How To Make Vegan-Friendly Peanut Butter And Cacao Cookies

Cookies are a delectable sweet treat that are perfect when it comes to an indulgent comfort food, but it can be frustrating to find suitable cookies for those that follow a vegan diet. 

That being said, there are plenty of different kinds of vegan cookies out there to choose from, from snickerdoodles to chocolate chip cookies!

How To Make Vegan-Friendly Peanut Butter And Cacao Cookies

With this in mind, we are going to be going through the recipe for some particularly delicious peanut butter and cacao no bake vegan cookies that both vegans and non-vegans are sure to enjoy (Check out this Breakfast Cookie Recipe which uses carrot, ginger and raisins here).

Let’s get started. 

Ingredients

Let’s first take a look at the ingredients that you will need to get yourself before you can make your cookies.

This particular recipe uses only six items, so you don’t have to worry about keeping track of all sorts of different ingredients!

Cacao Powder

The cacao seed comes from a small, American tropical evergreen tree, and it is from this seed that cocoa, chocolate and cocoa butter are made.

It is basically chocolate in its rawest form, making it a vegan friendly option as it is pure cocoa with no dairy.

Cacao is also full of healthy minerals and vitamins, such as iron, manganese, magnesium, fiber, potassium, phosphorous and zinc.

Some of the benefits of raw cacao powder include helping to lower blood pressure, and improving blood flow.

You can use any brand of cacao powder, but one particularly excellent brand is Navitas Raw Cacao.

Remember to look for unrefined and organic cacao powder, as this offers the best quality and the most nutrition. 

Peanut Butter

With peanut butter cookies, you are going to want to include some delicious peanut butter!

However, there are alternatives should you want to switch it out, such as cashew butter, almond butter, or sunflower butter.

Peanuts are rich in proteins, minerals, monounsaturated fats, and vitamins as well as being a particularly rich source of biotin, which is a vitamin that is important for tissue maintenance and metabolism during pregnancy.

Almonds

Almonds are used to create some substance and texture in your no bake cookies, as well as offering a sweet and delicious taste.

They also contain tons of healthy goodness, such as protein and fiber. You can switch them out with pecans, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, or cashews if you aren’t a fan of almonds or if you have any allergies.

Medjool Dates

Medjool Dates

These kinds of dates are perfect for no bake cookies as they are incredibly sweet and sticky, making for a delicious taste as well as aiding with the thickness of the cookie batter.

Dates are known for being spectacular wholefoods that are full to the brim with healthy nutrients.

There are around sixteen different minerals and vitamins to be found in dates, such as potassium, which can be beneficial when it comes to balancing the electrolytes in the body and the recovery of muscle mass.

Dates are also filled with fiber, which is known for being great for the digestion, with around 6.7 grams worth of fiber to be found in one 100 gram serving of dates. 

Unsalted Sunflower Seeds

These seeds will add an extra crunch to your cookies as well as some vitamin E, which helps keeps the skin healthy. 

Sea Salt

Just a pinch of sea salt is needed to add to the flavor of your cookies. 

These ingredients are all you will need to get started with your no bake peanut butter and cacao cookies.

Thanks to the inclusion of these delicious and healthy ingredients, these cookies are not only energizing, but they are also super tasty!

They make for great treats for a wide range of occasions, whether you want to break them out at a party, at a family gathering or if you just want something to snack on when you get a craving for something sweet. 

With that in mind, let’s get into the recipe! Keep in mind that you will need a food processor in order to create these cookies. 

Recipe

  • Take all of the ingredients and place them in your food processor.
  • Start combining everything with the processor, but make sure that the seeds and the nuts are pulsed so that they break down completely. You will know that everything is starting to break down when the ingredients clump together, which usually takes about 40 seconds or so. 
  • Grab yourself a heaping tablespoon and start to scoop out the cookie batter and form them into balls once the mixture is well combined. 
  • Line a baking tray with parchment paper and gently place the cookie balls into the tray. 
  • Keep scooping and making cookie balls until the batter is completely used up. 
  • Create a crisscross pattern on the top of each cookie ball by using a fork and gently pressing down on each cookie. 
  • Once all of the cookies have that crisscross pattern, they are now ready to be refrigerated. Chill them for around two to three hours. 
  • Remember that your cookies will be able to stay refrigerated for up to a week, but they can last up to three months when placed in the freezer. 
  • There you have it! Your vegan friendly peanut butter and cacao cookies will be ready to eat!

Final Thoughts

So there you have some delicious peanut butter and cacao cookies that are suitable for a wide range of dietary requirements, including those who abide by a vegan diet. 

These cookies are as scrumptious as they are rich in important nutrients. Not only that, but they are also relatively easy to make too thanks to only containing a handful of ingredients.

There is nothing not to like about these vegan-friendly cookies, so why not try making some for yourself?

Kimberly Kidd
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