Chickpea Brownies with Tahini (grain-free & vegan)

Remember my last post about homemade tahini? As promised I created gluten-free, vegan, healthy recipe for chickpea brownies that call for the homemade tahini. These are really moist, rich and filling. There are 6 grams of protein in each serving and my kids devoured them! A perfect sweet treat.

These are actually super fun and simple to make; have your kids help you next time you have a snow day or a holiday. Then devour them with little to no guilt.

What Is In Chickpea Brownies?

• chia seeds
• garbanzo beans
• almonds
• sesame seeds
• and natural sugar!

That is a lot of healthy ingredients right there as opposed to the usual list of brownie ingredients: refined white sugar or brown sugar, wheat flour, eggs and milk. Ok, well, I guess some of us moms do in fact like the idea of eggs and milk as healthy ingredients for kids in general but let's be real - animal protein and milk are the things kids eat most of so changing it up with plant-based options every once in awhile is a fun idea.

Brownie Recipe Variations

This recipe took a bit of tweaking. It does come out pretty gooey, which is how I personally like my brownies, but if you want the brownies to be lighter and airier you might want to add some rice flour. I would say to add about ¼ cup or more to this recipe for that consistency.

Chickpea Brownies with Tahini

Yields approx 9 brownies

What You'll Need:

• 8x8 in baking dish
• Parchment or oil/grease for pan
• Food processor
• Rubber Spatula

INGREDIENTS

• ⅓ cup + tablespoon sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1 tablespoon water
• ½ can chickpeas (about 8 oz or half cup)
• ¼ cup chickpea water inside the can
• 2 tablespoon honey
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ⅓ cup tablespoon baking cocoa powder
• 1 ¼ cup almond flour
• ¾ cup can sugar
• 2 tablespoon melted butter (vegan butter preferably) or coconut oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease glass baking dish or cover in parchment.
3. To make the tahini you will have to do the following: In a food processor add the chia and sesame seeds. Keep blending them until they turn to a paste, scraping sides as needed. Add the water and blend again until smooth - about 1 minute. You will have to stop to scrape the sides with a rubber spatula a few times in between.
4. Set aside.
5. In the same food processor bowl blend up the garbanzo beans and garbanzo bean liquid. Blend until it turns to a smooth paste - no chunks - stopping to scrape sides as needed.
6. Warm up the butter or coconut oil in a microwave or in a pan on the stovetop.
7. Add the rest of the ingredients, blending each time you add a couple ingredients. Add the tahini and blend again. Add the butter and blend again.
8. Transfer to greased baking dish with a rubber spatula spread evenly.
9. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes until sides are crunchy and extra brown.
10. Let cool before serving.