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    Home » Recipes » Desserts

    Secretly Healthy Chickpea Brownies [Oil Free]

    Published: Jun 10, 2020 by Rosa · This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, meaning if you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you.

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    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin
    Healthy Chickpea Brownies Pin

    Flourless chickpea brownies are fudgy and decadent, lightly sweetened, and loaded with nutrients. Lighter tasting than a traditional brownie, but totally delicious! Ready in 30 minutes.

    chickpea brownies on white plate stacked four high
    This recipe was originally published in November 2018. It has been updated for content and photos.

    If you’ve been following along the blog for a while, you know by now that I just love sneaking nutrients into all of my dishes, including desserts.

    BUT!

    Just like my chickpea cookies, don’t be alarmed, no one will ever guess that the main ingredient here is chickpeas.

    Truly a win win, and yes you will love them!

    Here’s why you’re going to love these!

    • Great flavour! Lightly sweetened, with a rich chocolatey flavour, but not overwhelmingly sweet like most brownies.
    • Naturally sweetened. Can you believe there is nothing but dates to sweeten these delicious, fudgy bites? SO delicious, and healthy too!
    • Easy to make. These chickpea brownies are so simple to prepare and come together in your food processor for minimal prep work.
    • Allergen friendly. These incredible treats are not only vegan, making them suitable for dairy or egg free eaters. But they’re also gluten free and flourless. Bonus, they’re oil free and easily made nut free by subbing the peanut butter for sun butter, and skipping the optional walnuts.

    vegan brownies on cutting board with walnuts on top

    How to make chickpea brownies

    (This is a summary with step by step photos, full recipe measurements and instructions are in the recipe card below.)

    Gather your ingredients and drain your can of chickpeas.

    Make sure to drain over a bowl, and not your sink to reserve the chickpea liquid. (Also known as aquafaba.)

    ingredients for chickpea brownies: chickpeas, dates, cocoa powder, peanut butter, aquafaba

    Add the dates and water to your food processor and process until mostly smooth. (photos 1-2)

    dates and water in food processor to make date paste

    Now add the chickpeas, cocoa powder, peanut butter and the aquafaba. (photo 3)

    Process until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides, as needed. (photo 4)

    food processor of chickpea brownies batter

    Optional: Add the chocolate chips and walnut pieces, if using, and pulse a few times to gently mix them in, without over processing. (photo 5-6)

    chickpea brownies batter in food processor

    Scoop the mixture into your loaf pan lined with parchment paper. Press down the top and smooth as best you can. Make sure there are no gaps, so press firmly. (photo 7)

    Optional: Sprinkle the top with a few extra chocolate chips and walnut pieces, if desired. (photo 8)

    brownie batter in loaf pan before baking

    Bake for 20 minutes and then remove from the oven. Let rest in the loaf pan for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a cutting board to continue cooling. (photo 9)

    NOTE: The brownies will look underdone at this point, but do not over cook. They will set as they cool and the longer you wait to cut them, the firmer they will be.

    Once cooled for AT LEAST 20 minutes, slice into 10 squares. (photo 10)

    baked brownies on cutting board cut into 10 squares

    Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

    If you really want to amp up this dessert, serve it with a scoop of nice cream on top and drizzle it in maple syrup.

    Why aquafaba?

    The aquafaba is being used as an egg replacement for these chickpea brownies.

    So make sure not to dump it all down the drain.

    Three tablespoons of the chickpea liquid is equivalent to one egg.

    So don’t skip this ingredient.

    How long do they keep?

    Once completely cooled, store your leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

    Refrigerate to keep up to 1 week or freeze in an airtight container to keep up to 2 months.

    Make sure to separate the layers with parchment paper before freezing.

    Substitutions/Variations

    • For nut free, sub the peanut butter with wow butter or sun butter and omit the optional walnuts. Feel free to sub for dried fruit, like raisins or cranberries, if desired.
    • Skip the optional chocolate chips to keep this 100% oil free, if needed.
    • For sweeter brownies, add 1-2 tablespoons of maple syrup to the mix after processing the dates, and/or use up to ½ cup of chocolate chips.

    Expert Tips

    1. Use parchment paper to line your loaf pan. Although greasing will do the trick for nonstick, it will be a lot easier to remove the brownies using the paper to lift them out. (And they’ll cool faster this way!)
    2. Do not over bake your chickpea brownies. Over baking will result in drier, less fudgy tasting brownies. They will look underdone when you take them out of the oven, but I promise they will set as they cool. The longer you wait, the firmer they will get.
    3. Wet your knife in between cuts when slicing your chickpea brownies, for smoother, nicer looking squares.

