Double Chocolate Protein Cookies

These Double Chocolate Protein Cookies are soft and fudgy with rich, deep dark chocolate flavor.  They are full of lots of delicious and nutritious ingredients like cocoa powder, almond flour, avocado, maple syrup and semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Plus, they’re gluten-free, paleo friendly, low calorie, low in saturated fat, with 8 grams of protein and yummy chocolatey flavor!

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The only thing better than chocolate is more chocolate – right!??  Well, that’s what the hubs would say anyway.  He’s kind of a chocolate consuming machine.  Like he was created to eat chocolate.   And if it’s a dark chocolate hazelnut tart – get out the way!  Not kidding.  He loves his dark chocolate.

Something else to note about the B man is that he LOVES to work out.  ADORES IT.  But don’t get me wrong he is not all big and muscly.  Oh no, lean and mean is more his lane.  Well, not really lean and mean, more lean and tall.  And real nice.

But again, the guy loves the gym.  So much so that he even got certified as a personal fitness trainer a few years ago – for fun.  Are you picking up what I’m laying down?

So, as the Chief Procurement Officer of my house I’m always picking up dark chocolate, and all things related to working out like protein powder and protein bars... while exploring new healthy-ish dessert recipes!  Recently, I was at the vitamin store picking up all the regular stuff and I happen to see some protein cookies.  Hmm, what a fun concept – right!?  I mean who doesn’t like cookies!??

Allow me to take a quick second and just mention that I’m all about getting a sufficient amount of protein, but I really don’t like protein powder and bars with a bunch of strange ingredients in them.  I’m a “less is more girl” when it comes to chemicals and processed items in my food.

For example, I love Lara bars.  There are only a few ingredients in each bar and they are all naturally occurring real food items.  I also like unflavored collagen protein powder.  There’s literally one ingredient and that’s the collagen.  Plus, there’s so many amazing benefits from using it…

My favorite is a collagen protein from Great Lakes, and I like it for several reasons.

Why I use collagen in my protein cookie recipe:

• First, there’s no natural or artificial sugar.  That way I have complete control over the level of sweetness.
• Next, collagen protein contains amino acids like glycine, lysine and proline, which can be used by the body to build muscle and connective tissue structures like bone, tendons ligaments, cartilage, skin, hair and nails.
• It’s easily digested and supports the body’s natural healing.
• It does not congeal and will dissolve in hot, warm, or cold liquids.  (Perfect for smoothies!)
• It’s helpful in regulating the body’s metabolism and can curb your appetite.
• And finally, it can also promote deeper sleep and improve gut health.

Ok public service announcement over… moving on to those protein cookies.

So, there I was in the middle of the vitamin store staring at all these shelves and shelves of protein cookies. There were so many different flavor options to choose from: chocolate chip, lemon poppy seed, peanut butter chip, chocolate mint… lots of yummy favors.  And although they listed a bunch of great facts about the cookie (non GMO, 0g Trans Fat, no soy, no dairy, no high fructose corn syrup, etc.), there were still plenty of strange sounding ingredients that I did not recognize.

Plus, they were kind of expensive for just one cookie.   I still went ahead and grabbed one for the B man to try out.  But in the back of my head I was thinking, “I could make these myself with identifiable ingredients and for much less cost.”

So that’s just what I did!

I whipped up my own Chocolate Protein Cookies!  And they turned out amazing!

They’re sooo soft and moist, almost like eating chocolate cake.  They are brimming with deep rich chocolatey flavor.  Plus, they contain 8 grams of protein per cookie, under 150 calories, loads of antioxidants, with only 10 ingredients – ingredients that you can actually pronounce, and feel good about eating.

I have to tell you these are not super-sweet cookies.  I intentionally made them low in sugar to keep them healthier and reduce the carbs.  Think rich deep dark chocolate flavor with some semi-sweet chocolate chips mixed in.  Mmmm.

They make a great snack when you’re having a chocolate craving.  Or a yummy on-the-go breakfast with a glass of coconut milk or a cup of coffee.  The B man likes to eat them pre- or post-workout.  With the added protein, they’re just what he needs to get him ready for his beloved gym time.

To add to their healthiness, I swapped out an avocado for the fat in these cookies.   So, there’s very little saturated fat at all – just one more reason these cookies are the perfect fudgy sweet treat.

I could go on and on about these black beauties but let’s talk about how easy it is to whip up a batch.

How to make chocolate protein cookies:

First, add an avocado and a large egg to your trusty standing mixer and whisk together until they come together.  Next add the maple syrup and vanilla extract and mix until blended.

In a separate bowl add all your dry ingredients:  cocoa powder, almond flour, protein powder, baking soda and salt.  Stir them together then add them to the wet ingredients in the mixer and blend.

Finally, mix in your chocolate chips, scoop out the protein cookie dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet (try to shape them into 2 ½ inch round discs) and bake for 10 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven.  This recipe makes 10 protein cookies total.  And since the cookies will spread a little be sure to give them plenty of room.

You can store them in the fridge, the freezer, or I even store mine on the counter in a container.  Just be sure to layer parchment paper between each cookie so they don’t stick together.

And that’s my protein cookie!  These Double Chocolate Protein Cookies are delicious and nutritious…  The perfect no-guilt gluten-free chocolate protein packed snack!  Pair these with some homemade butter coffee and you are good to go! 

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Yield: 10 cookies

Double Chocolate Protein Cookies

Print

Soft and fudgy double chocolate protein cookies with rich, deep dark chocolate flavor.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

Wet Ingredients:

• 1 avocado
• 1 egg
• ⅓ cup pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dry Ingredients:

• ½ cup cocoa powder
• ½ cup almond flour
• 5 tablespoons collagen protein powder
• ⅓ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (or dark chocolate if preferred)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Add the avocado and a large egg to standing mixer and whisk until they come together, about 1 minute. Add maple syrup and vanilla extract and mix until blended.
3. In a separate bowl add all dry ingredients: cocoa powder, almond flour, protein powder, baking soda and salt. Stir together, then add to the wet ingredients in the mixer and blend thoroughly. Next, add the chocolate chips and mix together.
4. Form 10 cookies (2 ½ inch round discs) on a parchment-lined baking sheet. The cookies will spread a little so be sure to give them plenty of room. Bake for 10 minutes on 350 degrees.
5. When completely cooled, store them in the fridge, freezer, or in a container at room temperature. Layer parchment paper between each cookie so they don’t stick together

Nutrition Information

Yield

10

Serving Size

1 Cookie
Amount Per Serving Calories 150Total Fat 8gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 16mgSodium 177mgCarbohydrates 15gNet Carbohydrates 12gFiber 3gSugar 9gProtein 8g

This nutrition card uses an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. This estimate is not a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice!