Vegan Chickpea Cookies Recipe
This vegan chickpea cookies recipe blends chickpeas, dates, and almond butter into a chocolate chip cookie that won’t spread. Bake a batch in about 12 minutes.
Vegan chickpea cookies are thick chocolate chip cookies made from blended chickpeas, dates, and almond butter, then mixed with ground almonds. They bake in about 12 minutes, hold their shape, and make 10 cookies, so here’s how they come together.
This vegan chickpea cookies recipe starts with a smooth dough you blend in a food processor or blender, so there’s no creaming butter and no eggs to think about.
Both the baking powder and the chocolate chips can be gluten free if you check the labels. One thing to know before you start: the dough needs at least 10 minutes in the fridge before you shape it.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love These Vegan Chickpea Cookies
- Sweetened with dates: soaked dates blend into the chickpeas, so the dough comes together smooth in one pass.
- Thick, soft centers: the cookies come out of the oven quite soft and firm up as they cool.
- No spreading: you shape each cookie by hand, and it keeps that shape in the oven.
- Easy to adapt: peanut butter can replace almond butter, and ground walnuts can replace ground almonds.
- Gluten free friendly: just check that your baking powder and chocolate are gluten free.
Vegan Chickpea Cookies with Chocolate Chips
Equipment
- Food processor or blender
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- Tablespoon
- Baking tray
- Baking paper
- Airtight container
Ingredients
Base
- 1 tin (400 g / 14 oz) chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 180 g pitted dates 3/4 cup, soaked overnight in cold water or 10 minutes in boiling water, then drained
- 4 tablespoons smooth almond butter or peanut butter
- 30 ml unsweetened almond milk 1/8 cup, or any other plant-based milk
- 1 pinch salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- 200 g ground almonds (almond meal) 1 2/3 cups, or ground walnuts
- 1 teaspoon baking powder gluten-free if needed
Mix-Ins
- 50 g dark chocolate chips or chunks 1/3 cup, vegan and gluten-free if needed
Finishing
- flaky sea salt optional, for sprinkling over baked cookies
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Line a baking tray with greased baking paper.
- Drain the water from the soaked dates.
- Put the chickpeas, drained dates, almond butter, almond milk, salt, and vanilla in a food processor or blender. Blend until completely smooth, stopping to stir the mixture a couple of times if needed.
- Move the mixture to a mixing bowl. Add the ground almonds and baking powder and mix well.
- Add the chocolate chips and mix again.
- Chill the dough in the fridge for at least 10 minutes so it firms up slightly.
- Take a heaped tablespoon of dough and shape it by hand into a thick, round patty. These cookies won’t spread, so shape each one the way you want it to look. Put it on the lined tray and repeat with the rest of the dough. You should get 10 cookies.
- Bake for about 12 minutes. The cookies will still be quite soft when you take them out, but they firm up as they cool. Go by the time rather than firmness, and don’t over-bake them.
- Sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if you like.
- Let the cookies cool completely before storing them in an airtight container.
Notes
What Ingredients Do You Need for Vegan Chickpea Cookies?
| Ingredient Group | Ingredient | Exact Amount | Purpose or Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base | Chickpeas | 400 g (14 oz) tin | Drained and rinsed |
| Base | Pitted dates | 180 g (¾ cup) | Soaked overnight in cold water or 10 minutes in boiling water |
| Base | Smooth almond butter | 4 tablespoons | Or sub peanut butter |
| Base | Unsweetened almond milk | 30 ml (⅛ cup) | Or sub any other plant-based milk |
| Base | Salt | Pinch | To taste |
| Base | Vanilla extract | 1 teaspoon | Blended into the base |
| Dry Ingredients | Ground almonds (almond meal) | 200 g (1 ⅔ cup) | Or sub ground walnuts |
| Dry Ingredients | Baking powder | 1 teaspoon | Ensure gluten-free if necessary |
| Mix-Ins | Dark chocolate chips or chunks | 50 g (⅓ cup) | Ensure vegan/gluten-free if necessary |
| Finishing | Flaky sea salt | If desired | Sprinkled over the baked cookies |
The chickpeas and soaked dates make up the smooth base, so blend them until completely smooth. Ground almonds give the dough its body once the baking powder goes in.
If you’re out of almond butter, peanut butter works instead. The recipe also allows ground walnuts in place of ground almonds.
How to Make Vegan Chickpea Cookies Step by Step
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Drain away the water from the soaked dates.
- Place the chickpeas, drained dates, almond butter, almond milk, salt, and vanilla in a food processor or blender.
- Blend until completely smooth, mixing it around a couple of times if necessary. Pro Tip: Stop and stir the mixture around when needed so the whole batch blends completely smooth.
- Transfer the mixture into a mixing bowl, add the ground almonds and baking powder, and mix well.
- Add the chocolate chips and mix again.
- Place the cookie dough in the fridge for at least 10 minutes for it to firm up slightly.
- Take a heaped tablespoon of the cookie dough and use your hands to form it into a circular, thick patty. Don’t worry, unlike traditional cookies, these won’t spread out as they bake. Pro Tip: Shape each patty the way you want the finished cookie to look, because it will keep that shape in the oven.
- Lay it out onto a baking tray lined with greased baking paper.
- Repeat until the rest of the cookie dough is used up. You should be able to make 10 cookies.
- Bake in the oven for around 12 minutes. Don’t worry if they’re still quite soft when you take them out, as they will firm up as they cool down. Be careful not to over-bake them! Pro Tip: Judge the cookies by the timing rather than by firmness, since they’re meant to look quite soft when they come out.
- Sprinkle over flaky sea salt, if desired.
- Leave to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.
Vegan Chickpea Cookies Tips, Variations, and Troubleshooting
Pro Tips for Success
- The key to a smooth dough is properly soaked dates. Soak them overnight in cold water, or for 10 minutes in boiling water, then drain before blending.
- The most common mistake is over-baking. Take the cookies out at around 12 minutes, even if they feel soft, because they firm up as they cool.
- For the best texture, don’t skip the chill. Ten minutes in the fridge lets the dough firm up slightly before you shape it.
- Cool the cookies completely before they go into an airtight container.
Variations
- Optional peanut butter version: swap the almond butter for peanut butter. Nothing else in the method changes.
- Optional walnut version: use ground walnuts in place of the ground almonds.
- Optional gluten free version: choose a gluten-free baking powder and gluten-free chocolate chips.
Troubleshooting Common Problems
Problem: The dough isn’t smooth.
Solution: Keep blending until it’s completely smooth, and mix it around a couple of times if needed.
Problem: The dough feels too soft to shape.
Solution: Give it at least 10 minutes in the fridge so it firms up slightly, then form the patties with your hands.
Problem: The cookies feel soft straight out of the oven.
Solution: That’s expected. Let them cool completely, and they’ll firm up.
How to Store and Reheat Vegan Chickpea Cookies
| Storage Method | Duration | Best Practice |
|---|---|---|
| Refrigerator | A good few days | Cool the cookies completely, then store them in an airtight container |
The recipe doesn’t include reheating steps, so there are no times or temperatures to follow. Cooling the cookies completely before storing helps them settle into their intended firmer texture.
Frequently Asked Questions About Vegan Chickpea Cookies
Do vegan chickpea cookies spread while baking?
No, these cookies won’t spread out as they bake. Form each heaped tablespoon of dough into a thick, circular patty and it will keep that shape.
How many cookies does this recipe make?
This recipe makes 10 cookies. Each one starts as a heaped tablespoon of dough shaped by hand.
How long do these cookies keep?
They keep in the fridge for a good few days. Let them cool completely first, then store them in an airtight container.
Can I use peanut butter instead of almond butter?
Yes, the recipe allows peanut butter in place of the almond butter. You can also use any other plant-based milk instead of almond milk.
Are these chickpea cookies gluten free?
They can be. The recipe notes that the baking powder and chocolate chips need to be gluten free if that matters for you, so check both labels.
Time to Bake a Batch
Give these vegan chickpea cookies a try, then leave an honest comment or star rating to tell other bakers how they turned out. Seriously, it helps. And if you liked them, save the recipe on Pinterest or share it with a friend.
Want more chickpea ideas? Try these banana chickpea cookies, these chickpea protein cookies, or this chickpea cookie dough recipe without flour.
Save this vegan chickpea cookies recipe for your next baking day! Chickpeas, dates, and almond butter blend into a thick chocolate chip cookie that keeps its shape in the oven.