    More secretly healthy desserts

    • Zucchini Vegan Oatmeal Cookies
    • Banana Nice Cream – 3 Flavours!
    • Healthy Nutella Recipe
    • Healthy Banana Carrot Muffins

    If you tried this recipe, please let me know about it in the comments below. I always love hearing from you! Don’t forget to Subscribe to This Healthy Kitchen to be among the first to get my new recipes! You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter to see more delicious food and get all the latest updates.

    Buon appetito,
    Rosa

    chickpea brownies on plate in a stack 4 high

    Secretly Healthy Chickpea Brownies

    Flourless chickpea brownies are fudgy and decadent, lightly sweetened, and loaded with nutrients. Lighter tasting than a traditional brownie, but totally delicious! Ready in 30 minutes.
    4.96 from 21 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate Recipe Add to Collection Go to Collections
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American, Canadian
    Servings: 10 squares
    Calories: 145kcal

    Equipment

    Food Processor
    Empty loaf pan on white background.
    5"x9" Loaf Pan

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup pitted dates packed
    • ¼ cup water
    • 15 oz can chickpeas drained but liquid reserved
    • 3 tablespoon aquafaba from the chickpea liquid reserved above
    • ½ cup natural peanut butter smooth or chunky
    • â…“ cup raw unsweetened cocoa powder

    Optional Fill Ins

    • â…“ cup vegan chocolate chips
    • ½ cup walnut pieces
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line a loaf pan with parchment paper.
    • Add the dates and water to your food processor and process until you have a smooth paste. Then add the chickpeas, aquafaba, peanut butter and cocoa and process until well combined.
    • Now add the optional fill ins if using, and pulse a few times to mix through, but do not over process.
    • Scoop into your loaf pan and smooth out the top, pressing down firmly to ensure no gaps. The batter will be very thick. To make it smoother, you can use another pieces of parchment paper on top and press down evenly and firmly with a spatula. You may sprinkle some extra chocolate chips and walnuts on top, if you'd like. Bake for 25-30 minutes and remove from the oven.
    • Let cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then lift the brownies out, using the parchment paper and transfer to a cutting board. Let cool for AT LEAST 20 minutes before slicing. The longer it sits, the more the brownies will set, making them easier to slice. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

    Notes

    For nut free, sub the peanut butter with wow butter or sun butter and omit the optional walnuts. Feel free to sub for dried fruit, like raisins or cranberries, if desired.
    For sweeter brownies, add 1-2 tablespoons of maple syrup to the mix after processing the dates, or use up to ½ cup of chocolate chips.
    Use parchment paper to line your loaf pan. Although greasing will do the trick for nonstick, it will be very difficult to remove without the paper to lift them out.
    Do not over bake your chickpea brownies. Over baking will result in drier, less fudgy tasting brownies. They will look underdone when you take them out of the oven, but I promise they will set as they cool.
    Wet your knife in between cuts when slicing your chickpea brownies, for smoother squares.
    Leftovers keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 145kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 260mg | Potassium: 259mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 11g | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 1mg
    DID YOU TRY THIS RECIPE?Mention @this.healthy.kitchen on IG and tag #thishealthykitchen!
    *Nutritional information is an estimate, calculated using online tools and does not include optional ingredients unless otherwise indicated.
    774 shares

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    1. Alicia Lee

      July 23, 2022 at 9:59 am

      Could you substitute ready made date paste (e.g. from Date Lady) for the dates and water??

      Reply
      • Rosa

        July 24, 2022 at 9:56 am

        Date paste should work fine, enjoy. 🙂

        Reply
        • marge201

          September 22, 2022 at 7:18 pm

          5 stars
          Cooking garbanzos according to your excellent article, Rosa. How much date paste = 1C pitted dates packed +¼C water??

          Reply
          • Rosa

            September 23, 2022 at 8:22 am

            I didn’t measure the date paste once blended, unfortunately. (I’ll try and remember to do that next time.) However, I believe you’d need around 3/4 cup of date paste.

            Reply
    2. Mel

      February 27, 2022 at 2:20 pm

      5 stars
      A great recipe, easy to follow with no exuberant ingredients. Will definitely make again

      Reply
      • Rosa

        February 28, 2022 at 8:42 am

        Thrilled you enjoyed Mel!

        Reply
    3. Elizabeth

      December 31, 2021 at 4:00 pm

      5 stars
      Amazing!!!!!

      Reply
      • Rosa

        January 01, 2022 at 9:10 am

        Glad you enjoyed!

        Reply
    4. Deborah

      May 07, 2021 at 11:44 pm

      5 stars
      I made these this week as a birthday treat for myself. Had them with banana nice cream (frozen banana + soy milk in blender)–delicious! Thanks so much for giving me a way to celebrate without falling off the WFPB wagon!

      Reply
      • Rosa

        May 08, 2021 at 8:47 am

        Happy birthday Deborah! So thrilled you enjoyed the brownies. Thanks so much for the review. 🙂

        Reply
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