Looking for the chickpea cookies from Pinterest or Facebook? Here’s the original recipe! Scroll to the bottom of the post for a how-to recipe video.
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!
I used homemade peanut butter in these cookies but store-bought (the kind with just peanuts and salt) works just as well.
Here’s how to make peanut butter! There’s also a video included. All you need is peanuts and a food processor (which you already have to pull out for this chickpea cookie recipe!).
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.
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!
Please read the following before asking a question! It will probably answer it. :)
- Tons of people have posted the nutritional analysis for these. They’re supposedly anywhere between 80-130 calories, which seems like a huge range to me. Please use a recipe analyzer like on CalorieCount if you need more information.
- You can use almond butter, sun butter, or whatever nut butter you like.
- The peanut butter should be the kind with only peanuts and salt. No added fat or sugar.
Be careful because there are some “natural” brands out there which aren’t really natural. I find that this peanut butter is usually expensive so I make my own.
You can make your own in only 5 minutes with a food processor. Check that out here. - 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!
- 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.
But thanks to the experimenters who left feedback, I’ve been able to update the recipe with alternatives to honey and peanut butter. Thanks everyone!
For my readers who are really sensitive to gluten, you might want to read my post on Is Honey Gluten-free? - For a totally sugar free version, use 30 drops of Stevia and cacao nibs.
- Do not double the recipe! It might be too much for your machine and could damage it.
- For a vegan version, you can’t use honey. Use agave.
- For a dairy-free version, use Enjoy Life chocolate chips. They’re just as delicious as regular chocolate chips. SO good!
And thanks for everyone who has pinned and left feedback. I really appreciate it. :)
Want more gluten-free treats? Here are some of my favorites!
Grain-free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites (gluten-free with vegan and dairy-free options)
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Ready in:
- Yield: 14 1" cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups canned chickpeas, well-rinsed and patted dry with a paper towel1
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (165 grams) natural peanut butter, SunButter Natural or almond butter - room temperature2
- 1/4 cup (80 grams) honey (agave or maple syrup for vegan)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder3
- a pinch of salt if your peanut butter doesn't have salt in it
- 1/2 cup (90 grams) chocolate chips (use vegan and dairy-free chocolate chips, if needed)
Directions
- 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.
- 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.
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2106 comments on “The Original Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites Recipe (aka Chickpea Cookies)” — Add one!
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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.
These are in the oven right now. I'm nervous.
I tried these tonight – amazing! I made my mini food processor smoke….so I might have to invest in a heavy duty model just so I can keep making these! ;) Thanks so much for posting!! This is sure to be a new family favorite.
Just came across this recipe in Pinterest. These cookies have no dairy?–Just what I need for my vegan boss and coworkers. Thank you.
Have you made these with Zylitol? I try not to do honey or agave or sugar. I assume you would need a little more zylitol because honey is a bit sweeter, what about additional liquid to make up for the water in honey?
Love them, just made a batch. I have to disagree with you on one point though, I LOVE the dough! However I have made lots of recipes with chickpeas so I am used to the taste.
Thanks for posting this recipe!!
Just took these out of the oven! Love them!!! Even my little brother, who hates all thing healthy said they were good! If an 18 year old boy likes them, they must be good! Totally satisfies the craving for chocolate, and so much better than eating a normal cookie! THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH FOR THESE WONDERS!!!!
can't seem to find the calorie count for the grain-free peanut butter chocolate chip cookies dough balls. Can u help me?
Thanks for the great recipe! I made these over the weekend, and I loved them. My family, however, did not like them and they teased me about my garbanzo cookies. But, thats okay – it meant more for me! I even liked them cold. I will definitely made them again.
I made these cookies with a friend yesterday. We did one batch with maple syrup and one with honey. We did one batch that had chocolate chips and peanut butter chips and another bath that had some that where plain, chocolate chip only and peanut butter chips only! They all came out tasting great, hot, room temp or cold!
Hi Texanerin I am so excited to try these tonight. I just can't seem to find the nutritional information by using the load more button. If there another way that i could find this?
Thanks:)
Kids and husband loved these! (me too!) Thanks for a great healthy recipe!
Erin,
I had to go gluten free about a year ago. My sister sent me this recipe this week. I wasn't to sure about the beans, but decided to give it a go. They are simply FABULOUS! I tag you in my blog post this morning about them! I am going to poke around your site to see what other treasures I may find! Thank you.
Renee
I'm so happy that you liked them! I do have some other gluten-free recipes under the recipe index. I hope you find something you like! Thanks for the feedback and I'm going to go check out your post now. :)
I made these!!! OMG YUMMMMMM
I put some walnuts in a few of them and those worked great, added a crunch factor!
