm up a bit at room temperature before serving otherwise it may be too icy to eat.

Vegan Peanut Butter Ice Cream Bars

Base
1 cup oats
1/3 cup shredded coconut
12 dates, softened
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Filling
1 can of coconut cream, chilled
2 tsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup peanut butter (I used crunchy)

Topping
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp maple syrup
3 tbsp coconut oil

Directions

1. Prepare a 9x5 inch baking dish with wax paper on the bottom, set aside
2. Put all of the base ingredients into a food processor and blend until a dough forms
3. Press dough into the baking dish and then leave this to set in the fridge
4. Beat together all of the filling ingredients until fluffy and combined. Pour this mixture over the base and then put it into the freezer to set or about 15 minutes
5. Meanwhile, make the topping. Place coconut oil in a microwavable dish and microwave for about 30 seconds until it has melted. Add in the cocoa powder and maple syrup and mix until smooth
6. Drizzle the topping all over the filling and then place it back into the freezer for a few hours until everything has hardened
7. Take pan out of the fridge and carefully remove it from the dish while frozen than cut into squares
8. Leave the bars out for a few minutes to softened then serve
9. Bars can be stored in a container in the freezer