These shockingly rich and gooey chocolate chip chickpea blondies are one of the most popular recipes I’ve ever posted!
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Even readers who don’t normally like healthy desserts LOVE these blondies!
Have you tried them yet???
In the years since first coming up with the recipe, I’ve served it probably over a hundred times to both strangers and friends, always with rave reviews.
No one can ever believe the ingredients or resist the charms of the moist and fudgy secretly healthy blondies.
Also try these Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
No dairy
No butter
No eggs!
White Bean Blondies
The recipe works with either chickpeas (garbanzo beans) or white beans like cannellini (white kidney beans) or great northern beans.
I like both versions equally, but many readers say they prefer using white beans because the resulting batter is smoother.
*Sugar note: You can use regular sugar, coconut sugar or date sugar, brown sugar, evaporated cane juice, or xylitol or granulated erythritol for sugar free blondies.
I once made a batch using stevia, which I thought were delicious. But my friends informed me they tasted like bars of soap. So make that substitution at your own risk!
For refined-sugar-free blondies, try these Sweet Potato Blondies
Above, watch the chickpea blondie recipe video
How to make chickpea blondies
Start by gathering all of the required ingredients.
If using canned beans instead of cooked, be sure to rinse and drain them very well.
(The drained liquid can actually be used to make Vegan Marshmallow Fluff!)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Blend everything together except the chocolate chips until it resembles cookie dough.
I use and recommend a food processor for smoothest blending and best texture, but some readers say they’ve used a blender (making sure to stop the machine and stir the contents occasionally) with good results.
Stir the chocolate chips into the batter, and smooth into a greased or parchment-lined 8-inch pan. Add a few chocolate chips to the top if desired.
Bake 30 minutes on the oven’s center rack, then remove while they’re still a bit gooey, because they will firm up as they cool.
Chickpea Blondies
Ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas or white beans, or 1 1/2 cups cooked
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp each: salt and baking soda
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar of choice (Substitutions are listed above)
- 1/3 cup flour (white, oat, spelt, sorghum, or 1/2 cup almond flour)
- 1/4 cup applesauce, mashed banana, or yogurt
- 3 tbsp oil or 1/4 cup nut butter
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips, or more if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain and rinse beans very well. Blend all ingredients (except chips) until very smooth in a good food processor (see not above about using a blender). Mix in chips, and scoop into a greased or parchment-lined 8×8 pan. Optional: you can stick some chocolate chips on top of the batter as well. Bake for 30 minutes. They'll look a little undercooked when you take them out, but they firm up as they cool.View Nutrition Facts
Video
Notes
More Healthy Chickpea Desserts
Flourless Banana Blender Muffins
I just made these today! My children helped me and commented a few times with “ewww, gross” as we put the beans in. However, they absolutely love them! And being on WW, I love that they are only 1 point+. Thanks for another fantastic recipe!
I’m a somewhat new food blogger, and I love reading other food blogs and spending the weekends in the kitchen. I made your blondies last night for my roommates. We are all in LOVE! I can’t believe these are healthy. I am so posting a link to your blog this weekend. This is my new go-to dessert for sure! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Aw thank YOU for such a sweet comment, Emily :).
I think it’s worth mentioning that this recipe is GLUTEN FREE, EGG FREE and DAIRY FREE. That is wonderful news for someone with a mom and sister with food allergies. This is a great treat for family get-togethers 😀
Oh yes, definitely dairy-free! All my recipes are egg and dairy free :).
I love this blog! I have celiacs disease and it’s been such an ordeal trying to figure out quality dessert substitutes. This is the first recipe I’ve tried, the first time I made it as is, and the second time I substituted sugar, peanut butter, and chocolate with ripe banana, walnuts, and blueberries. Both turned out amazingly.:)
My wife is blonde and she’s super hot…and smart.
Katie, THANK YOU for these! After wanting to try them for months (too many other recipes of yours to try) I finally made them tonight and WOW they are amazing. I made them with brown sugar blend Splenda and they turned out perfectly 🙂
Your Skinny Snickerdoodles are next, followed by the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bars!
I would love to make some of these recipes, but I don’t own a food processor (just a blender & my 2 hands). Are there any options for those of us who don’t have/don’t have place to store it, etc?
Kathy I used my blender, it just takes A little water in with the chickpeas and I did it in two goes so that it wouldn’t stick too bad.
It depends on the recipe. I did not have luck with this one when I used a blender. Some things just NEED a food processor. But for other recipes, I love my Magic Bullet.
I have made these 4 or 5 times now and I still LOVE them! I share them with anyone I can get to try them and I’ve been told they’re as good as the blondies that Applebee’s makes! Even my sugar freak toddler loves them, which makes me happy because he thinks he’s getting junk food but I can feel good about giving him these because they’re healthy! I have been adding an egg white just to get things moving in the blender (because for some reason before now I thought the directions said to make this in a blender… Apparently the big “NOT a blender” part didn’t stand out enough lol) and they turn out great! I’m also going to experiment with adding banana to reduce the sugar and eliminate the egg white, although at only 19 calories I don’t feel bad about adding the egg white anyway! Thanks for an amazing recipe, this is definitely a keeper!!!
Heyo, how many bars does this recipe make? Just so I know what the serving size is for the nutritional info.
Thanks! xx
Genius Blondies
(makes 15-20 squares)
🙂
Just made these and were amazing!! Totally rich and fishy and tasted so naughty! I made them with 2 tbspns agarve and 2 tbspns brown sugar, they were a bit sweet, I wud use about half that next time but still yummy! Thanks Katy x
Ha ha that was meant to say FUDGY not fishy! Predictive text!
LOL!
Windows LiveWriter does the same thing… Once when I was writing about Girl-Scout Cookie Larabars, I almost posted about my “delicious chocolate SAMOSAS!” Maybe not so delicious…
I just made these and they are phenomenal. I had to use oats because I didn’t have any flax. But still beautiful! I have to say, dear Katie, that you are in fact a genius. I’m not a vegan, I’m not even a vegetarian. Just a girl looking for some dessert recipies that I don’t have to feel guilty about. lol Found em! I happened to stumble across your blog through pinterest (love pinterest!) and its safe to say that I think this is my favorite food blog ever!
Aw Heather, thank you so much! I wish I were a genius… it would’ve helped me a lot in AP chemistry ;).
Bleck, forget chemistry. Who needs chemistry when you come up with amazing things like this?! I love baking so much. I do it waaaaay to often lol. So being able to find things like this put the biggest smile on my face! Because I am also chocoholic.
My friend ( who is a vegan) and I were also just talking about the aforementioned black bean brownie and we have yet to find a decent recipe for those!
Hi Katie,
I love making these SO much. Was wondering if there a reason why you say not to use a blender in your instructions? I have been using the food processor, but would love to just be able to use my Vitamix instead (then I can send the food processor home for my parents to use). Before I try it in the Vitamix, do you caution against it? Thanks a bunch!
I tried it and the beans on top wouldn’t blend. Too full. Maybe do it in batches?
Do I need to refrigerate these because of the beans?
You can leave out overnight, but after that I’d advise fridging :).
I made these for the second time today, & love them! Thanks Katie!
I made these last night and I thought they were absolutely delicious! My husband didn’t care for them but oh well, more for me right?;) They’re so filling too that one really is satisfying and they turned out so soft and moist too! Yummy!