Vegan Chickpea 'Cookie Dough'-

    Throughout my illness, I used to kid myself and tell people that I loved to cook. I didn't. Really I loved the control it gave me, the ability to determine exactly what went into my food and know precisely what I was eating. I used to get a thrill from knowing the number of calories I was consuming, terrified of straying off of my strict calorie limit I gave myself. My meals were bland, tasteless and boring. I'd convince myself that cucumber tasted good on it's own for lunch and that dry, bare, branflakes were a suitable breakfast before sport. It was obsessive, compulsive and unhealthy!

   Now, I genuinely love it. I don't follow the IIFYM trend that is going on now strictly, however I do feel my meals are becoming more adventurous and I am more willing to try new things!
I enjoy cooking so much so, that when I came home from my hockey game today, I felt inspired to bake something for a treat for later. Although I don't think I should see any foods as particular treats, or be limiting myself to only eating certain things, at the weekend I do try to challenge something that I would have considered 'unhealthy' during my eating disorder. Little things that normal people eat without an issue, but that I trained myself to hate and avoid for fear of piling on weight! But, how on earth can this be considered an unhealthy treat when a) it was made with a healthy mindset and b) because it contains pretty much completely clean and nutritious ingredients?! I was inspired by http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/  and then made my balls (hehe) before using them to top my evening bowl of yoghurt!

This recipe makes enough for 10 balls of 'dough'

♥ 240g chickpeas (previously drained)
♥ 2 TBSP Peanut Butter/ Almond Butter
♥ 1 TBSP Stevia
♥ 2 TBSP Agave Nectar/Honey/Maple Syrup
♥ 1 TSP cinnamon
♥ 1 TSP vanilla essence
♥ 75% Dark Chocolate Chips/Fruit/Unsweetened Coconut/Nuts/Cocoa

1. Then simply blend all except the last ingredient together, adding water if it gets too stodgy and pulse until a dough forms.
2. Roll and form into small balls, then roll in the final ingredient or press in choice of filling. Finally, chill or if you want to, warm slightly before serving.