About This Recipe
I made these when I wanted something that actually tasted like a proper chocolate cookie — dense, rich, with real chocolate pieces and a hazelnut base that makes every bite feel indulgent. The date paste does all the heavy lifting here: it binds everything together and adds natural sweetness without any sugar. The coffee-flavored protein powder in the background makes the chocolate taste deeper. Eight minutes in the oven and you have five cookies that look and taste like they came from a bakery.
Why These Ingredients
Dates — soaked and blended into a paste, they replace both sugar and butter. The result is naturally sticky and sweet with a caramel-like depth. Don’t skip the soaking step — dry dates won’t blend smoothly enough.
Hazelnut butter — adds richness and that classic chocolate-hazelnut flavor. Combined with the date paste it creates a base that holds everything together without any eggs or flour-heavy binding.
Coffee protein powder — deepens the chocolate flavor significantly. You don’t taste coffee directly but it adds a complexity that makes these taste more sophisticated. Any flavor works but coffee or chocolate work best here.
Oat flour — gives the cookies just enough structure without making them dense or cakey. Don’t swap for regular flour — oat flour keeps them soft and slightly chewy.
Warm milk or water — helps bring the dough together and makes the date paste blend more smoothly. Use milk for a richer result or water to keep it lighter.
Stevia chocolate — use a good quality one. It melts into the dough and creates pockets of chocolate throughout. Freeze-dried strawberry on top adds a tartness that cuts through the richness perfectly.
💡Two ways to use the chocolate: I melted the 30g of chocolate and drizzled it over the baked cookies — it sets into a thin glossy layer that makes them look bakery-made. But you can also chop it and fold it into the dough before baking for melty chocolate pockets inside. Both work great, choose what you prefer.
Ingredients (5 cookies)
• ¼ cup dates, packed (50g)
• 100ml warm milk or water (scant ½ cup)
• 2 tbsp hazelnut butter (32g)
• 1 tsp coconut oil (5g)
• 4 tbsp oat flour (30g)
• ¼ cup protein powder, coffee flavor (25g)
• Vanilla to taste
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of baking powder
• 1 tbsp pistachios (7g)
• 2 oz dark chocolate, sugar-free (30g)
• A little freeze-dried strawberry
Instructions:
1. Soak the dates in 100ml (scant ½ cup) of warm milk or water for 5 minutes, then blend into a smooth paste.
2. Mix the date paste with hazelnut butter and coconut oil until combined.
3. In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients — oat flour, vanilla, protein powder, cocoa, salt, and baking powder.
4. Combine the dry ingredients with the paste. Fold in the pistachios, chocolate, and freeze-dried strawberry.
5. Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F.
6. Shape into 5 cookies and place on a lined baking tray.
7. Bake for 8 minutes, then turn off the oven and leave the cookies inside for 2 more minutes.
8. Open the oven slightly and leave the cookies inside for another 5 minutes before removing.
Macros per cookie
~151 kcal · 6g protein · 8g fat · 15g carbs
(Total: ~755 kcal · 32g protein · 40g fat · 74g carbs)
Tried this recipe? Let me know in the comments how it turned out!