Sweet Potato Chickpea Blondies
These Sweet Potato Chickpea Blondies are easy to make and are delicious. Perfect for a protein packed snack or healthy dessert. And, nope, you can’t taste the chickpeas!
Why these chickpea blondies are amazing…
You all inspired me to make these blondies, TNNers.
After making my veggie-loaded chocolate protein muffins on Instagram stories recently, you all went crazy (in the best of ways) at the idea of adding legumes to baked goods. You loved that it was that simple to get some bonus protein into a baked treat that your families were going gaga for…and it didn’t require a protein powder with questionable ingredients.
My inbox was flooded with requests for more bean and lentil packed baked goods and soon these sweet potato chickpea blondies started taking form in my mind.
My family is OBSESSED with this recipe and I love them too because…..
- They are naturally sweetened with honey or maple syrup and the sweetness of sweet potatoes. There are chocolate chips added because a blondie wouldn’t be a blondie without some chocolate, but you can omit those or add as little or as much as you personally want!
- These blondies are a delicious dessert, but they are also loaded with protein from eggs and chickpeas, making them a perfect fueling snack for a school lunch box or as a snack for a road trip or a day hiking with the family!
- They are nut-free and dairy-free! Just be sure that whatever chocolate chips you use are also allergy-friendly. I like this brand.
- They are veggie-loaded with sweet potatoes, packed with the plant goodness of chickpeas, and made with a lot less sugar than a traditional blondies recipe….making them a healthier option for when that sweet tooth calls.
- Easy to whip up in about 10 minutes with your handy blender and then bake up in 20 minutes.
- Perfect as part of meal prep, these blondies store like a dream in the fridge for up to 5 days so that you can grab them as needed throughout the week.
If you love the idea of veggie-loaded baked goods, check out these Kid-Friendly Vegetable Muffin Recipes
Frequently asked questions
Why do I want to add chickpeas to blondies?
I mean, why not? Of course you can enjoy a traditional blondie recipe if that is your jam! However, I love adding legumes like chickpeas to my baked goods since they up the plant protein in a recipe. These blondies work great as a fueling snack for lunch boxes or we love to take them hiking for a trail treat.
Can I make these chickpea blondies egg-free?
I haven’t tested this recipe without eggs, but I usually have great success in similar recipes (like these vegan PB carrot blondies) using flax eggs! The blondies would likely be extra fudgy (yum!).
Could I use lentils or another bean in these blondies?
I haven’t tested these with cooked lentils or another bean, but I think they would work! I’d use cooked white beans or cooked red lentils to maintain the color of these blondies.
I don’t have white whole wheat flour. Can I use a different flour?
I like to use white whole wheat flour for this recipe because it has a mild taste compared to traditional whole wheat flour. If you prefer regular whole wheat flour, it will work well in this recipe, too. You can also use half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose flour to create your own “white whole wheat flour” or make the recipe entirely with all-purpose flour. These blondies can also be made gluten free with a gf cup-for-cup flour.
Can I use regular sugar instead of maple syrup or honey?
Yes! These sweet potato blondies work well with coconut sugar or regular granulated white sugar.
How should I store these chickpea blondies?
Because these sweet potato blondies are moist and veggie-loaded, I find they stay fresher longer stored in an air-tight container in the fridge.
Suggested adaptations
- Replace the sweet potato in these chickpea blondies with pumpkin or butternut squash puree. Both will work great!
- Make these blondies gluten free with a gluten free cup-for-cup flour.
- Skip the chocolate chips if you like or to reduce the sugar in these sweet potato blondies and enjoy them for breakfast!
Other sweet potato recipes you are going to adore
- Baked Apple Sweet Potato Oatmeal
- Sweet Potato Banana Bread
- Sweet Potato Pancakes
- Easy Sweet Potato Cookies
- Sweet Potato Apple Sausage Skillet
- Sheet Pan Sausage and Veggies
Loving these chickpea blondies and now you’re hungry for more?
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Sweet Potato Chickpea Blondies
Ingredients
- 14.5 oz chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 3/4 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato, or sweet potato puree
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or melted coconut oil
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
- 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips, if dairy-free is needed, make sure your chocolate chips are dairy-free
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a 8×8 pan with parchment paper or grease it with a little extra oil.
- In a blender, combine chickpeas, sweet potato, eggs, oil, vanilla, and maple syrup/honey and puree until smooth. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir together to combine.
- Pour the contents of the blender into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
- Fold in chocolate chips.
- Pour the batter in the baking dish then top with a few more chocolate chips, if desired. Bake for about 22-25 minutes or until edges of the blondies are puffed up and the middle is set to the touch.
