These homemade crunch bars taste exactly like the popular chocolate candy bars, and the recipe calls for just 2 ingredients!
No bake chocolate crunch bars
The best homemade crunch bar recipe also just so happens to be the easiest.
As a former Nestle Crunch lover, I’ve tried numerous copycats over the years. Trust me when I say that this one is the most authentic tasting recipe you will find.
It boasts the same irresistible crispy, crunchy texture and rich chocolate flavor as the beloved originals, plus the same simplicity of ingredients.
It’s completely impossible to stop at one!
Also try these Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs
Step by step recipe video
Key ingredients in homemade crunch bars
Chocolate chips – Use dark chocolate chips to make dark chocolate crunch bars or semi sweet chips for a more neutral taste. Or for bars that taste exactly like the store bought version, go with milk chocolate chips.
The recipe can easily be low carb or dairy free and vegan. Simply choose a brand of nondairy or sugar free chocolate chips, both readily available at most grocery stores.
Rice crispy cereal – This can be any crisped rice cereal, including Kellogg’s Rice Krispies, Nature’s Path organic and gluten free Crispy Rice Cereal, or a generic brand to save money.
You may also change up the texture by trying another crushed cereal or granola in place of the crispy rice cereal. See below for even more variations.
Coconut oil (optional) – Adding two teaspoons of coconut oil to the melted chocolate gives the finished bars a smooth, shiny appearance. However, packaged Crunch bars do not include coconut oil and it is not required here either.
Extra chocolate chips? Make Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Fun ideas for different flavors
- Use toasted quinoa instead of the rice crispies.
- Stir half a cup of softened peanut butter into the melted chocolate, to create chocolate peanut butter crunch bars.
- Mix a handful of chopped almonds or walnuts, shredded coconut, or healthy superfood chia seeds in with the dry cereal.
- Sprinkle the top of the candy bars with flaky sea salt.
- Or use a spoon to drop clusters of the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Let sit until firm, creating your very own homemade copycat Buncha Crunch!
How to make homemade crunch bars
- Gather all of your ingredients, and line the bottom of an eight inch square pan with parchment paper or wax paper. Alternatively, grease the bottom of the pan with oil.
- Very carefully melt the chocolate chips. (Follow the guide below on how to melt chocolate correctly.)
- If using coconut oil, stir it into the melted chocolate.
- Pour in the rice crispy cereal, using a large spoon or spatula to gently fold the cereal in until evenly mixed and coated.
- Spread the mixture into the prepared pan.
- This is the simple part: Leave the pan on the counter for a few hours until the homemade crunch bars firm up. Or if you are in a hurry, freeze for about five minutes or until hard enough to slice into bars.
- Use a sharp knife to cut the chocolate into bars or bites.
- Store leftovers in an airtight covered container in a cool, dry place. Or freeze for up to three months and enjoy for snack or dessert, straight from the freezer.
The best ways to melt chocolate for homemade candy bars
Microwave Method: Add chocolate chips to a dry, microwave safe bowl.
Heat thirty seconds on high power. Stir well, then heat in ten second increments, stirring after each until the chocolate sauce is smooth.
It is important to go slowly, because chocolate burns quickly.
Double Boiler Method: Fill the bottom pan of a double boiler with about an inch of water, and bring to a simmer.
Then remove from the heat and add the chocolate to the top pan. Never let any water touch the chocolate.
Allow the steam from the bottom pan to indirectly heat the chips as you stir them until fully melted.
This recipe is shelf stable, so it needs no refrigeration. Homemade crunch bars are great for Halloween parties, Easter baskets, or packing into a school lunch box!
Homemade Crunch Bars
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (250g)
- 2/3 cup rice crispy cereal (20g) (For low carb, make Keto Candy Bars)
- 2 tsp coconut oil (24g) (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Line the bottom of an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper, or grease well. Set this pan aside.
- 2. Carefully melt chocolate chips in the microwave or by using the double boiler method.
- 3. Stir in the coconut oil, if using.
- 4. Using a spoon or spatula, gently fold in the rice crispy cereal until evenly coated.
- 5. Spread the chocolate crunch bar mixture into the prepared pan.
- 6. Let sit on the counter until firm. Or if you are in a hurry, freeze for five minutes or until firm.
- 7. Use a sharp knife to cut into bars.
- 8. Store in a cool, dry place and enjoy within two weeks. Or freeze in an airtight container for up to three months.
Video
Notes
Easy chocolate recipes you’ll love
Can’t wait to try these 🙂
Dear Katie,
I found your blog about three nights ago (thanks to muffintop-less@tumblr) and haven’t really gotten it out of my mind ever since. Not that I even wanted to!
This whole website of yours is basically everything I have been looking for since I became vegan about seven years ago. All the delicious (not to mention inspirational!) recipes and photos of your experiments just blow me away. And I actually just started cry some tears of happines when I came across that old “Building Muscle on a plant-based Diet” guest post, it summed up and answered many questions that have been on my mind lately. So no excuses anymore 😀
Finding your blog has been a true booster for my journey towards a healthier lifestyle.
I’m running out of words now but I hope ‘Thank you from the bottom of my heart’ will be enough.
(sorry for possible misspelling, I’m Finnish :))
Aw thank you! 🙂
I love wonka bars…they’re rather addictive. The good thing is that they are very simple to make…just break up graham crackers into small pieces and mix into chocolate the way you do with this chocolate bar and the rice crispies. Clodhoppers are very similar to those as well, except they’re in clusters instead of bar form…the package for those actually have a warning saying they’re addictive lol.
I wish i could find a recipe for a home made coffee crisp though, it’s my other favourite but i’ve never seen a recipe floating around.
These were so good katie thanks for sharing and my recipe finally came out this time lol
Mmmm! We will DEFINITELY be making these- we LOVE chocolate, and crunch bars! 😀
This is about the 5th recipe i’ve made of yours.. awesome! But I do have a sweet tooth and i only put about 1 tsp of agave in it.. I wasnt sure exactly how much to try to mix in. I do wish they were sweeter but I snuck 5 little chocolate chips in which sufficed. Thanks again for the awesome recipes.. they completely overwhelm my pinterest pins!!
As much as I love coconut, I won’t say Bounty is my favorite candy bar. Even after they made a dark chocolate version in Europe a while back. Twix will always be my number one treat because of all the childhood memories attached to it that always come back to life when I eat it. You should try to create a homemade Twix recipe 🙂
Back in the day: 3 Musketeers ALWAYS. Now: Dark Chocolate Milky Way and Justin’s Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups!!!
Thank you so much for this recipe!!! I just got on here to find a good candy recipe…I’m going to the movies later, and I needed a good-for-you candy; this was like a miracle!! Sweets are my weakness, but dessert was something I always had to give up because of all the unhealthy ingredients. Thank you soo much for creating healthy, vegan desserts–you have saved my life!!! 😀
Wow, one of my most favorite things you’ve ever posted!! So EASY and delicious! Thanks!