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.
YUM!!! I just made these again, several years after making them the first couple of times. I forgot just how amazing these cookies are!! I love gooey baked goods and these are the gooiest! And so healthy! I don’t even feel guilty for eating 4 :D
You know what’s crazy? I haven’t made them since I posted the recipe in 2012! Haha. Always trying to come up with new stuff! I should give them a try and see if they’re as good as I remember. I’m happy that you weren’t let down! Thanks a bunch for your comment and sorry for my slow reply. :)
Made these today, love them!!!! Thanks for this delicious recipe
You’re welcome! So happy you liked them. Thanks for your comment! :)
I made these per the recipe but they came out very crumbly. Any advice?
I don’t think anyone has mentioned these being crumbly yet! Did you make any changes at all to the recipe? I hope you could still enjoy them!
I just made these and they are amazing! Even the picky eaters in my house really like them. I used almond butter, agave syrup and Krisda semi sweet chips (sugar/artificial sweetener free). My batch made 24 balls/cookies. I entered the ingredients into MyFitnessPal, each cookie ended up being 67.5 cal, 2.2g protein, 2.75g fiber, 8.8g carbs, 4.8g fat, 6.8g iron, 0.04g calcium.
Healthy and delicious! Thank you :)
So happy you and your picky eaters like them! I’ll have to look into those chips. Thanks for the tip and your feedback! :)
I just tried these the other day, and they were a huge hit. Definetely my new favorite!
So happy to hear that they were a hit! Thanks a bunch for your comment. :)
Do you have a picture of “these” cookies? The picture posted for this recipe is a picture of the original cookies without the peanut butter.
What do you mean by “these” cookies? The pictures are of the recipe listed at the bottom of the page (and they have peanut butter in them).
I just made these tonight and they are amazing! So quick and easy! I used the whole can of chickpeas and substituted with PB2 powder and HOLY MOLY were these good! I ate 3 right out of the oven, plated some, and put the rest in the freezer based on other comments saying to try them frozen! I’ve already recommended this recipe to 2 friends and plan on making these often! I want to try to mix things up and maybe add coconut flakes or make an oatmeal raisin version!
Thanks for the healthy find!
Oooh! An oatmeal version sounds interesting. I’d love to hear how that comes out! I’m so happy that they worked out well with your PB2 sub. Thanks for your feedback and for recommending the recipe to your friends!
How much PB2 did you use?
I made them a while ago but most likely just a scoop or more depending on how much peanut butter flavor you want.
I am having trouble blending my chickpeas and getting rid of the chunks. I have a high speed blender (blendtec)
Do you have the Twister Jar? Give that a try!
Where have these been all my life?!! So amazing!!! I used a store bought PB, Whole Foods 365 natural PB and they came out great! Not oily at all!!
Thanks for this awesome recipe!
I wonder if you could add brewers yeast and make these lactation cookie dough bites??!! Hmmmm…..
I’m so happy you enjoyed them! Thanks for the peanut butter tip. I’ve never used brewer’s yeast so I have no idea how that’d work. Sorry about that and thanks for your comment!
Hello! It was my first time ever making these and they came out kind of dry. I followed the directions to the T :(. Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you!!
Hmm. I’ve gotten loads of reviews on these but I don’t think anyone has had them come out dry. The only thing that I can think of is that perhaps your oven is running too hot? If you followed the directions exactly and didn’t make any subs at all, it’s the only thing I can think of!
My first venture into baking with chickpeas, it’s a hit! Great, simple recipe. I had all ingredients on hand. Highly recommend this. So good. Thanks
So happy to hear it was a hit! :) Thanks for your comment and sorry for the slow reply! I’m in the process of moving and haven’t had internet since Sunday.
I just saw this and going to make it tonight. I’m trying to do Atkins and this is close. Thanks.
I hope you enjoyed them! :)
I tried to make this using pb2 and sugar free Walden Maple syrup. The batter was delicious but it didn’t really bake well. Took forever and still wasn’t cooked all the way through. Might have been because of my substitutions though. Just wanted to give a heads up to other future bakers.
Thanks for the tip! I definitely recommend trying them with peanut butter next time. :)
Wow! Thank you for this recipe! I haven’t tried it yet; but I’m looking forward to it!
I am allergic to all grains, sugar, some dairy (and a lot of other things that have nothing to do with this recipe!).
And because I’m trying to lose weight I avoid peanuts.
I really appreciate the nut butter alternative, Stevia option and the small, side-recipe for grain-free baking powder!
You’re welcome for the recipe! I’m so happy to like the options. :) I hope you enjoyed the cookies. Thanks for your comment and sorry for the super slow reply! I’m in the process of moving and haven’t had internet for a while.
The stevia replaces the honey correct? What if your using powder stevia. How much would I use? Also could I use sugar free syrup?
The stevia replaces the honey. I’ve never used the powder so I’m not sure how that’d work but other people have mentioned using sugar-free syrup with success. :)
This cookie dough is so good I eat the cookie dough plain and don’t cook it sometimes I make cookie dough balls and dip them in dark chocolate bear fantastic thanks for the recipe
I love the idea of dipping them in chocolate! Thanks for the tip. :)
Forgot to rate– as my five year old has said “152000 wins! This cookie is the champion of today!”
Also of course other liquid sweeteners (maple or brown rice or even golden syrup, agave nectar(low GI but watch out for that high fructose content, yikes) or “bee free honee” brand which is made from apples and is delicious all work, and sugar with a little milk,
I have also had great success with the liquid stevia drops (like the Sweetleaf brand in “vanilla créme” as it has no aftertaste) …I used 30 plus 3 Tbsp milk
Thanks again, love your blog
Ekf
Aww! The champion of today! I love it. :) And good to know about the Sweetleaf brand for a sugar-free sub! I’ve been meaning to try that out. Thanks again for your comments!
Erin– these cookies are a simplified version of a chickpea chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve been tweaking for years…you’ve just unlocked the vegan in my seemingly unmatchable keyhole of an all-around extended-family friendly favorite!!
Of course you can substitute the chickpeas/garbanzos with cannelini(white kidney) or navy beans, or go crazy and use black beans with some cocoa powder and a little milk(moo-cow or plant based!),
Of course you can use any nut or seed butter (sunbutter, ABC butter, or even that weird powdered”PB2″plus oil),
Of course you can use vegan- gluten-/ sugar-free choco-chippies….
But for some reason I’ve been trying too hard with eggs and egg substitutes when to my surprise your recipe is simple and perfect and egg/sub free ????
Beautiful, amazing, love it literally tens of hundreds of batches to pieces!!!????????????❤️❤️❤️
Haha, wow. Tens of hundreds of batches?! That’s dedication! :D I’ve tweaked the cookies I’m posting tomorrow over 30 times so I feel your pain. I’m happy that you found this recipe and have given up on the egg replacer! Thanks a bunch for your lovely comment. :)
These are amazing!! I used cacao nibs and maple syrup, with fresh almond butter….I can’t stop eating them. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!
You’re welcome! :) I’m so happy you liked them! Thanks for your comment.
I made the recipe with organic brown rice syrup instead of honey. It worked perfectly.
That’s great to know! Thanks for the tip. :)
I make these are few times a week. Because they rock when they’re frozen they are a great addition to the banana based ice cream I make. I break the cookies apart and add them to the ice cream before I re-freeze it and tada!!!! Cookie dough ice cream!
Oooh! What a delicious idea! Thanks for the tip. I love that you make them so often! Thanks a bunch for your comment. :)