Three o’clock limps in some afternoons and makes my belly rumble. Maybe you know the feeling?
It doesn’t take a lot to keep me comfortable until dinner, usually a piece of fruit or a palm full of roasted nuts. But a few days ago, I wearied of my routine and came up with these – 2 or 3 bites of bliss that I want to share with you.
I had in mind something healthful and light with a hint of indulgence. I’m not much for calorie counting, but did the math and each bite is about 100 calories. Not bad, right? And they’re quick – they’ll be chilling in less than half an hour. There’s no baking involved, just a few ingredients stirred together, pressed into ice cube trays, then topped with simple chocolate ganache and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
Silicone trays work great for these. Like cutting pie, the first cube is the trickiest and the rest slide right out. If you don’t have silicone trays, any ice cube tray will do; just use a knife along the sides of each bite and gently pry it out. At worst you’ll have to pat the cube back into shape.
Think of this recipe as a flexible framework. Be creative with your own additions: dates, dried pineapple, dried cherries, toasted coconut, candied ginger, almond or hazelnut butter… If you try something new, I’d love to hear about it.
- ½ cup chunky peanut butter
- ⅓ cup honey
- ½ teaspoon real vanilla extract
- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 5 dried, unsulfured apricots, diced into ¼? chunks
- 4 ounces good quality dark chocolate, chopped (or chips)
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- flaky sea salt (such as Maldon)
- Combine peanut butter, honey, and vanilla in a medium bowl; stir. Add oats and apricots; stir until thoroughly combined. Scoop mixture into individual sections of a silicone or regular ice cube tray. Press firmly to form cubes.
- Combine the chocolate and cream in a glass bowl; place over a pan of simmering water. Stir constantly until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth, about 3 minutes. Spoon the chocolate mixture over each bite and smooth with a spatula. Lightly sprinkle the top of each bite with flaky sea salt. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour until chocolate is firm. Remove bites from trays, transfer to a covered container and refrigerate until you’re ready to eat.
Yum!!! I can’t wait to make these. I love oats!
Hi Beth.
Yay! Can’t wait to hear how it goes…
wow! this is really perfect!
Thank you.
I am DEFINITELY making these. Wow – it looks so delicious!
Thanks! Let me know how they come out.
Wow, these look delicious. And a great idea using the silicone trays.
They really work great – the bites pop right out without sticking.
I really like these mainly because whole grains do fill you up and help keep you from the bad snacks in between meals. Also, the flavor combo is outstanding! Just enough there to squelch a sweet craving-which is definitely a good thing. Great post!
Hi Tina – Thanks so much. Yes – perfect little ‘tide me over’.
Oh yum!! Allison will really like these too
Great job on the pics too!
Hi Krista – Thank you so much. Hello to Allison for me.
I like this recipe! it’s a wonderful snack also for my son!!!
Perfect!
I love how the snack is calorie controlled and using those little trays is brilliant!
Thanks Lorraine!
oh my gosh, these look amazing! And I love your little trays for them- too cute!
Awww, thanks!
I love wholesome bites like these when little sweet cravings creep in. More importantly though, you are a total genius for forming these in a silicone tray. Freaking out at that!
Wow, thanks so much Laura!
Well this is genius! I have a smaller silicone ice tray like yours from Crate and Barrel and it’s the greatest thing ever. My friends all marvels at their gigantic ice cubes. I ran out of my freezer cookie supply and it’s getting too hot to turn on the oven so these are perfect!
Thanks Kate! I agree, love the silicone trays…
This week I finally made these. WOW! They are delicious. It took several days of the boys saying ‘I’m not going to try that’ before they actually did try it and they were pleasantly surprised. Hope this can become a regular after school snack.
I love it. Brave boys!