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Healthy vegan chickpea cookie dough? Oh yes! Chickpeas, peanut butter and dates make up the base of this no added sugar, oil-free, flourless cookie dough!
Do you have a favorite treat that you can’t seem to stop eating? As in, when it’s in front of you, “portion control” does not exist? Yeah, that is cookie dough for me!
As much as I love freshly baked, hot from the oven cookies (or even these fudgy chocolate chip cookie bars), I really enjoy the dough as well! I am probably speaking the language of so many people right now so let’s just get right to the good stuff: HEALTHY VEGAN CHICKPEA COOKIE DOUGH.
Is it really healthy? Yes, it really is healthy vegan chickpea cookie dough (ok, healthy for a dessert, of course. I wouldn’t recommend eating it for breakfast everyday by any means but it still wouldn’t be the worst thing to eat, ha!).
Key Ingredients
The base is comprised of pitted deglet noor dates, peanut butter and chickpeas and then I add vanilla extract, salt, baking soda (for that classic cookie dough taste), a little bit of plant-based milk and chocolate chips! Just 8 ingredients!
So what’s NOT in it? There’s no added sugar, no butter, no eggs, no oil, no flour, no gluten and no dairy!
What makes it so healthy? Fiber from the dates and chickpeas, vitamins and minerals like iron, folate, zinc and manganese, protein from the peanut butter and chickpeas and best of all, clean ingredients!
Sooo, what does it taste like? It tastes like COOKIE DOUGH! Seriously, just like regular good old cookie dough. Everyone I know who has tried this has LOVED it (vegans and non-vegans)!
How to Make
Start by rinsing and draining a 15 oz can of cooked chickpeas. You want to rinse and drain these really well. Add the chickpeas to the food processor.
Note: a food processor is necessary for this recipe! I do not recommend trying this in a regular blender as it could be too much for the blender to handle.
For the dates, you want to do a packed cup. I add dates tightly and then about halfway in, press down, and then add more dates tightly until the measuring cup is full. This yields about 22-23 dates for me.
Next, add the remaining ingredients, except for the plant-based milk.
Pulse pulse and pulse some more! You will pulse this for a while, stopping every so often to scrape the dough off the sides of the food processor down toward the blade.
At this point, add a tiny splash of plant-based milk. This helps get everything moving in the food processor. It also helps with the texture of the cookie dough, although, make sure you start slowly and don’t add too much. About 1 tbsp should do it, but feel free to add milk until desired consistency is reached.
Pulse until it’s smooth!
Remove the blade and stir in the chocolate chips.
Here is the most important step: refrigerate the dough! I recommend at least a few hours. The pulsing in the food processor warms up the dough and the flavors intensify in the refrigerator so make sure to refrigerate before enjoying!
If you make this recipe, don’t forget to take a photo and tag @wholesome.crumbs on Instagram!
Vegan Chickpea Cookie Dough [No Added Sugar, Oil-Free]
Equipment
- food processor
Ingredients
- 1 (15 oz ) can of cooked chickpeas rinsed and drained well
- 1/3 cup peanut butter needs to be creamy and soft, not dry and hard. Sub for any other nut butter if needed
- 1 cup pitted deglet noor dates, tightly packed
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp mineral salt plus more to taste, see notes
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- a splash or two of plant-based milk about 1 tbsp, or add slowly until desired consistency is reached
- semi sweet or dark chocolate chips desired amount
Instructions
- Rinse and drain a 15 oz can of cooked chickpeas. Make sure to rinse and drain well.
- Add all of the ingredients, minus the plant-based milk, into the food processor.
- Start pulsing. You will have to stop every so often to scrape the dough off the sides of the food processor and down toward the blade. Add a couple splashes of plant-based milk to help get things moving in the food processor until desired consistency is reached. I usually add about 1 tbsp.
- Once smooth, remove blade and stir in chocolate chips.
- Refrigerate the dough! This step is vital as the flavors intensify after several hours in the fridge.
- Enjoy! The dough can be enjoyed from the fridge or freezer.
Notes
- Before you add the salt, look at your canned chickpeas and peanut butter to see how much salt is added. My chickpeas are low sodium and my peanut butter has added salt. Depending on much salt is in yours, add salt slowly and adjust to taste! I usually use 1/2 tsp of pink mineral salt, plus an extra pinch.
- Make sure to refrigerate the dough before enjoying! The pulsing of the food processor heats up the dough and it tastes so much more flavorful after it sits in the fridge for several hours. It’s even better the next day!
- A food processor is necessary for this recipe. I do not recommend trying this in a blender! It could be way too much for the blender to handle.
This is one of my favorite recipes to make regularly! Healthy and I don’t feel bad for making it one bit! Easy to make, and the texture is just like regular cookie dough. YUM!