No Bake Blackberry & Chia Peanut Butter Oat Bars with Chocolate Drizzle

Well, that's a name, isn't it? Don't get me wrong, this recipe is not difficult at all - all you need is a food processor or blender and a little bit of patience for it to chill in the fridge for an hour or so. But I just couldn't decide which ingredient is the best to describe this recipe. Cause the beautiful sour flavour of the blackberries, with a mushy, gelly texture thanks to the chia seeds is just as wonderful as the sweet-saltyness of the peanuts in the crumbly oat base, the whole finished by a quick crack of the cold chocolate drizzle. Oh my!!

I found a recipe of this amazing chia bar on The Rawsome Vegan Life, one of my new fave blogs. I used Emily's recipe as a starting point, and slightly modified it. The berries and the peanut (or almond, if you wish) butter go so incredibly well together... I wanted to finish the whole thing by myself, And the chocolate on top! I used 85% Ecuadorian dark chocolate, which, to be honest is probably is more good for you, than any other treat ever.

And what I love the most, is the no-bake-ness of these bars. You know when its 41 degrees outside (true. story.) and all you wanna do is just forget about the oven? Summer is almost over, but this thing has been my savior - and won't be afraid to make it in the autumn either.

Ingredients

250 g oat flour (that's basically ground rolled oats - grind for yourself in a food processor if needed)
8 tblsp peanut butter
2 tblsp honey or agave syrup or maple syrup
1 tblsp sesame seeds (can be omitted)

250 g blackberries
4 tblsp chia seeds

30 g dark chocolate (min 70%)

Method

Mash the blackberries in a food processor or with a potato masher. Add the chia seeds and mix with a spoon until it's incorporated. Set aside while you make the base.

Grind the oats if needed and add the sesame seeds if using. Add the other ingredients and mix everything with your hands (You can try with a spoon, but it won't happen. Use those hands!). Add more peanut butter if you have some oat flour left on the bottom of the bowl, but you can also add some water if you don't wanna use all your peanut butter.

Use a square plastic container for the assembly - I used a 20 cm x 10 cm one. Put half of the peanut butter mixture into the container and press it down with your hands. It should cover the bottom of the container and be around 1-1,5 cm thick. Spoon the berry mixture on top - it should be already jelly-like thanks to the puffed chia seeds. Now you have to add the top of the sandwich. I normally do this by grabbing chunks of the peanut butter mixture, flatten them with my hands and place them on top of the berry mixture, creating a puzzle-like effect on top. Don't worry if it's not perfect, the chocolate will cover it!

Melt the chocolate in the microwave - melt it so some parts of it are still in full, then mix it with a spoon for some seconds. This way, the mixture won't heat up so much and it won't become grey on top of the sandwich bar.

Put the whole thing in the fridge and wait for 1-2 hours for it to set. Slice up and munch.

Mulberry custard pie

So, I found that mulberry tree near our house next to an old road. Then an other one, in a park. I immediately had the idea of this pie.

Anyway, mulberries are so amazing. Unfortunately, I don't find mulberry trees very often, and finding the fruit in a shop is absolutely impossible. So if you happen to run into one, definitely go and make this pie! It is so yummy with the creamy vanilla custard. And the whole feeling of going and collecting some wild fruit in a wee basket or bowl is so great, almost magical. I think it makes you appreciate the fruit, thinking that it is a true gift from nature, not something you bought. Okay, I'm starting to be too romantic, let's move on!

I gave up my favorite 3:2:1 recipe this time to try something new I read in a magazine. It was great, but kind of similar to my original one. 

If you can't get mulberries (but please try), you can make this pie with raspberries or blackberries as well.

 scroll down for printable recipe!

300 g flour

200 g butter

100 g icing sugar

1 egg yolk

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tblsp lemon juice

1 tsp soured cream

350 g mulberries

70 g caster sugar

2 dl water

1 sachet custard powder (49 g)

Put the butter in the microwave for 30 seconds. Beat it with the icing sugar and egg yolk until pale. Add the flour, salt, lemon juice and baking powder, and mix together with a wooden spoon. Add the soured cream (you can use cream fraiche or yogurt if you want), and incorporate the mixture into a ball using your hand. Add more soured cream if necessary. Cover it with cling film and put it in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Mix the mulberries with the caster sugar and cook it on medium heat for 5 minutes. Mix the custard powder with water and add it to the berry mixture. Mix constantly with a wooden spoon until it gets thick (around 5 minutes). Set aside.

Preheat the oven for 180 C. Divide the crust ball into to parts, leaving one of them bigger (2/3 - 1/3). Roll the bigger one on a floured surface. Grease a pie chart (I used a 32 cm wide one) and place the rolled crust in it. Bake for 10 minutes. Pour the mulberry mixture on the crust. Roll the other part as well, and cut 1,5 cm wide stripes. Place them on the berry mixture and bake together for 20 more minutes.

If you can, wait until it cools down, and the filling sets.