- Allow blondies to cool completely before slicing and enjoying. Store leftovers in an air tight container in fridge for up to 5 days.
In your write-up you forgot to write when to add in the eggs and oil.
Thank you for catching that! Fixed!
These are so yummy, you wouldn’t even know there are chick peas in it! Both my husband and toddler loved them! Such a great recipe! Taesha has so many good recipes. I haven’t tried one that I haven’t liked yet.
I am SO happy to hear all of that, Mackenzie! Thank you for taking the time to share!
These are the BOMB. I love that when I make your recipes, I KNOW my kids will love them. We had these for snack yesterday after the first day of school and the kids were ecstatic to have “cake” in their lunch boxes today! I can’t wait to make the chocolate protein muffins next!
That makes me so happy to hear, Kamini! We are making them for school lunches next week, as well! And you will LOVE those muffins
We liked these! I used what I had on hand, whole wheat flour and Trader Joe’s cocoa unsweetened chips. I feel like they’re extra healthy this way!
Yes! Love when people can make TNN recipes without having to run to the store and have success! So glad you enjoyed them!
I just took these out and f the oven . They are so good you would not even know there were chick peas in them . I used pumpkin instead of sweet potato because that’s what I had
I love using pumpkin or butternut squash instead of sweet potato in these too! Glad you enjoyed the, Karen!
These are so delicious – we can’t stop making them. Everyone in my family, from my toddler to his grandparents, love them. It really is hard to believe that they have such healthy ingredients. As always, this recipe exceeded my expectations.
I did make them using 1:1 gluten free flour and found that the cooking time was longer than stated in the recipe, but they turned out great!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these, Allie! I made these again yesterday and found that this batch needed an extra 5 minutes in the oven. I’ve adjusted the recipe instructions to include the range, since a few other readers shared the same!
Do you think these would work with flax eggs?
Just re-read and found answer to my question, thanks!
I was glad my kids enjoyed these. Thanks! They thought it was a pumpkin bread dessert. Have you tried freezing them at all?
I’m so glad, Mindy! They never last long enough in our house to test freezing 😂 but I can’t think of a reason that they wouldn’t be freezer friendly!
These are fantastic! I first made them a week ago and have made another batch already. So simple and quick to make for a delicious treat!
I am so glad you are enjoying these, Diane! We have made them so many times, too!
Hello! Do you think I could sub the flour with almond flour or oat flour? I’d like to make them gluten-free for a friend – any advice?
Hi Vanessa! I have found that beans + dense flours (like oat or almond) make for a really dense bake that I didn’t enjoy. I find that cup-for-cup gluten free flour blends (Bob’s Red Mill has a good one!) works great though! Hope that helps
My family and I loved this recipe! Very tasty! I used pumpkin puree and it worked wonderfully.
Thank you so much!
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that, Amanda! I love swapping out pumpkin and sweet potatoes in recipes!
We absolutely love these in our house. My 19 month old and 5 year old always enjoy when I make ANY of your recipes. I am so thankful for all the work you do!
I am so pleased to hear that, Christie! It means so much to hear that from readers. Thank you for taking the time to share 💚
Could there be made as muffins instead of in a 8×8 pan? How long would you bake them? Excited to try these for my 3 year old’s lunchbox!
Hmmmm. I haven’t tried but I like what you are thinking. They would be pretty dense as muffins, but if you want to give it a go, I’d bake then for 20ish minutes. You might also might like my protein pumpkin muffins with some chocolate chips added! Those are tired and true and have lentils, but you could probably use chickpeas.
https://thenaturalnurturer.com/pumpkin-protein-muffins/
We are OBSESSED with these! SO GOOD. Used pumpkin instead of sweet potato because that’s all I had on hand. I prefer them cold and the next day after they’ve sat in the fridge!
I agree, these chilled are the best!
Whst is this magicness?? My child does not like chickpeas or sweet potato but she devoured these and asked for more. So good for preschool lunches too! Thank you.
Music to my ears, Olya! I’m so happy she enjoyed!
These were a hit with me and my littles! We almost ate the whole pan in one day! They’ll definitely be in my dessert/treats rotation.
Next recipe I want to try is your peanut butter pumpkin cookies!
I want to thank you so much for what you do. I love, love, love your recipes and haven’t found one that my family doesn’t love! I have a very picky 5 year old and an adventurous eating 2 year old. It’s a blessing to find such delicious, veggie packed foods and treats that everyone can agree on!
I’m so honored and delighted to hear all that, Stephanie! Thank you for taking the time to share.