Chocolate Cake Recipe Made with Chickpeas. Seriously!
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As a health-conscious dessert fiend (oxymoron?), I’m always looking for healthier alternatives that don’t sacrifice taste. Inspired by the Vegan “Tuna” sandwich post I decided to try out an unusual chocolate cake recipe I recently found. However, this is not just any chocolate cake. This recipe features a familiar secret ingredient that not only makes it gluten free, but full of protein and fiber. What could this special ingredient be you ask?
Garbanzo beans! (Not just for veggie “tuna” anymore!) Found on the blog, Bake This. Eat That. Then Move! this recipe could not be any easier to make. Just six ingredients, blended together, poured into a pan, bake and voila! A relatively healthy cake that tastes like chocolate despite being made of beans!
But… I couldn’t leave well enough alone and negated any healthy aspect of this recipe by adding a layer of peanut butter and chocolate glaze to half of the pan. The results were unbelievably rich, but good.
While the cake definitely tastes of chocolate, the texture is unlike any cake I’ve had before. It has a lot of moisture, which makes it dense (seriously, this thing weighed a surprising amount for a cake) and veers more toward the fudge brownie end of the dessert scale. The cake, however, breaks apart pretty easily. I found chilling it in the fridge helps keep it from crumbling. Luckily it tastes just as good cold as it does warm.
The original Garbanzo Bean Chocolate Cake recipe can be found here.
And here are my non-healthy additions:
Peanut Butter Layer:
(I cobbled this together from a bunch of recipes and didn’t measure, so these are just estimates. This is a forgiving recipe so you can play around with the measurements to taste.)
- 1 cup peanut butter (I used natural, unsweetened)
- 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 3-4 Tablespoons butter
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2-3 tablespoons milk
Cream together the peanut butter, butter, vanilla, sugar and milk until smooth. Spread on top of the cake after the cake has cooled.
Chocolate Glaze:
(Again, estimated measurements)
- 2/3rds cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli)
- 1-2 Tablespoons butter
Melt the chocolate chips and butter over a double boiler. Stir until smooth and completely melted. Spread on top of the peanut butter.
Let the cake chill in the fridge for at least half an hour so that the chocolate and peanut butter can set. Cut and enjoy!
This is a pretty versatile cake. It could easily be topped with frosting, ganache or just some powdered sugar as shown in the original recipe. Or eat it the way I actually prefered, plain and relatively guilt free!
Oh wow! And this cake can easily be made vegan as well! I think I’m going to make this on Friday when I go to a group dinner. There are lots of religious, ethical, and allergy related food restrictions in the group (but no peanut allergies!) so this cake will be perfect for everyone! Thanks for sharing!
Oooo…this looks seriously yummy. I am a bit squicked out by the thought of garbanzo beans in my dessert, but I know one taste would get me over that…
I love garbanzo beans but never thought of including them in anything sweet. Thanks for the inspiration! I’m going to forward this recipe to my gluten free friends.
I found it amusing that after pureeing everything it looked like I was just adding chocolate to a bunch of hummus…kind of throws you off a bit, visually. :) But it definitely doesn’t taste like hummus! Everyone who tried them really liked them and were shocked after finding out the ingredients.
And @mandaleem, I was thinking the same thing since this is such a simple and versatile recipe. If you do make a vegan version let us know how it turns out!
Thanks @kari for this yummy looking treat – I can’t wait to try this out. I always have cans and cans of garbanzo beans on hand and know I have something completely new to try.
And I agree @mandaleem must tell us how here vegan recipe turns out.
.-= Tyna Werner´s last blog ..Green & Spring – the Brits go natural =-.
ooooooo yum! I wish I was a better cook….this seems a bit intense for me to try. Does anyone want to make it for me and mail it to me???
I tried a black bean brownie recipe similar in principle to this. They weren’t as good as regular brownies, but they definitely did NOT taste like beans. They were a nice, better-tasting, fudgey alternative to a Cliff bar, though. Oh yeah, I got the recipe from @jpal. Hit her up!
Seriously, is there anything the chickpea can’t do?! I’m starting a fan club…
.-= Stef´s last blog ..Hourglass Prodigy lipgloss review =-.
@Tyna, I’m the same way. Once I discovered the garbanzo/chickpea I was addicted and always have a can on hand. My next goal is to try roasting them for a crunchy snack.
@cori, I’d mail you some…if my boyfriend didn’t always eat all of them first! For someone who claims he’s not a “sweets/desserts” fiend he sure chows down every time I bake something!
@sherrishera, I’ve always been curious about black bean brownies! I’ll have to give them a try now too!
@stef, I’m pretty sure chickpeas are made of magic.
@kari haha he sounds like me. i claim not to be big on sweets either, but any time someone brings treats in at work, I gobble them right up!
It looks so good, but seems so wrong…I may need to try it just to experience this for myself…but I’m a little scared…
@krista, it is really odd to go from “I want dessert!” followed by opening a can of beans.
It seriously tastes like a fudgey cake brownie…the only thing that may throw you is the texture. But it is still good. Plus you get the shock value when telling people how it’s made.
This is really hard to believe. But it looks so good!! Chickpeas are magical!!
Seriously though I will give this a try as I was skeptical when I first had tofu chocolate silk pie. And it was delightful!!
And every recipe that I have tried on this site has been a delicious success!
Did anyone try making this vegan? i am a vegan and am perplexed on what i would use in place of the eggs. could anyone give me some tips. thanks Tanya