This is a delicious recipe for Keto Almond Joy Bars which are made from chocolate, almonds and a whole bunch of yummy, gooey coconut on top of a cookie crust…. A great combo and a wonderful Low Carb and Gluten-Free dessert!

I am so excited to share this recipe with you because if you are like me and If you like the store-bought almond joy candy bars you are going to love these homemade, Low Carb/Keto almond joy bars. 

They are easy to make and with the combo of chocolate, almonds, cookie bottom and lots of gooey coconut, they are so delicious to eat!

We think they are very similar to our low carb magic bars, so if you like them you will also love these low carb almond joy bars.

What Are Almond Joy Bars?

Who doesn’t love chocolate, almonds, and coconut? That’s exactly what a traditional Almond Joy bar is. 

I have always loved almond joy bars because of the chewy coconut, creamy chocolate, and of course, let’s not forget the almonds, but typically they are high in sugar and carbs, 29 carbs to be exact in a regular size Almond Joy bar. 

So when we started making low carb foods and desserts I started experimenting to come up with a yummy bar similar to that but without all the carbs, and now I’m happy that we could share it with you. It’s a homemade Keto/Low Carb Almond Joy bar that we hope will excite you too!

Are Almond Joy Bars Keto-Friendly?

Normally almond joy bars are high in carbs (29 carbs to be exact) which comes from the sugar in the coconut and in the chocolate. In our bars, we use unsweetened coconut and chocolate, so that lowers the carbs drastically.

We use Powdered Swerve to sweeten the coconut and almond flour to make the bottom crust. So yes these homemade Almond Joy bars are Keto-Friendly for sure. There are only 3 net carbs per square so as the saying goes, “now you can have your cake and eat it too!”

What Ingredients are in Sugar-Free Almond Joy Bars?

Almond Flour – Nut flours have become a staple in Low Carb baking, almond flour being the most widely used. Make sure to use an almond flour that is finely ground for best results.  

Our first choice is Kirkland brand so if you have a Costco near you, you can pick it up there. If not, then use Bob’s Red Mill which is a very popular one and can be found in a lot of stores.

Egg – Egg is a binder for your crust. I always use Jumbo eggs because they are just a little bit bigger.

Butter – I use regular butter, not unsalted. The butter adds a yummy, rich flavor to your crust.

Monkfruit – This is a granulated version of a sugar replacement that measures the same as sugar and does not raise your glycemic index.

Coconut Cream -This is the best thing to make your filling thick and gooey. It comes in a can.

Coconut -Unsweetened. 

Powdered Swerve -Like confectioners sugar but without the carbs. It makes your filling smooth and not gritty like the granulated version.  

Lilly’s Chocolate Chips- We used the sugar free Semi-sweet chocolate in these bars but Lillys also makes a sugar free version in Dark and Milk chocolate too. Lilly’s chocolate is very creamy and smooth when softened and it has amazing flavor without sugar and Only 5 net carbs for 60 chips.

Almonds – Use Raw almonds, which work better for these bars than roasted almonds.

What Chocolate is Best for This Recipe?

Having a sugar free chocolate is such a big thing because you can use it to make a lot of low carb goodies.

I used Lilly’s chocolate chips in these Keto Bars because I think that they make the best sugar-free chocolate.  Lilly’s used to only have sugar free dark chocolate chips, but now they also make milk chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate chips. 

In these bars, I used semisweet chocolate chips but you could use any one of these 3 varieties, whichever you prefer to use. They are sweetened with Stevia and do not have an aftertaste, so you taste chocolate, not the sweetener. 

Are Almonds Keto?

For the most part, all nuts are Keto-friendly, though some have more carbs than others. Nuts are also a high-fat food, making them a good choice for the Keto diet. If you are looking for high-fat snack food, keep some almonds with you in your purse or desk or car. They have a lot of healthy vitamins in them and will also help to keep your blood sugar levels stable. 

For instance, almonds have more carbs than pecans or walnuts but fewer carbs than cashews. Almonds have 2.9 net carbs in 1 ounce, which is pretty good.  

In these almond joy bars, there are only 1 or 2 almonds in each bar so you’re not getting too many carbs in each bar from the almonds.

How to Make Keto Almond Joy Bars

Now that you know what ingredients are in these Keto Almond Joy Bars, we’re going to show you the way that we make them in this 3 step process…

The Crust: 

Before you begin making your Almond Joy bars preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

The next step is to line an 8×8 glass or metal pan with parchment paper so that your crust won’t stick to the pan. 

In a small bowl mix Almond Flour, Egg, Swerve, Salt and melted Butter and Combine until well blended…

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Transfer flour mixture into the baking dish and using your hands or a spoon spread out crust evenly.

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Then take a fork and poke several holes in the crust so the crust won’t rise and crack.

Bake for about 10-15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.

While the crust is cooling proceed to the next step.

The Filling: 

In a saucepan, mix together the coconut cream, powdered swerve, and Bocha Sweet, and stir with a whisk until well blended.

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The next thing that you do is to add your shredded coconut and stir well. 

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Now you can heat your coconut mixture over medium heat until it’s well blended.

