Chickpea cookies are soft, chocolate-studded cookies made from blended canned chickpeas instead of flour, held together with peanut butter and sweetened with honey. This small batch makes six cookies, three for each of you, from half a cup of chickpeas, so you open one can and keep the rest for dinner. Everything blends in a mini food processor, the cookies bake in about 10 minutes, and a short rest on the pan turns the sticky dough into cookies that hold together. I kept the ingredient list to pantry staples so you can make them on a whim.
Why you’ll like these cookies
- Made for two. Six cookies, not two dozen, so there is no tin of extras going stale on the counter.
- No flour, no eggs. Chickpeas and peanut butter build the dough, which also means no mixer and no creaming butter and sugar.
- One small appliance. The dough comes together in a mini food processor in a couple of minutes.
- Quick. About 10 minutes of prep, 10 minutes in the oven and 10 minutes to cool.
- Pantry ingredients. Canned chickpeas, peanut butter, honey, vanilla, baking powder, salt and chocolate chips.
What chickpea cookies are
The idea is simple: drained chickpeas are blended until they are as smooth as hummus, then mixed with a nut butter and a liquid sweetener. The chickpea puree takes the place of flour, and the peanut butter adds fat, flavor and the richness that makes the cookie taste like a treat rather than a health food. Chocolate chips go in last, and the dough bakes into a cookie that is soft and a little fudgy in the middle.
Chickpea cookies have been around for years on healthy-baking blogs, but interest jumped sharply this fall, with home bakers sharing versions pitched as higher in fiber and protein than a classic chocolate chip cookie. Most published recipes use a whole can of chickpeas and make a dozen or more cookies. This one keeps the same approach and scales it to a batch two people can finish while the cookies are at their best.
What makes this small batch work
Dry chickpeas. Rinsing removes the salty canning liquid, and patting the chickpeas dry with a towel keeps extra water out of the dough. With such a small batch, a little extra liquid makes the dough loose and the cookies flat.
A really smooth blend. Any chunks of chickpea that survive the processor show up as a grainy, beany bite. Processing until no bits remain, scraping the bowl two or three times, gives the cookie a smooth, almost cookie-dough texture.
The right size of processor. Half a cup of chickpeas and a few spoonfuls of peanut butter can spin around the blade of a large food processor without ever catching. A mini food processor or small chopper keeps everything close to the blade, so the dough turns smooth quickly.
Pressing before baking. This dough has no flour to relax and spread in the oven, so the cookies keep almost exactly the shape you give them. Pressing each mound to about 1/2 inch thick gives an even bake and a proper cookie shape.
A rest on the pan. The cookies come out very soft. Ten minutes on the warm pan lets them set enough to lift without breaking.
Ingredients for chickpea cookies for two
The exact amounts are in the recipe card below. These notes cover the choices that matter.
- Canned chickpeas: half a cup is about a third of a standard can. Drain, rinse and pat them dry. Garbanzo beans are the same thing under another name.
- Creamy peanut butter: it gives the cookies their structure and most of their flavor. A creamy, well-stirred peanut butter blends smoothly; if you use a natural kind, stir in the oil on top first.
- Honey: it sweetens and helps bind the dough. Maple syrup works the same way and gives a slightly milder sweetness.
- Vanilla extract: 3/4 teaspoon rounds out the flavor and softens any bean taste.
- Baking powder: just 1/4 teaspoon gives a little lift so the centers are tender rather than dense.
- Salt: a pinch balances the sweetness and brings out the peanut butter.
- Semisweet chocolate chips: 3 tablespoons are enough for chocolate in every bite. Mini chips spread more evenly through such a small batch, and dark chocolate chips work too.
How to make chickpea cookies
- Heat the oven to 350°F and line a small baking sheet with parchment.
- Process the chickpeas, peanut butter, honey, vanilla, baking powder and salt until completely smooth.
- Stir in the chocolate chips by hand.
- Shape 6 mounds with damp hands and press each to about 1/2 inch thick.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, until the edges are set and the tops look dry.
- Cool on the pan for 10 minutes, then move to a rack.
Blending and baking cues
When the dough is ready. Stop the processor and look closely. The dough should be thick, glossy and uniform, with no flecks of chickpea skin or small lumps. Rub a little between your fingers; if it feels gritty, scrape down the bowl and process again.
Shaping sticky dough. The dough is too sticky to roll with dry hands. Run your hands under the tap, shake off the extra water and shape the mounds quickly. Rewet your hands whenever the dough starts to cling.
