The Original Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites Recipe (aka Chickpea Cookies)
Chickpea cookies with no flour, no oil, no white sugar. These are just full of chickpeas. And they’re my very favorite healthy cookie so far!* I don’t know if they really classify as cookies so I’ll go with cookie dough bites.
And as a bonus, they’re grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan. Just in case that matters to anyone out there! And if you’re worried about the chickpeas, don’t be. I don’t like chickpeas and won’t eat them but that didn’t prevent me from inhaling these.
* 2017 update: this post is 5 years old and I have a new favorite. :D You HAVE to try these paleo chocolate chip cookies if you haven’t already! There’s also a vegan option. And for hot summer days, these no-bake oatmeal cookies (naturally gluten-free + vegan) are my favorite!
- Nutrient-Rich Ingredients: Packed with protein and fiber from chickpeas and natural peanut butter, these bites are as nourishing as they are delicious.
- Naturally Sweetened: Maple syrup or honey provides a subtle sweetness, eliminating the need for refined sugars.
- Diet-Friendly: These bites are gluten-free, dairy-free, and grain-free, making them suitable for various dietary needs.
- Kid-Approved: Their cookie-dough-like texture and chocolatey goodness make them a hit with both kids and adults.
One thing I’ve learned since starting this blog is that people really love closeups of melted stuff. So there you go. :)
These aren’t the most beautiful cookie dough bites, but fresh out of the oven, with all that gooey chocolate, I bet you can’t tell that these are made with chickpeas. Or are grain-free. But cold? Yuck. These need to be warm!
You can either freeze the balls and pop a few in the oven whenever it’s on, or simply put them in the microwave until they’re warm and gooey again.
By the way, if you’re a peanut butter lover like I am, you have to try these healthy peanut butter balls. They’re also gluten-free and vegan!
Ingredients Notes
These are just notes on select ingredients. Please scroll below for the full recipe!
- Chickpeas: Also known as garbanzo beans, chickpeas provide the creamy base for these bites. Use canned chickpeas for convenience, and make sure to rinse and drain them well to remove any briny flavor.
Chickpea flour won’t work. I don’t think plain hummus will either. I haven’t tried anything other than chickpeas, but others have used butter beans, navy beans, red kidney beans, great northern beans, and lentils with success.
I generally don’t like goodies made with those types of beans, but I love these cookies made with chickpeas. Please use chickpeas unless you have an allergy! - Peanut Butter: This should be the kind with only peanuts and salt. No added fat or sugar. Be careful because there are some “natural” brands out there that aren’t really natural.
I find that this peanut butter is usually expensive, so I make my own. Here’s how to make peanut butter! All you need is peanuts and a food processor (which you already have to pull out for this chickpea cookie recipe!).
Other nut or seed butters also work great. I use sunflower seed butter for a nut-free version. - Maple Syrup or Honey: make sure to use maple syrup for the vegan version. For a totally sugar free version, some commenters have used 30 drops of Stevia and cacao nibs with success.
- These need the chocolate. Don’t go making them without the chocolate and then tell me that they weren’t sweet or gooey enough! These would be incredibly boring without the chocolate.
- And for some weird reason, these cookie dough bites do not taste yummy in dough form. Baking them somehow brings out the sweetness and peanut butter flavor. Or maybe it’s just all that melted chocolate.
- Doing this in a blender won’t work and might kill the blender. Making these in a Blendtec blender or something equally powerful might work but I haven’t tried it.
- Adding random stuff like eggs… probably won’t work either. ;) Experimenting is great but I think this is a bad recipe to experiment with.
- Do not double the recipe! It might be too much for your machine and could damage it.
- Vegan Peanut Butter Fudge: A creamy, caramel-like fudge made with just four ingredients. It’s vegan, gluten-free, and comes together in minutes.
- Peanut Butter Apple Crumble: A delightful twist on a classic dessert, combining tender apples with a peanut butter oat topping. It’s gluten-free and vegan.
- Peanut Butter Protein Balls: Perfect for on-the-go snacking, these no-bake bites are packed with protein and flavor, and they’re easy to customize.
- Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies: Soft, chewy, and flourless, these cookies are a simple yet satisfying treat that’s naturally gluten-free.
- Healthy Peanut Butter Ice Cream: A rich and creamy no-churn ice cream that’s both vegan and paleo-friendly, offering a guilt-free indulgence.
Chickpea Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (205 grams) canned chickpeas well-rinsed and patted dry with a paper towel1
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 10 tablespons (160 grams) natural peanut butter SunButter Natural or almond butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (80 grams) honey or maple syrup or agave for vegan
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 1/2 cup (90 grams) chocolate chips use vegan and dairy-free chocolate chips, if needed
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F / 175°C. Combine all the ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, in a food processor and process until very smooth. Make sure to scrape the sides and the top to get the little chunks of chickpeas and process again until they’re combined.
- Put in the chocolate chips and stir it if you can, or pulse it once or twice. The mixture will be very thick and sticky.
- With wet hands, form into 1 1/2" balls. Place onto a Silpat or a piece of parchment paper. If you want them to look more like normal cookies, press down slightly on the balls. They don't do much rising.
