Have you heard of chickpea cookies? Sounds gross, right? Well, they aren’t!  I don’t know how it’s possible, but when you add just the right amount of nut butter, honey and chocolate chips, they really do taste like some version of a chocolate chip cookie. Don’t get too excited. They aren’t my all-time favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. Honestly, no cookie can beat that, in my opinion. But they are decent. These peanut butter chocolate chip chickpea cookies are a dairy-free, gluten-free alternative that I personally like and don’t feel the slightest bit of guilt when eating.

This isn’t the first time I’ve used beans in baking. I tried black bean brownies one time, and I didn’t mind those either. Honestly, these bean-based desserts are never going to be as good as the real thing, but they can be a healthy alternative to enjoy when you really don’t (or can’t) have the flour and/or dairy. I also like these chickpea chocolate chip cookies because they are a great way to get my kids to eat beans without even knowing it.

Over the years, I’ve tried beans with them, but haven’t had a ton of luck. There are some healthy foods they love and will eat over and over again. Beans and lentils just aren’t there favorite, although they love green beans for some reason. Anyway, these chickpea chocolate chip cookies are an easy way to sneak in a little bit of health and extra fiber into their diets and they’ll never know.

I also love this recipe because it only has five ingredients. They are all natural, and they take less than 20 minutes to make, including cooking time.

A bit of caution about this recipe – they don’t set up like traditional cookies. They do brown on the bottom and they can hold together, but they are not as firm as regular cookies and more prone to breaking and crumbling. This personally didn’t bother me, but I wanted to mention it.

If you’re feeling adventurous, you should definitely try these chickpea chocolate chip cookies. I’m pretty sure you’ll think they were worth the time.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Chickpea Cookies

Ingredients:

¼ cup honey
½ cup + 2 tablespoons peanut butter (or nut butter of your choice, I used chunky)
1 can of garbanzo beans (15 oz), rinsed and dried
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ cup chocolate chips
Sea salt (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a food processor, combine honey, nut butter, beans, and baking powder. Process until smooth and combined. Add in chocolate chips and hand-mix to incorporate. On a parchment-lined cookie sheet, roll 1 to 2 tablespoons of cookie dough in your hand and form into a little disk. Continue rolling and forming disks until all dough is used (mine made about a dozen).

Bake at 350 for 10-13 minutes, until the bottoms are browned. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes, until firm and place in airtight container and store at room temperature or in the refrigerator. I personally liked them in the fridge because I thought they held together better. Enjoy!