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Making Take 5 candy bars at home is the best way to celebrate Halloween and satisfy a chocolate craving. With a few simple swaps, you can make these copycat chocolate bars vegan-friendly. Get ready to have this 5-ingredient dessert swoop you off your feet. It is going to be love at first bite!
Take 5 bars were my (Chris) absolute favorite growing up, so when we decided to make homemade vegan versions of all of the best Halloween candy, I knew Take 5 bars had to be at the top of the list. In addition to making Halloween Cookies and Apple Monster Mouths, make sure to add these candy bars to your Halloween weekend plans!
Watch us make these candy bars here!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Pretzels – Pretzels are one of the 5 essential ingredients to making a homemade Take 5 bar. We prefer to use pretzel snaps for extra pretzel crunch, but you can also use your favorite pretzels.
- Peanut butter – We highly recommend using runny, natural peanut butter to make it easy to spread the peanut butter over top the pretzel layer. Save the thick, dry peanut butter at the bottom of the peanut butter jar for recipes like overnight oats.
- Peanuts – Salted peanuts balance the sweetness of the caramel and chocolate best. If you only have raw, unsalted peanuts, sprinkle a pinch of sea salt on top of the peanuts before adding on the caramel layer.
- Vegan caramel – Making vegan caramel at home is easier than you think and is highly recommended for the best homemade Take 5 bars.
- Dark chocolate chips – Use your favorite vegan chocolate chips here. If you can find vegan milk chocolate chips, those will make the most realistic-tasting chocolate.
Equipment Needed
- 9-inch square pan
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mat
- Small saucepan
- Glass or ceramic bowl
- Silicone spatula
- Knife and cutting board
How to Make Vegan Take 5 Bars
*Note: For quick and easy chocolate bar making, prepare your vegan caramel a few days in advance. We have a few caramel recipes for you to choose from on the blog. Our 5-ingredient vegan caramel is the most authentic tasting. For a healthier, refined-sugar-free option, choose our Easy Date Caramel. Or, for an even stronger peanut butter flavor, make our Peanut Butter Caramel recipe from our Vegan Apple Galette.
- Layer pretzels in the bottom of the pan. Once the pan is full, carefully spread on a layer of peanut butter using a spatula. Do this slowly to prevent the pretzels from moving.
- Press in peanuts. Add an even layer of salted peanuts and gently press them into the peanut butter so they stick in place.
- Add a caramel layer. Spread evenly to finish the Take 5 filling.
- Transfer to the freezer. Place the pan in the freezer to harden the Take 5 bars for at least 30 minutes or until hardened.
- Melt the chocolate. Just before pulling the Take 5 bar filling out of the freezer, melt the chocolate. Add the dark chocolate chips into the upper bowl or pot of a double boiler on the stovetop and allow the chips to melt slowly. Mix often with a spatula until the dark chocolate has completely melted.
- Cut the Take 5 bar filling into individual bars. We cut ours into 16 bars, but cut yours as big or small as you’d like.
- Coat in chocolate. Using two forks, dunk the filling into the chocolate and evenly coat. Allow excess chocolate to drop off, then place on the lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with the remaining Take 5 bars.
- Set in the refrigerator. Place the candy bars in the refrigerator (or freezer) for about 15 minutes, or until the chocolate is hardened.
- Enjoy. Allow the candy bars to sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes to soften before enjoying.
Variations
- Use our homemade chocolate bars: Swap the dark chocolate chips for 10 ounces of our homemade vegan chocolate (about 3 bars).
- Make these Take 5 candy bars peanut-free: If you are allergic to peanuts or simply don’t have peanuts in the pantry, swap them for another nut like chopped almonds. Similarly, swap the peanut butter for almond butter, or another nut or seed butter of choice.
- Use store-bought vegan caramel. We like to use our homemade caramel because it’s quick and easy to make and it can be difficult to find vegan-friendly caramel in stores. However, if you have store-bought caramel, feel free to use it!
- Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave: If you don’t have the right sized glass bowl to make your own double boiler, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave in 20 or 30 second bursts, stirring in between until just melted.
How long does homemade vegan candy last?
These homemade Take 5 bars will last for up to 1 month in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer. For best results, store in an airtight container or silicone bag.
If frozen, allow the chocolate to soften at room temperature for up to 1 hour before enjoying.
FAQs
We used about ½ of our vegan caramel recipe which is about ½-¾ cup of caramel. If you are a caramel lover, you can always use more and make an even thicker caramel layer. Just know that a thicker Take 5 bar filling will likely take longer to harden in the freezer.
Typically, yes! Just like store-bought bread, pretzels are typically wheat-based and made without milk or eggs. We used Snyder’s of Hanover Pretzel Snaps, but most pretzels in stores should be vegan-friendly. You should also be able to find vegan and gluten-free pretzels, too if needed.
Hershey’s was the original Take 5 candy bar producer, but it has since been sold to Reese’s. The original Take 5 bar still exists, but it is repackaged and branded by Reese’s.
More Vegan Halloween Chocolate Bars You May Enjoy:
- Vegan Milky Way Bars
- Vegan Snickers Bars
- Chocolate Crunch Bars
- Homemade Vegan Chocolate Bars
- Swirled Chocolate Bark
These take 5 bars require, you guessed it, 5 ingredients: chocolate, pretzels, peanuts, peanut butter and caramel, that’s it! You can use homemade or store-bought vegan caramel, but we chose to make our own.
All you have to do is layer all of the ingredients but the chocolate into a pan, freeze it, cut it into squares and then dunk each square in chocolate. Place these on a lined baking sheet and freeze or refrigerate them for about 15 minutes.
If you love chocolate, you should also check out our vegan crunch bar, homemade vegan chocolate or even our vegan black bean brownies!
Make sure you tag us on Instagram @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris and hashtag #sweetsimplevegan if you recreate any of our recipes, we love to see your photos!
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Homemade Take 5 Bars (Vegan)
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 16 bars
Description
A 5-ingredient vegan chocolate bar that is the perfect balance of salty and sweet. Made from chocolate, pretzels, peanuts, peanut butter, and caramel, get ready to have this homemade take 5 bar swoop you off of your feet. It is going to be love at first bite!
Ingredients
- 30 square pretzels (we used these)
- 3/4 cup smooth no salt added peanut butter*
- 3/4 cup salted peanuts
- 1/2 recipe homemade vegan caramel*
- 1 bag (10 oz.) vegan dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet (we used a 9-inch square pan) with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Begin to evenly line the bottom of the pan with a layer of pretzels. Once the whole pan is full, spread on a layer of peanut butter with a spatula. Do this carefully so that the pretzels stay uniform and flat. Follow this with a layer of peanuts, and then spread over the vegan caramel. Place the pan into the freezer to harden for at least 30 minutes.
- Just before you remove the mixture from the freezer, melt the chocolate. Prepare a double boiler by bringing a small pot of water to a boil. Once it is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and place either a fitted glass (or ceramic) bowl or another smaller pot over the water. The key here is to make sure that water does not get into the bowl or pot and mix in with the chocolate. Add the chocolate chips into the upper bowl or pot and allow them to slowly melt, mixing often with a spatula. Once the chocolate has melted, turn off the heat and remove the upper bowl or pot and set aside.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Remove the baking dish from the freezer and remove the contents onto a cutting board. Cut into small squares (we did 16).
- Using two forks, dunk one square into the chocolate and evenly coat. Allow excess chocolate to drip off and then place it on the lined baking sheet to set and continue with the remaining squares.
- Place the baking sheet into the refrigerator or freezer to set or about 15 minutes. Allow the chocolate to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes or so to soften before digging in.
- Store in an airtight container for in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Notes
- For those with a peanut allergy, almonds and almond butter work great in place of the peanuts!
- If needed, warm the peanut butter and/or caramel so that they are runny and easier to handle.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Candy
- Cuisine: Vegan
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amazing recipes:D