These Vegan Chocolate Black Bean Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches taste super decadent but are surprisingly healthy!
These Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches were inspired by both these Vegan Black Bean Brownies and this Chickpea Deep-Dish Cookie. I realised that maybe if I made the batter for the Vegan Black Bean Brownies a little drier, then I could probably make some proper cookies with them!
I decided to use black beans but you can use adzuki beans (aka red beans) instead if you want. I love the recipe for these cookies as they're so easy to make, requiring just 7 ingredients and one bowl (or food processor!).
Not only are these Chocolate Cookie Ice Cream Sandwichesย vegan and gluten-free, but they're also grain-free, nut-free and even oil-free too! And you can easily make them refined sugar free by omitting the chocolate chips or using refined sugar free chocolate.
You're probably wondering how these cookies actually taste! I was quite surprised to find that the cookies turned out to be especially nice because of the black beans rather than in spite of the black beans.
I've tried making vegan and refined sugar free cookies in the past, with disappointing results. They always tended to turn out more cake-like than cookie-like, or were too hard and crunchy. I resigned my cookie-testing, thinking it wouldn't be possible to create a cookie without refined sugar. ๐
But these cookies have made this a possibility: they're simultaneously tender and fudgy (thanks to the black beans) and perfectly chewy (thanks to the dates)!
But I didn't want to just stop with cookies. I decided I wanted to make a summery treat in the form of cookie ice cream sandwiches! Adding ice cream in between these cookies adds another level of deliciousness and the ice cream perfectly compliments the chocolatey, fudgy and chewy cookies.
I used shop-bought vegan raspberry ripple ice cream for these cookie ice cream sandwiches, but feel free to use whatever ice cream you like.
If you want to keep the recipe nut-free, you could use a soy, coconut or rice-based ice cream. If you're looking for flavours other than vanilla, may I recommend this chocolate ice cream, or this peanut butter ice cream?
I really hope you'll love these Vegan Chocolate Black Bean Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches! Want more chocolate treats? Check out my:
- Mississippi Mud Pie
- Black Bean Brownies
- Chocolate Baked Donuts
- Vegan Chocolate Date Caramels
- Peanut Butter Salted Caramel Chocolate Bars
- Chocolate Truffles
If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog,ย Iโd really love to hear anyย feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo #rhiansrecipes onย Instagram! Thank you.
Helpful tools to make these Vegan Chocolate Black Bean Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches:
food processor
blender
rectangular baking tray
baking paper
Vegan Chocolate Black Bean Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches (GF)
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 400 g (14oz) tin of black beans, drained and rinsed (or sub adzuki beans)
- 10 pitted dates soaked overnight in cold water or 10 minutes in boiling water, drained
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
- ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 40 g (1.5oz) dark chocolate chips or chunks* (ensure dairy-free if necessary)
To assemble the sandwiches:
- 5 scoops ice cream of choice** - I used vegan raspberry ripple ice cream (ensure vegan/dairy-free if necessary)
Instructions
For the cookies:
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Add the beans, dates, cocoa powder, baking powder, vanilla and salt to a blender or food processor and whizz until completely smooth (you may need to mix it around a few times)
- Stir in the chocolate chips
- Using your hands, shape the mixture into 10 equal-sized balls. Lay them out on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and use your hands to press them down into cookie shapes
- Bake in oven for around 15 minutes, until cooked through
- Transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely before assembling
To assemble the sandwiches:
- Place a cookie upside down. Add a scoop of ice cream onto it, then sandwich with another cookie. Press down to flatten the ice cream. This will work best if your ice cream is a little soft, but not melting. Repeat for all the other cookies.
- You can either enjoy these immediately or place in a flat, freezer-friendly container (wrap them individually with clingfilm if you like) and store in the freezer until you want to eat them. Take out of the freezer and leave to thaw slightly for 10-15 minutes before eating.
Notes
Disclosure: This posts contains affiliate links to Amazon. If you purchase any of these products, a small percentage will come to me with no extra cost to you! This income will go towards the running of this blog โ thank you.
Strength and Sunshine
I just made some ice cream sandwiches of the weekend ๐ Perfect essential to summer!
Rhian Williams
Indeed! I'm sure yours were really yummy! ๐
Nico @ yumsome
Phwoaaarrrrr - I need these right now! LOL! They not only sound completely deelish but look so pretty too. I love the colours, and how well the ice cream co-ordinates with the cookies! What every stylish vegan needs on their plate! Ha ha! xx
Rhian Williams
Hey Nico! Thank you for another entertaining comment ? so glad you like the look of these cookies!! xxx
Sus // roughmeasures.com
Black beans in cookies? What a genius idea! Sneaky way to get more protein too.
Rhian Williams
Thank you!! Yes it's great when you can add extra protein to desserts too ?
Anonymous
Such a good idea to use black beans!
Rhian Williams
Thank you!
Anonymous
I have two questions for you:
These cookies look like they don't have any added sugar, would they be okay to eat alone, without the ice cream and still taste like a dessert? Also, because I don't see any added sugar, would these be okay for a diabetic diet?
Rhian Williams
Yes they would be ok to eat as a dessert without the ice cream. If you're looking for a slightly sweeter but similar cookie, you could try these instead: https://www.rhiansrecipes.com/gluten-free-vegan-double-chocolate-chip-cookies/. As they contain no added sugar I think they would be suitable for a diabetic diet, but I would advise checking with a medical source. Also you would have to make sure to use diabetic-friendly chocolate. Hope that helps!