Homemade Almond Joys

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I love making homemade candy bars, and one of the easiest candy bars to make at home is this homemade Almond Joys recipe. Seriously, if you love coconut, almonds, and chocolate, you have got to give this recipe a try. They are so easy to make and taste better than the actual Almond Joys.

Ingredients

To make copycat almond joys, you need just 4 simple ingredients:

• Coconut flakes – You can use either sweetened coconut flakes or unsweetened coconut flakes. I always use sweetened flakes.
• Chocolate – Classic almond joys are made with milk chocolate, but you can always use dark chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, or even white chocolate. You can use chocolate chips or chocolate bars, or something like candy melts, chocolate melting wafers, or chocolate bark.
• Almonds – You can’t make Almond Joys without using Almonds; otherwise, they would just be Homemade Mounds.
• Binder – For the binder, you have several options. A popular option is to use sweetened condensed milk. But you can also use something like agave nectar, maple syrup, corn syrup, or a homemade simple syrup, which is how real Almond Joys are made.

Tools and Equipment

• Bowl
• Fork
• Sheet pan
• Silicone baking mat, parchment paper, or wax paper
• Food Processor

How to make almond joys at home

Begin by grinding up the shredded coconut flakes into smaller pieces. Technically, you could use them straight out of the package, but I always grind them up.

Place the coconut flakes in a food processor and blend for 25 to 30 seconds until you have much smaller pieces of coconut flakes.

You have the option to keep the coconut flakes in the food processor or transfer them to a large bowl. Then add your binder. In this case, I am showing the use of sweetened condensed milk.

Add about half of the sweetened condensed milk to the coconut flakes and mix with a spoon or spatula. Keep adding a little at a time until you can smash the flakes together, and they will keep their shape. You can also make this coconut mixture in the food processor so you don’t dirty another bowl.

TIP: If you don’t want to use sweetened condensed milk, you have other options. You can try maple syrup or something like agave nectar or regular corn syrup. Or make a simple syrup with water, sugar, and a little bit of corn syrup. I will add the simple syrup recipe below in the recipe card.

Form the coconut bars

Time to form the bars. If you have a little bar mold, then use that; otherwise, they are simple enough to form. Grab roughly two tablespoons of coconut and press it together in your hands, and then shape it into little bars.

Place the bars on a sheet pan or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, wax paper, or a silicone baking mat.

Next, melt a little bit of chocolate and put it in a sandwich bag, and snip the corner off, or you can use an actual piping bag. Add dots of chocolate where you want your whole almonds to be. Usually, Almond Joys have two almonds per bar.

Then set an almond on each dollop of chocolate. Add the whole thing to the freezer and freeze for 30 to 45 minutes. This will ensure the bars stay together while dipping.

Finish the homemade Almond Joys

After the bars have been in the freezer long enough, it is time to melt the chocolate. You can use your favorite chocolate chips, chocolate bars, etc. Melt them in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave using bursts of 30 seconds and stirring until melted, or use the double boiler method on the stovetop burner.

TIP: If the melted chocolate is a little too thick still for dipping, stir in a couple of teaspoons of vegetable oil, coconut oil, or canola oil; you can also use vegetable shortening. Or actual cacao butter if you have that.

Dip the bars in the melted chocolate. Use a fork underneath to hold it above the bowl and tap it a bit to allow excess chocolate to drain off. Then put it back on the tray.

Once all of the bars are dipped, place the tray in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes so the chocolate can set.

NOTE: If you are melting actual chocolate and not using something like chocolate melting wafers, candy melts, or almond bark, then you may or may not want to temper the chocolate as well. If you are fine storing the candy bars in the fridge, then don’t worry about tempering the chocolate. But if you want to give them as gifts or have them sit out at room temperature, you should probably temper the chocolate. You can follow this tempering chocolate guide if you want.

After the chocolate has set, you can dig into those homemade Almond Joys. I told you they were super easy to make. Enjoy!

How long will copycat almond joys last?

Store them in the fridge in an airtight container for a couple of weeks, or they also freeze very well.

Here are some other awesome homemade candy bar recipes you may like:

How to Make a Dubai Chocolate Bar

Homemade Twix Bars

Homemade Snickers

Did you like these homemade Almond Joy bars? If so, let me know and share this recipe with your friends and family!