Cherry Chocolate Cookies
Every now and then I really go out on a limb and try something weird.
More importantly, sometimes I like to subject my friends and family to the weirdness. And not tell them about it. Is that bad?
You see, these are flourless. By flourless, I mean full of black beans. It also has some other intense flavor combinations. I didn’t try the black bean brownie craze that went around, so I felt like I’d make up for it with these cookies. I had one the night I made them, left them in the fridge overnight, and then took them to my family for Thanksgiving. Aren’t I nice?!
I just told everyone this was an experiment, that they were “different,” and I wanted honest opinions. Needless to say, only a couple of them were eaten.
They were totally different. They had a chewy, brownie-like texture. The black bean flavor was a little overpowering to my senses. My guinea pigs family didn’t notice the black beans so much as the salt sprinkled on top and the cayenne pepper. They ended up looking nothing like Sarah’s [way thicker, less pretty] so maybe I did something wrong, especially considering several people posted about them and loved them. I might have to try them again someday. I’m just too intrigued.
Inspiration: My New Roots
Ingredients
- 1 can black beans, drained and well rinsed
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/3 cup brown rice syrup
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup chopped dried cherries
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 375º and line a baking sheet with a silpat [or parchment]
- Mix the syrup, chia seeds, and vanilla together in a small bowl.
- In a food processor, add the black beans, coconut oil, cocoa powder, salt and cayenne pepper. Process until well combined.
- Add the syrup mixture and pulse to incorporate.
- Remove the blade and fold in the chocolate chips and cherries.
- Spoon the batter onto the baking sheet, flatting with your fingers into cookie shapes [they won’t spread when they bake].
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before eating.
I keep trying chickpea-based desserts like this, but I am similarly unimpressed. They still taste like chickpeas and don’t have a necessarily pleasing texture. Thought I was doing something wrong at first too, based on others’ love of the recipes, but maybe some people just have a higher beans-in-stuff tolerance…
I think you’re right. Maybe we lack the tolerance. When I made the chickpea knots, they were definitely different. Did you find matcha yet?
Yeah, you can tell the texture, but I didn’t mind it in the knots, it was just, like you say, different. But I’ve made cookies and blondies using chickpeas…and yuck. And nope, but I haven’t been back to Whole Foods. I looked on Amazon, but you have to buy it in expensive bulk, and I really don’t see myself using more than a tiny amount. The quest continues!