When the cookies are done. At about 10 minutes the edges look set and lightly golden, and the tops have lost their shine. The centers will still feel soft if you press them gently, and that is what you want: they firm up as they cool. Baking until the centers feel firm in the oven gives a dry, crumbly cookie.
Tips for soft, chewy chickpea cookies
- Measure the chickpeas after draining. Half a cup of drained chickpeas keeps the dough firm enough to shape.
- Scrape often. Stop the processor two or three times and push the dough back toward the blade so every chickpea gets blended.
- Fold the chips in by hand. Processing the chips chops them into the dough and turns it gray; a spatula keeps them whole.
- Space them out. Leave about 2 inches between the cookies so the hot air reaches each edge.
- Chill for chewiness. A cookie from the refrigerator is firmer and chewier than a warm one, so try both and see which you prefer.
Substitutions and variations
Almond butter: it swaps one for one with the peanut butter and gives a milder, toasty flavor. Use a creamy, well-stirred jar.
Sunflower seed butter: a nut-free option with the same texture.
Maple syrup: use the same amount in place of the honey.
Mix-ins: swap some of the chocolate chips for chopped roasted peanuts, or press a few extra chips onto the tops before baking so they look like bakery cookies.
How to serve them
Three cookies each is a satisfying dessert or an afternoon snack. They are lovely slightly warm with a glass of cold milk or a cup of coffee, and a chilled one with a few berries makes an easy treat to share on the couch after dinner. If you want a classic buttery cookie for comparison, the small batch chocolate chip cookies make eight, and the small batch no bake cookies use peanut butter and chocolate without turning on the oven.
Storage and the rest of the can
Let the cookies cool completely, then keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Because they are moist and made without flour, the refrigerator keeps them fresh longer, and it also makes them firmer and chewier. For longer storage, freeze the cookies for up to 2 months and thaw them at room temperature.
The recipe uses about a third of a can of chickpeas. Move the rest out of the can into a covered container, refrigerate them and use them within 3 to 4 days. They are ready to toss into a salad, a grain bowl, a quick curry or a batch of hummus, or you can roast them until crisp for a snack.
Open a can, pull out the mini food processor, and in about half an hour you have six soft chickpea cookies ready to share. Enjoy them warm, or save a couple for a chilled, chewy treat tomorrow.
Frequently asked questions
Do chickpea cookies taste like chickpeas?
Not when the chickpeas are blended completely smooth. Peanut butter, honey, vanilla and chocolate carry the flavor; a beany taste usually means chunks were left in the dough, so process a little longer.
Can I use peanut butter instead of almond butter?
Yes. This recipe already uses peanut butter, and almond butter swaps in one for one if you prefer it. Choose a creamy, well-stirred jar so the dough blends smoothly.
Is there a nut-free substitute for the peanut butter?
Sunflower seed butter works in the same amount and gives the same soft texture.
Can I blend such a small batch in a regular blender?
A regular blender struggles with this thick dough and leaves it chunky. A mini food processor or small chopper is the best tool for half a cup of chickpeas.
Print
Chickpea Cookies for Two
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 cookies
Description
Soft, flourless chocolate chip cookies made from blended canned chickpeas, peanut butter and honey in a mini food processor. Six cookies for two.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup canned chickpeas, drained, rinsed and patted dry
- 3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons honey
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 3 tablespoons semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F and line a small baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Put the chickpeas, peanut butter, honey, vanilla, baking powder and salt in a mini food processor. Process until completely smooth, with no visible bits of chickpea, stopping to scrape down the sides two or three times.
- Scrape the dough into a bowl and stir in the chocolate chips with the spatula.
- With damp hands, divide the sticky dough into 6 equal mounds on the baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Press each one down to about 1/2 inch thick, since the cookies barely spread.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, until the edges are set and the tops look dry. The centers will still feel soft.
- Let the cookies cool on the pan for 10 minutes to firm up, then move them to a rack.
Notes
Equipment: mini food processor or small chopper, small baking sheet, parchment paper, rubber spatula, cooling rack
- Pat the chickpeas dry with a towel before blending so the dough is not loose.
- A full-size food processor may not catch such a small amount; a mini processor or chopper blends it smoothly. A regular blender struggles with the thick dough.
- Maple syrup can replace the honey.
- Almond butter or sunflower seed butter can replace the peanut butter; use a creamy, well-stirred kind.
- Chilling the cookies in the refrigerator makes them firmer and chewier.
- Keep the cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze the cookies for up to 2 months and thaw them at room temperature.
- Move leftover chickpeas out of the can into a covered container, refrigerate them and use them within 3 to 4 days (FoodSafety.gov).
- The dough has no eggs or raw flour.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Rest Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
