I definitely have a chocolate addiction and I enjoy indulging it in healthy ways.  You know I have a thing for using unexpected ingredients (See my chocolate pudding recipe) and this recipe is no different.

I based this recipe on my popular dessert hummus recipe from my blog and was very pleased with the results.  I can’t wait to make another batch…I think next time I will add in some fresh mint to the food processor.

Ingredients:

• 10 Medjool Dates, soaked
• Soaking water
• 15 oz. can Eden Organics Salt-Free Garbanzo Beans (aka chickpeas)
• ½ cup cocoa powder (I used Wonderslim Wondercocoa)
• 1/3 cup organic peanut butter *
• 1 1/2 tsp. alcohol-free vanilla
• 4 packets Sweetleaf Stevia

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Pit the dates and put them into a bowl.  Press the dates down into the bowl and cover them with filtered water until they are JUST covered (it is ok if a tiny bit of the dates peak out through the water).  Soak the dates in the water for at least 30 minutes.
3. Once the dates have soaked, place all of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse 10-15 times.  Scrape down the sides and process the mixture until there aren’t too many chunks.  Stop and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula.  Repeat this process until the batter is the consistency you like (I prefer a few small chunks).
4. Use you medium scooper (mine is 2 Tbs) and scoop the batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, turning the cookie sheet half way through.
5. Take the cookie sheet out of the oven and smoosh down the cookies with a fork to flatten them.
6. Return the cookie sheet to the oven and bake for 10 more minutes.
7. Cool (If you have the patience) and enjoy!

I bake about 8 cookies at a time and keep the rest of the batter in the fridge to bake more later (or to eat with a spoon!).