- Bake for about 10 minutes. The dough balls will still be very soft when you take them out of the oven. They will not set like normal cookies.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature (or in the fridge) for up to 1 week.
Notes
- My can of chickpeas was 400 grams, 240 grams without the water, and I used all but a few tablespoons of the chickpeas.
- Don’t even try with regular peanut butter! They’ll come out oily. You MUST use natural peanut butter.
- If you need grain-free baking powder, you can use 1 part cream of tartar + 1 part baking soda + 2 parts arrowroot.
Oh my gosh, these are amazing. I made them just as directed and they're so good! I'm gluten and dairy free so finds like these are always great! Thank you!
OMG!!!! Im making these now. I used agave and dark chocolate chips. I can wait for them to come out of the oven. Thank you soooooo much for sharing!!!!!!!
I just made these. YUMMMMMMMM. Packed full of healthy protein, little sugar, AND delicious?? For the win!
Just made these. YUMMMMMMM. Packed full of protein, little sugar, AND delicious? For the win!
how long do the cookies last? can you freeze them or freeze the cookie dough?
Hi, can the dough be freezed? How long do the cookies keep? :) They are delicious!
so…what are chickpeas? i have never heard of them and neither has google lol. someone please inform
Google has definitely heard of chickpeas… they are also known as garbanzo beans, I believe. It’s what hummus is made of. You can buy them in the bean aisle of any grocery store.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chickpea
Thanks, Lindsay. I couldn’t even bring myself to reply to that comment. I figured it had to be a troll because when you google chickpeas, all you get is chickpea information. Very weird comment!
I am watching my calories so had to try these and attemped some swaps which I calculated at 14 cookies to be about 80 calories.
My swaps:
I used the whole can of chick peas
4 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp honey
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
and 2 tbsp xlyitol
Verdict:
The dough is amazing I froze it so I didn't eat the whole thing. I baked a few to try and they fall apart so I ate them with a plate and a fork. Still awesome, next time I will add a little less applesauce. When I thaw the rest of this batch I am going to add a little oat flour and bake a little longer after 15 min they were still a little underdone but I couldn't wait anymore lol. Thanks so much these are amazing!
I just straight up made these!!!!!!!!!!! MY WORLD HAS CHANGED FOREVER!!!
So excited to make these! Really happy I stumbled onto a pic of these on Pinterest and it led me to your recipe!
Thanks for the recipe!! I took a chance and used store bought creamy peanut. I also used a whole can of chickpeas. My cookies didn't seem too oily, and they weren't sticky when rolling into balls. I ended up with 21 cookies. Yummy :)
Omg these were so good! My friend and I made them and they were incredible!! My boyfriend really liked them and was so surprised when I told him they had chick peas in them! They are really healthy considering they are cookies! I love that they have no butter or sugar in them. Thanks for this recipe I will definitely make it again :)
i made these but substituted almost a 1/2 cup Splenda for the honey. I did have to add a couple teaspoons water so that it would blend in the food processor. They taste good but are a little darker in color than yours. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks for all the comments and reviews, everyone! I'd love to keep replying to each one but it's just not possible with the way Blogger has the comments set up. :(
I appreciate all of them, though! I really do. :)
I know this is old, but I just saw this posted on another blog. I am not sure if these are your pictures, but it seems like maybe this blog published the content and photos and did not give you credit? You might want to check.
http://www.yeswecoupon.com/peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-cookie-dough-bites-no-flouroil-or-white-sugar/
Yes, they're my pictures and everything was copy and pasted from here! Thank you so much for your comment. I really, really appreciate it. I'm going to email them immediately! You are awesome. Thank you!
You are welcome. I think they have stolen other content as well. Yet on some they do give credit. When I saw the picture, I knew I had seen your cookie picture before all over pinterest.
First of all this recipe ROCKS! I know the post is almost a year old, but I am so glad I found it on pintrest. I made the cookie dough bites tonight and boy were they yummy! I used almond butter instead of peanut butter. Unfortunately my bites didn't look as pretty as your recipe pic lol. They just were not as golden brown as your picture. Maybe it's because of the almond butter. Oh well, they were still super tasty and my hubby even liked them too. Thanks for sharing this recipe with the world :)
First of all this recipe rocks! I tried it out tonight and they were super tasty. I used almond butter instead of peanut butter. Only thing is mine didn't look as pretty as your recipe picture lol. Maybe it's because of the almond butter. They just were not as golden brown as your picture. Either way they were still yummy and my hubby liked them too! Thanks for the recipe!
I just made these and they are great! Thought mine didn't come out looking as pretty as the ones above :) I also added some oats and almond slices. Next time I will have to cook them for a bit longer to get a crunchier outside texture.. besides that, good stuff! Will def make again
Yummy! Thanks Erin. I don't have a food processor anymore… blender worked fine.
I used almond butter, half honey and half agave. Followed the recipe exactly because any time I try to modify something it blows up :) I used a bum mini food processor, but I think it worked alright. Personally, I liked the "dough". Great recipe, thank you.