And I used a blender… that worked to! It was a little hard to mix, but i don't have a food processor so i did with what I could
Has anyone tried using semi-sweet chips instead of chocolate chips? I ask because my fiance is also going dairy-free in addition to gluten-free. Yes, it's a baker's nightmare :)
Do you mean these?
http://www.sunspire.com/products/dairy-free-chocolate-dream-semi-sweet-baking-chips
I don't see why they wouldn't work! Good luck. :)
I made these on Sunday delicious warm and I must say I love them right out of the freezer.!
Thanks,
Jeannette
Made these today and they were not bad for a first try. I opted to use the whole can of chickpeas and a little more peanut butter with half SF choc chips and half 50% cacao Ghiradelli chips and SF honey. You definitely have to use the food processor but I think all in all, they were very good and I agree, the batter tastes great too. FYI – Mine came to about 80 calories per cookie and I got 18 out of the recipe using the entire can of chickpeas.
I'm having the hardest time leaving comments on this recipe. I just wanted to say thanks everyone! I'm happy you all like the recipe and thank you very much for all the feedback. :)
I made these today and am so thankful to you for this recipe. I changed nothing. These are to die for. I just took my kids off wheat a few weeks ago so have been feeling like the bad guy but to be able to make these for them today was awesome. My son was devouring them. He kept saying "these aren't bad for me?" It was adorable. The only thing I would do different next time is leave them in ball form as they were very crumbly in flattened form. (Small price to pay for such delicousness). Also I still thought they were fabulous cold and I also liked the dough. :)
I made these today and I just want to say thank you so much for this recipe. I made exactly as the recipe went. They are FABULOUS!! I just took my kids off of wheat so I felt like a hero making these today! My son kept asking me if they were good for him. I said yes and he was thrilled to think something so yummy wasn't bad for him (sugar and wheat). Anyway, amazing recipe! I do wish I had left them as balls instead of flattening them as they fall apart very easily that way . Also, I loved the dough raw and also loved them cold just as I did warm.
Can you use almond butter?
Has anyone calculated the calorie and protein content on these? Very excited to try these.
Hi there! Someone posted the nutritional profile two comments above yours. :)
I am unfamiliar with grain free and the baking powder you used for these but I sooo want to try them!! Is the baking powder something I can purchase "as-is" at Whole Foods or do I have to "create" it?
Wait… do you have to have grain-free baking powder? Because you can just use normal baking powder! I don't live in the US so I'm not sure if Whole Foods has it but a quick googling of grain-free baking powder only brings up results with the homemade version. So I think you'll have to make it if you need a grain-free version.
I calculated the nutritional information, using 2 Tbsp of agave syrup and dark chocolate chips, instead of the honey and chocolate chips, and it comes out to:
151 calories
8.5 g fat
2.6 g sat fat
143.3 mg Na
37.8 mg K+
14.4 g carbs
2.2 g fiber
6.8 g sugar
3.6 g protein
The caloric breakdown per "cookie" is 75 cals for peanut butter; 40 for chocolate chipsm 26 for chickpeas, 9 for agave syrup, 2 for vanilla extract.
Trying to figure out how to play with the peanut butter to decrease the caloric values. Anyone have any healthy suggestions for peanut butter replacement?
Delicious cookies though! FABULOUSLY delicious!
-Jenn
Someone in an earlier comment mentioned cutting some of the PB and adding sugar-free applesauce. Not sure if it would be a one-to-one substitution, but it would definitely cut calories!!
Good luck! Let me know if you try it!
Hi Lindsay! The thing with adding applesauce… I’d be afraid that it’d mess with the texture. The fat from the peanut butter is basically the only fat in these (and it’s good fat :)) so it’s pretty important. But it would be nice to cut the calories in these so I hope someone tries it. :)
If you can get past that these are actually chickpeas that you are eating…these are so yummie!! Thank you
these are so yummy hot or room temp!!! my daughter & niece have NO idea they are eating chickpeas :) i shared them with my chiropractors wife because she avoids gluten & she loved them too!! i'll be making these for soccer tournaments in the future :) thanks again erin!!!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I made them and LOVED them! Actually I've made quite a few batches already and they are always amazing.
Blogged them here: http://wingitvegan.blogspot.com/2013/02/fine-ill-bake-chickpea-cookies.html
Can I replace the honey for rice syrup?
They were absolutely wonderful, haven't tried them cold yet. Have had 4 in a row so far, no more tonight. Thanks for the great idea.
These are currently in the oven… well, a few are. (the rest are in the freezer for another occasion!) I'm anticipating they'll be delicious, cuz the "raw" dough is pretty good! :)
These are currently in the oven… well, a few are. (the rest are in the freezer for another occasion!) I'm anticipating they'll be delicious, cuz the "raw" dough is really good!