What is Chickpea Flour?
Chickpea flour is simply ground dry chickpeas. That’s it! You can make it at home in a blender by grinding dry chickpeas, or you can buy a bag of it at the store, just like you would regular flour. This type of flour is naturally gluten-free and nut-free, so it’s great for baking when you need to be careful of allergies or special dietary needs. It’s perfect for making socca bread, chickpea pancakes, and more! The main thing you should know about chickpea flour is that it tastes very bitter before it’s cooked. I don’t recommend taste-testing the raw batter, or you might be turned off before you even bake these. I promise that they taste 100% better after you cook them!
Chickpea flour acts remarkably like all-purpose flour, even though it doesn’t have the same density. (This is something I always test on my kitchen scale when working with new flours.) Maybe this is due to chickpea flour’s higher protein content? Either way, I’ve found that this recipe is relatively flexible, just like a cookie recipe made with all-purpose flour is. I like to use 1 1/3 cups of chickpea flour, but you can use only 1 1/4 cups flour for a flatter, more gooey cookie, or 1 1/2 cups flour for a thicker, more doughy cookie. I’ve tried it all, and my kids like them all, but I like the cookies best in the middle-range, so I use 1 1/3 cups of chickpea flour.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Whenever I develop a new cookie recipe, I always like to use a classic recipe, like the famous Nestle Tollhouse recipe, as my benchmark. As a result, these chickpea flour chocolate chip cookies use similar ingredients, with a few upgrades. Here’s what you’ll need:
Chickpea flour Butter (or vegan butter) Coconut sugar Egg (or flax egg) Baking soda Vanilla Salt
And don’t forget the chocolate chips! This recipe is easily made vegan if you use dairy-free chocolate chips, and I like to use dark chocolate ones, so they aren’t quite as sweet.
How to Make Chickpea Cookies
To make these Chickpea Flour Cookies, start by mixing together the butter and sugar. I’m using coconut sugar because it is slightly less sweet than other sugars, but you can use any other granulated sugar you have on hand. (Vegan butter also works here, or you can use 1/3 cup softened coconut oil.)
Next, add in the egg (or flax egg) and vanilla, and mix again. Now it’s time to add in the dry ingredients! Mix in the chickpea flour, baking soda, and salt, and stir until the batter looks uniform.
Stir in the chocolate chips, then scoop the dough with a tablespoon or 1-ounce cookie scoop. Drop the cookie dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, then bake at 350ºF for 8 to 10 minutes.
I like to pull the cookies out of the oven when the edges look lightly golden, but the centers still look soft to the touch. They will firm up when they cool, for a cookie with lightly crispy edges, and gooey centers. Yum!
These cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days, but they will last longer in an airtight container in the fridge. You can store them in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Substitutions
I don’t recommend substituting the flour here, since this recipe is specifically developed for chickpea flour. If you have another flour on hand, check out my other cookie recipes:
Buckwheat Chocolate Chip Cookies Vegan Almond Flour Cookies Coconut Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies Oat Flour Cookies Chickpea Cookies (made with pureed chickpeas!)
I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cookies! It’s shocking to me how much my kids love these. (They told me they like them better than cake… which is saying something.)
If you try these Chickpea Flour Cookies, please leave a comment below letting me know what you think! And if you try any modifications, I’d love to hear about those, too. We can all benefit from your experience!
