Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Vegan)

**These chocolate peanut butter cups are honestly heaven on earth. The only problem with these is that you won’t want just one! They are great if you like to have something a little sweet at the end of the day instead of digging into the ice cream tub! It’s perfect to make these ahead of time to have them ready whenever you want one. Make sure to keep them in the freezer for the best flavors. 🙂 

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Serving Size: 12

Ingredients:

-1 can of chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
-2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-1/4 -1/2 cup of peanut butter
-1/4 cup oats
-1/4 cup ground flax
-1/4 teaspoon baking soda (for cookie dough flavor)
-Sweetener of your choice (natural maple syrup, agave, or honey, if not vegan)
-12 oz dark chocolate chips (or you can use milk chocolate)
-coconut oil (1-2 tablespoons)
-pinch of salt

Directions: 

1. Drain the beans and rinse them off in cold water.
   
2. In a food processor, mix all of the ingredients except for the sweetener, chocolate chips, and coconut oil. Mix until smooth.
   
3. Mix in your sweetener a little at a time until it has sweet as you would like it. Remember that the chocolate chip adds a lot of flavor and sweetness, so don’t go crazy! Always start small. I used about 1/4 cup of natural maple syrup the last time I made this, but you can use anything and however much you’d like. The original recipe called for about 1/2 cup.
   
4. After processing, mix in some chocolate chips to the batter if you’d like something a little extra. If you have mini chocolate chips those will work, if not you can chop the normal size up or leave them as is… your call!
   
5. Melt your chocolate chips in a double boiler with a little bit of coconut oil to assure it is smooth once ready. If you don’t have a double boiler, just place a glass oven-safe bowl over a pot of boiling water and stir constantly until melted and smooth.
   
6. Place 1 tablespoon (more or less) on the bottom of reusable silicone cupcake liners and stick it in the freezer to set for a few minutes.
   
7. Using a small cookie scoop, fill the cupcake liners and flatten. Repeat until all have been filled.
   
8. Top off all the cupcake liners with the rest of your chocolate and put back in the freezer.
   **They will be ready to eat in about 10 minutes but are best when they have been in the freezer for a few hours. Simply remove the liners from chocolate cups and store them in an airtight container or a freezer-safeziploc bag. You may have some extra filling leftover, feel free to make more or store it in fridge for a “cookie dough” type of snack. 

Recipe modified from @chocolatecoveredkatie