Black Bean Whoppie Pie

By trishg

Ingredients

• Salted Caramel “Cream”
• 8-9 fresh mejool dates, pitted
• 1 cup really raw cashews, soaked 6+ hours
• 1 tsp vanilla powder
• 4 tbls coconut oil, melted to liquid
• 3-6 tbls water (as needed)
• 3/4 tsp salt flakes
• Chocolate Black Bean Whoopie Pies
• 1.5 cups cooked black beans (1 x 400g can, rinsed and drained)
• 2 tbls maple syrup
• 1 tbls chia seeds
• 3 tbls almond milk (or dairy free milk of choice)
• 1.5 tbls almond butter
• 2 tbls coconut oil, melted
• 2.5 oz coconut sugar
• 5 tbls raw cacao powder
• 1 tsp gluten free baking powder
• 2 tbls arrowroot powder (or rice flour)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla powder
• 1/2 tsp salt flakes (+ more to taste)
• 1.6 oz raw chocolate (I use Loving Earth Coconut Mylk Chocolate – 55% cacao), roughly chopped

Details

Preparation time 30mins
Cooking time 30mins
Adapted from homespuncapers.com

Preparation

Step 1

For the Salted Caramel “Cream”: Place the dates, cashews, vanilla, coconut oil and 3 tablespoons of water in a high-speed blender or food processor and puree. Add extra water if needed. Blend till smooth and add salt to taste. Place caramel in a bowl and put in the fridge for at least an hour to thicken, or until needed. The thicker the “cream” the easier the assembly will be, so try to chill for a few hours if you can. Can be stored airtight in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

For the Cookies: Set your oven to 180C.

In a high speed blender or food processor, combine the beans, maple syrup, chia seeds, almond milk and butter and coconut oil. When completely blended, empty contents into a medium-large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients except the chocolate, and fold with a spoon till smooth. Add the chocolate and stir to combine.
Line a baking sheet with baking paper and place tablespoon sized balls of batter on the sheet. Using your finger, smooth each cookie and shape it into a circle – the batter will not spread so you need to smooth it into shape. Bake for 18-25 minutes. The cookies will still be a little soft feeling to touch but will be crisp on the edges. Remove from oven and rest for a few minutes on the pan, before transfering the whole baking paper with cookies attached to a wire rack to cool completely. Wait till they are mostly cool to peel off paper. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for 2 days.
To assemble Whoopie Pies: Spoon the salted caramel “cream” onto the underside of one completely cooled cookie, sprinkle with a little more salt if desired, and then sandwich it with another cookie. Eat now, refrigerate for a couple of hours or freeze for a perfectly fudgey ice dream sandwich (let them thaw at room temperature for 5 minutes for best eating)!