These Berry Cream Bars are gooooood. An adaptation from the ever-popular blogger, PaleOMG, we thought these red, white, and blue Berry Cream Bars were the perfect PN-friendly way to celebrate the 4th of July. And don’t let the directions intimidate you – they’re actually pretty simple to make! Enjoy!!

Berry Cream Bars

Ingredients

Crust:

• 5 dates, pitted
• 1 cup almond butter (or other favorite nut butter)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch sea salt

Topping:

• 14 ounces full-fat coconut milk (placed in refrigerator for at least 4 hours), divided
• 1 cup berries, fresh or frozen
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup, divided
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Place the pitted dates in a food processor and pulse to break down into pieces. Add the almond butter, coconut, maple syrup, vanilla extract and salt and pulse to blend until ingredients are well combined.
2. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and add the almond butter mixture. Press down until even and flat. Place in the freezer.
3. Take the can of coconut milk out of the fridge, scoop out all of the coconut cream at the top and set aside in a bowl. Keep in the fridge.
4. Use 2 tsp of the coconut milk/ water at the bottom of the can and place into a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the berries, 1 tbsp of maple syrup, and lemon juice and stir together. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes. Let cool.
5. Take the coconut cream out of the fridge and whisk in 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and vanilla.
6. Take the crust out of the freezer and spread the coconut cream mixture on top of the crust, then the berry mixture evenly over that.
7. Place in the freezer for 1-2 hours before serving to firm up a bit.