When the crust is cool, pour the filling on top of the crust and smooth it out evenly. The filling will be thick so take a spoon or spatula and smooth it out.

Topping: 

For the topping, mix together the rest of the Coconut Cream that’s in the can and the chocolate chips and powdered swerve.

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Soften up your chocolate mixture in a medium-size saucepan and stir until the chocolate chips melt enough to blend thoroughly to a smooth texture, not lumpy.

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Spread your chocolate evenly on top of the coconut layer. Shake the pan from side to side to make sure to even out your chocolate layer.

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Then place your almonds on top of the chocolate layer and you are almost done.

Refrigerate for approximately 1 hour or until the chocolate layer is hardened.

Now you can enjoy eating your homemade Keto Almond Joy Bars.

Best Tips for Making Sugar-Free Almond Joy Bars

Here are some tips to share with you so that your Keto Almond Joy Bars will come out the best possible way. Here are a few….

• When you spread your chocolate on top of your coconut it may not be even because you don’t want to use a knife to spread it or you may pull up some of the coconut by mistake. So the best way to get your chocolate layer smooth is to shake your pan from side to side until you reach your results.

• Don’t let the crust bake too long or it may overbake and become hard. You want it to hold up your other layers, not crumble underneath it.

• Make sure when you are making the crust to take a fork and poke a bunch of holes in the crust so that your crust will not rise and crack.

• When you are making your filling be sure to use powdered Swerve and not granulated Swerve so that your filling will be smooth and not gritty.

Variations on this Recipe  

One thing that you could do for a slight variation when making your Keto Almond Joy Bars is to chop up the almonds and mix them in with the coconut mixture. Or you could put the whole almonds underneath the chocolate layer.

If you are like me and love nuts as much as I do, you could always put other nuts in your Keto Bars in addition to almonds, just load it up with nuts, wither on top of the chocolate layer or also mixed in with the coconut, such as Pecans or walnuts.

Can I Add Peanut Butter?

You could add peanut butter between the coconut layer and chocolate layer if you wanted to, but in my opinion, I feel that the peanut butter would overpower the rest of the flavors. Instead, I feel the coconut should be the predominant flavor in these bars.

If you love peanut butter that much that you want to add it to your coconut bars then go right ahead. But if you want peanut butter so much then we have a sugar-free peanut butter fudge recipe on our site that you may want to try.

Can I Add Apples?

Some people may be looking to put apples in these Almond Joy treats however I strongly don’t recommend it. I’m sorry to say but Apples would not go with these bars at all. They would be totally overpowered by the strong coconut and chocolate flavors.

If you are looking for apples, then try making an apple pie bar instead.

Can I Add Berries?

You could add dried berries to your almond joy bars if you really want some fruity taste but there are more carbs in dried fruit so you can’t add too many if you are on Keto.

There are so many other recipes for fruity bars, with lemon or blueberries, raspberries…etc if you are really looking for fruit in your dessert that you’d be better off trying in my opinion. 

Other Diets This Recipe is Good For

Keto – All these ingredients, are either sugar-free or very low in carbs that fit into your allotment of carbs on the Keto diet. 

Gluten-free – These bars are another winning recipe for a gluten-free diet.

What Other Bars Can I Make?

One of my favorite bars to make is our low carb magic bars. They share the same crust accompanied by some chocolate and coconut but made a little different.

Bars are very popular and they come in all different flavor combos. Here are a few examples.

• Lemon Bars
• Blueberry Bars
• Chocolate Pecan Bars
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars
• Cheesecake Bars

Can I Make This Recipe Ahead?

You may have a few minutes of free time and want to use it wisely so you get the idea to make your Keto Almond Joy Bars ahead of time, even if your guests are not arriving for a couple more days. These Almond Joy Bars can certainly be made ahead of time. They stay fresh for 1-2 weeks in your refrigerator if you wrap them tightly. 

They will keep if you cut them or if you don’t cut them but if you don’t cut them and leave them whole they will certainly stay fresh longer. With the fact that your guests are not arriving for 2 more days, I think I would leave them in the pan without cutting into them unless you just can’t resist trying them out to make sure that your guests will love them!!!

How to Store Almond Joy Bars

When we make our Almond Joy Bars, we keep them in the pan and don’t cut them until we get ready to serve them. That way they will stay fresh a little longer. 

Don’t forget to wrap them with several layers of plastic wrap and then aluminum foil on top of the plastic to assure that they will stay fresher, longer. Once you do that, place them in the refrigerator.

After you cut the almond bars, then find an airtight container to place the leftovers in which will keep them as fresh as possible for another week or two in the refrigerator.

Once they have been in the refrigerator, they have hardened up enough that you don’t have to worry about them squashing if you choose to stack them on top of each other.

Can I Freeze Almond Joy Bars?

You can certainly freeze your Low Carb Almond Joy Bars, just wrap them the same way that you would to refrigerate. If you wrap them properly then they will last for about 6 months in your freezer.

Other Low Carb Dessert Recipes:

If you’re in the mood for some other Keto Dessert recipes then try our:

• Best Keto Brownies
• Raspberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies
• Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Sugar-Free Condensed Milk

All of them are Keto-friendly and low carb, and you and your family will love them!

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