1. Put dates into a bowl and cover with hot tap water to soften. Let sit while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

2. Add walnuts, chia seeds, hemp seeds, and oats into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until a fine meal is formed (some small chunks are fine, but it should overall be like the texture of coarsely ground cornmeal). Pour the ground nuts/seeds into a large mixing bowl, and add cocoa and salt.

2. Drain the dates and put them, plus all remaining ingredients (except chocolate chips) into the empty food processor. Blend until smooth.

3. Scrape the date mixture into the bowl with the ground nuts and cocoa powder. Use a wooden spoon to fully combine into a dough.

4. Line an 8x8" square pan with parchment paper, and press the energy bar dough into a flat layer with a spatula or your hands. It may help to wet your fingers so they don't stick while pressing down. Transfer the pan to the freezer, and let harden for 20 minutes. While bars harden, melt chocolate chips in the microwave. Microwave them in 20-second intervals, stirring in between, for up to 2 minutes.

5. When bars are firm, remove from the freezer and slice into 8-12 pieces, and drizzle with melted chocolate chips. Put back in the freezer for chocolate to harden, then separate the bars and transfer to a freezer-safe container. Store bars in the freezer for best consistency.