I brought these to work and they were such a hit, which was really lovely to see. Of course I played my usual trick of not mentioning the secret ingredient and as usual almost no one could guess it. I love when this happens as it just goes to show that unusual ingredients can make seriously delicious creations. I recommend not mentioning to your unsuspecting family/friends/guests that the main ingredient in these cookies is chickpeas, as it might put some people off, which would be a shame as these are some damn fine cookies. I did debate calling these “chickpea cookies” but somehow ended up with “grain free cookies”, not sure why!
Makes 12-15 cookies
Ingredients:
1 400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup or 8 tbsp firm peanut/nut butter (if your PB is very runny it won’t work)
1/3 cup or 5 tbsp rice malt syrup (if using another liquid sweetener then you may want to reduce this amount)
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp baking powder (optional)
A pinch of salt
Optional extras: 1/4-1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips, dried fruit, or chopped nuts
What to do:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C
- Place all the ingredients (apart from optional extras) into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth and creamy
- Stir in any optional extras
- Use a tablespoon to scoop the dough into evenly sized and spaced balls on a baking tray lined with baking parchment (greaseproof paper)
- Bake for around 20-25 minutes until golden
- Leave to cool for 5 minutes before serving
I’m allergic to peanuts can you use another nut butter?
Oh definitely! Use any nut butter you like, as long as it’s not too runny!
Is it okay if I used a powdered sweetener?
You could yes, but it would change the consistency so you might need to use more nut butter. But see how you go. Personally I don’t recommend powdered sweeteners like coconut sugar due to their high fructose content. Let me know how it goes 🙂
I would never think to use chickpeas in a cookie recipe, such a great idea!
Thank you! 🙂 It’s amazing how well the chickpeas work, and how simple these are to make!
mmmmm perfect little yummy treats. I’ve seen quite a few recipes using chickpeas in sweet foods like cookies, and i admit i’ve been a bit nervous about using them in sweet treats. However, your recipes looks very simple and quick, so maybe i’ll give it a go? I have made black bean brownies before and they turned out pretty good, so what’s stopping me from trying chickpeas?
Yes please definitely give it a go 🙂 I promise you won’t regret it!
Can i use honey as the sweetener? 🙂
You can yes, it would work the same way.