You loved our sneaky Peanut Butter Chickpea Cookie Dough Bars so much that we decided to make an even simpler version that can be made by hand! These PB Chickpea Protein Balls are:
Peanut buttery
Packed with protein
Speckled with chocolate chips
Ready in 10 minutes
And no food processor needed!
Ingredients
These pb chickpea protein balls are just 5 ingredients!
- Cooked chickpeas (cooked from scratch for extra savings!)
- Runny peanut butter
- Maple syrup
- Quick or rolled oats
- Dairy free chocolate chips!
No Food Processor Needed
Nope! You can absolutely make these using a food processor which will make this recipe even quicker to pull together. BUT to make these with just the strength of your hands:
- Mash the chickpeas by hand using a potato masher or fork,
- Stir in the runny peanut butter and maple syrup.
- If your peanut butter is not very runny you can heat it up quickly in the microwave or on the stove-top to soften it and make it easier to pour into the chickpea mixture.
- Stir in the oats and chocolate chips,
- Scoop and roll into balls!
Recipe Cost
These easy no bake treats cost us approximately:
- CAD $2.66($0.13/ball) using chickpeas we have cooked from scratch!
- (We love buying dry beans and cooking them at home in larger batches. This way we always have beans on hand for recipes like this one, we save a few dollars, and the dried beans are easier for us to store vs. lots of cans!)
- And $3.79 ($0.19/ball) using canned chickpeas.
Let us know if you will be taking a bite out of these PB Chickpea Protein Balls and whether you want more recipes that don’t require a food processor!
If you like these… then make sure to try our Peanut Butter Swirl Banana Nice Cream our PB Banana Chip Overnight Oats and our absolute favourite quickest snack in the world… PB Filled Dates!
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Easy PB & Chickpea Cookie Dough Protein Balls
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 20 medium sized 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
We took our popular “Sneak In A Bean Cookie Dough Bar” & made it even easier with PB Chickpea Protein Balls. No food processor required!
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked chickpeas (cooked from scratch for extra savings!)
- ½ cup peanut butter
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup oats (quick or rolled)
- ¼ cup chocolate chips, dairy-free
*All the ingredients for this recipe are from our pantry and freezer tips!
Instructions
- Mash the chickpeas with a potato masher OR use a food processor if you have one (if using a food processor, careful not to blend the chickpeas too much. More oat flour will be needed if the chickpeas are too liquid. Try pulsing the machine until the chickpeas are mashed not pureed. See photos in blog post for a reference).
- Pour in ½ cup runny peanut butter and the maple syrup. (If your nut butter is too thick, briefly heat the nut butter with the maple syrup in the microwave or on the stove-top to make it easier to stir into the mashed chickpea).
- Stir in oats and chocolate chips.
- Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to scoop the dough and roll into a ball between your palms. Refrigerate or freeze! If you like these; make sure you check them out in bar form drizzled with chocolate!
Notes
Approximate Cost: CAD $2.66 ($0.13/ball) using chickpeas cooked from scratch, $3.79 ($0.19/ball) using canned chickpeas vs. $1 – $1.50 each at a cafe or (for my fellow Canadians) $3.99 for a 20-pack of timbits!
Feel free to substitute the maple syrup for any sweetener you prefer. Mashed dates or a date syrup would be a great natural sweetener!
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Raw
- Cuisine: American
Elizabeth John Retty
Oh my gosh … as I placed the chick peas in the food processor I thought this is so not going to work …….
I was totally WRONG 😑 what an epic recipe so easy to follow and pretty health I made this from sugar loving husband ( who’s trying to reduce his refined sugar intake)
He Loved them
Thank you so much for your recipe!!!!
Kathryn Alexandre
hahah I know exactly what you mean! It is a strange combo and feels weird to make a dessert with a bean! I’m so glad that you both ended up liking them and thank you for giving them a chance!
Megan
The flavor of these are incredible! Thank you for sharing this easy and tasty recipe.
Kathryn Alexandre
I’m so glad you like them! Thank you for trying them and letting me know you found these simple to make too. I really appreciate your feedback and star rating. Enjoy!
Anne
I made these last night and they are really good! At first I thought they were too moist and regretted not adding a bit more oats. But they came together overnight and they are fine. I have been making peanut butter and oatmeal balls without the chickpeas and they are denser so I compared these ones to them. This one is a different texture and they are perfect. Thank you for the recipe.
Kathryn Alexandre
I’m glad they came together a bit more for you overnight👍🏼 I know some energy ball recipes suggest refrigerating the dough for a bit before you roll the balls to make them easier to handle. With these in particular the peanut butter will definitely seize up a bit when they are chilled. These can also vary a little depending on how much moisture is in the chickpeas and how far they are mashed. I’m really glad you like the taste and texture! Thank you so much for letting me know you tried them and really enjoy them!
Ni a
This is so delicious!
Kathryn Alexandre
I’m so glad you like them! Thank you so much for letting me know and for your lovely star rating!
Lena Witzel
This recipe is so easy, delicious and convenient. I thought I’d get my hands all goopy rolling the balls, but that wasn’t the case. The grandkids love them too and I feel good about giving them a healthy treat.
I’m trying your pumpkin balls next ! Thank you Kathryn!
Kathryn Alexandre
We’re so glad you AND the grandkids love this one Lena. Energy balls are such a great way to sneak beans into their diets. I’m glad they weren’t too messy to make and I hope you all love the pumpkin balls too!
Haylie
I just made this recipe and ohhhhhh myyyyyyyy goooooooosssshhhhhhhh. I absolutely LOVE this. I used honey instead of maple syrup and added some cinnamon. AMAZING!
Kathryn Alexandre
I’m so glad you LOVED it Haylie! I love the addition of cinnamon. I’ll put that in my next batch! Thank you so much for trying it and taking the time to leave a 5 star review!
Rada
Defs going to make this! Can I ask how long you can store them in the fridge and freezer for?
Kathryn Alexandre
Great! They will definitely last for about 3 months in the freezer if they are stored well. Sometimes if you add a layer of aluminum foil over a freezer safe container or wrap the frozen treats in aluminum foil and then place them into a freezer bag they will be a little more protected from frost. I think they will be good in the fridge for up to a week but keeping some in the freezer and taking them out as you need can help them stay fresh (these also defrost very quickly so we tend to keep them in the freezer and take them out a few minutes before we eat them and enjoy them cold).