These healthy Salted Caramel Pecan Chickpea Blondies taste like a gooey caramel cookie and are gluten-free, vegan and refined sugar free. Although these chewy cookie bars are healthy and versatile for various dietary needs, they do not compromise on the flavor!

Tastes Like a Gooey Caramel Cookie Bar!

So you might be thinking, how can chickpeas taste like a caramel cookie?! Well, ingredients like pure maple syrup, cashew butter and coconut sugar completely mask the chickpeas and instead add a sweet, caramel toffee flavor! Unless you were told that this soft blondie bar had chickpeas in it, I'd bet you'd never guess! You could easily tell someone this is a vegan salted caramel bar and they wouldn't ask any questions.

Gluten-free, Vegan, Refined Sugar-Free and Dairy-free!

This recipe hits all of the marks for healthy baked goods and special dietary labels. Have a friend who is gluten-free? Cutting back on dairy products? Maybe your family member is vegan! Then this is the healthy blondie bar recipe for you!

Garbanzo beans are the base of these chewy blondies, but this recipe calls for a little gluten-free oat flour or almond flour to help with the texture. You could also leave out the flour altogether if you'd like and I think it would still turn out great.

We're not using any eggs or animal products in this recipe, so now we can make delicious vegan blondies! Instead of butter, all you need is a little melted coconut oil which makes this healthy dessert dairy-free too!

But hey, while we're at it, let's also use natural sweeteners like pure maple syrup to elevate the caramel flavor while avoiding processed sugars. Coconut sugar is a better alternative to granulated white sugar or brown sugar. If you have coconut sugar, it works perfectly in this recipe!

Everything You'll Need

Canned Chickpeas: Garbanzo beans are the base of our healthy salted caramel pecan chickpea blondies! Chickpeas have loads of plant-based protein and are a versatile ingredient to keep in your pantry.
Pure Maple Syrup: This stuff is liquid gold. I buy it in bulk to save money and it's worth every penny! Best deal is at CostCo, you're welcome 🙂 Pure maple syrup gives this recipe natural sweetness.
Cashew Butter (or nut butter): Introducing the magic ingredient in these gluten-free blondies... cashew butter! This creamy nut butter tops all others in flavor, however you can sub another nut or seed butter if you'd like.
Vanilla Extract: A staple in baking! Vanilla extract adds a delicate vanilla flavor to these blondies.
Oat Flour (or almond flour): A little oat flour helps improve the texture of these blondies by adding a dry ingredient to the chickpea mixture.
Coconut Sugar: Bring on the caramel flavor!! This recipe calls for coconut sugar because it smells like toffee and adds a wonderful caramel taste to baked goods.
Coconut Oil: Melted coconut oil adds healthy fats to these blondies and makes them extra gooey.
Salt: You know us, we can never pass up a sweet and salty dessert!
Cinnamon: Add pinch of cinnamon for that aromatic warmth and spice that makes baked goods feel cozy and sweet.
Baking Powder: This recipe calls for baking powder to help the blondies rise while baking.
Baking Soda: This ingredient also helps the blondies rise while baking.
Pecans: Let's add some crunch! Chopped pecans are a healthier alternative to chocolate chips and they too have a sweet and nutty, caramel-like taste!
Sea Salt: A sprinkle of flaky sea salt is *chef's kiss*. You get a little pop of saltiness in each bite!

Need to make a substitution?

Don't have cashew butter?

Any nut butter will work in this recipe. Try peanut butter or almond butter if you'd like. However, cashew butter is out of this world and definitely adds the caramel flavor to these bars so get your hands on some cashew butter if you can!!

Don't skip the salt!

The flaky sea salt is a must for these salted caramel pecan chickpea blondies! A sprinkle of sea salt adds a little pop of saltiness in every bite! We love a sweet and salty combo around here. Pink Himalayan salt also works!

More Healthy Dessert Recipes

If you make these salted caramel pecan chickpea blondies, be sure to tag #bakedabundance on Instagram. We’d also love if you would leave a comment below and rate the recipe. We appreciate you!

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