Vegan Protein Cookies with Chocolate and Tahini: Your New Favorite Cookies

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First, a little credit where it's due:

This chocolate-tahini vegan protein cookie recipe didn't start with me. I based it on the chocolate tahini cookies from Lazy Cat Kitchen  , then made a few changes of my own.

These cookies are melt-in-your-mouth tender, seriously chocolatey, and made without a speck of flour.

You don't need to be a baking genius to make them. But you do need to follow the recipe step by step to get that wonderful texture.

The original recipe uses all-purpose flour. I swapped it for Myprotein's unflavored soy protein powder, which works beautifully in baking.

The powder retains its nutritional value when baked and gives these cookies a solid protein boost.

If you'd like to try this protein powder—which I highly recommend—you can find it here.

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Another vegan protein cookie recipe 

A Few Tips for These Chocolate-Tahini Vegan Protein Cookies

• To create an airy mixture that holds up in the oven, I used aquafaba: the liquid from a can of chickpeas.
• If you haven't tried it before, this liquid whips into a foam thanks to its protein and soluble fiber. And no, your cookies won't taste like chickpeas.
• You don't need a fancy mixer to whip aquafaba. You can also use an immersion blender or beat it with a fork. The results won't be quite as good, but the cookies will still be delicious.
• I whip the aquafaba with a little sugar—really, the bare minimum—to create an even, stable foam. You can skip the sugar, but the foam won't hold up as well.
• I "folded" the dark chocolate and tahini into the foam. Folding is a very gentle way of mixing that keeps you from deflating all that air you just whipped in.
• Yes, you can swap peanut butter for the tahini.
• I replaced the flour in the original recipe with unflavored protein powder. If you have a different protein powder you'd like to try, go for it—but I can't promise how it will behave in this recipe.
• The original recipe also uses cocoa powder. I left it out to get the texture I wanted: protein powder absorbs a lot of liquid, and adding cocoa powder too could dry out the cookies.

Chocolate-Tahini Vegan Protein Cookies: Nutrition

One cookie, from a batch of 8, contains:

• 285 calories
• 11.5 g protein
• 20 g carbohydrates
• 13 g fat

Vegan Protein Cookies with Chocolate and Tahini

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Yield 8 cookies

Calories 285 kcal

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup aquafaba (liquid from a can of chickpeas) 100 ml (about 3.4 fl oz)
• 130 g (4.6 oz) dark chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/3 cup tahini made from hulled sesame seeds (not whole-seed tahini)
• 2 scoops protein powder 60 g (2.1 oz)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Instructions

1. Melt 100 g (3.5 oz) of the dark chocolate in the microwave or in a bowl set over a pot of boiling water.

2. Pour the aquafaba and 1 teaspoon sugar into a deep bowl. Beat with a hand mixer for about 2–3 minutes, until a firm, stable foam forms.

3. Using a spatula, gently fold the melted chocolate into the foam.

4. Gently fold in the tahini.

5. Sift the protein powder and baking powder through a sieve into the bowl.

6. Don't skip the sifting: it helps keep the cookies airy and prevents large clumps from landing in the mixture.

7. Mix gently until evenly combined.

8. Let the dough rest in the refrigerator for about half an hour to firm up.

9. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

10. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

11. With wet hands, shape the dough into cookies and place them on the baking sheet.

12. Top with the remaining chocolate and a little tahini.

13. Bake for about 10 minutes.

14. For firmer cookies, bake for 1 additional minute.

15. The cookies are very delicate while hot, so let them cool completely at room temperature before handling.