Yup you read the title right – this is a recipe for a cake made with chickpeas!
Not garbanzo bean flour either but actual garbanzo beans. Cool right? I thought so too and that’s why even though it’s been weeks since I posted (sorry about that) and I have a ton of photos and recipes that are in the queue I bumped this cake up to the front of the line.
I made it last night after coming across the recipe in a Latin American cookbook a couple of weeks ago and being highly intrigued. There are only a few ingredients and it was very easy to make so I thought why not give it a try. An added bonus is that it contained no flour so is naturally gluten free. Interestingly there is no added fat either but this is one of the moistest (is that a word?) cakes I have ever made and you don’t taste the chickpeas at all.
The original recipe called for the grated rind and juice of an orange which I didn’t have. So in honor of the fall season I replaced the orange with one grated apple and a teaspoon of lemon zest as well as adding 1/2 teaspoon of cloves to the 2 tsp of cinnamon already called for. The original recipe also calls for sprinkling cinnamon sugar over the top of the cake but it was so sweet and cinnamony (definitely NOT a word!) already that I think it might be too much. I tried to think of what else to frost this with or add as a complement for the photos but it was so delicious on it’s own I really don’t think it needs anything! Maybe a crunchy topping or a little vanilla ice cream but I can’t say enough that it’s ridiculously good with no adornment!
Apple and Garbanzo Cake (Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 1 19-ounce can of chickpeas (I used Cento brand)
- 4 eggs beaten
- 1 cup sugar or granulated sugar substitute
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1 medium apple grated through a fine grater
- 1 tsp grated lemon rind
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Drain and rinse chickpeas and process them until smooth in a blender or food processor. Spoon the puree into a bowl and add the remaining ingredients, stirring until fully combined. The mixture will be runny, this is normal.
- Grease an 8×8 cake pan. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and let cool completely before cutting into squares. Enjoy and don’t give the secret away until after your family/guests have eaten it! They’ll never guess what the secret ingredient is and that it’s actually good for them! A word of caution, some people are allergic to the protein in various beans and legumes so do be up front about it if you aren’t sure about potential allergy issues!
- Category: Cakes
- Cuisine: Desserts
Sally says
This recipe looks great! I need to serve more people than an 8×8 pan will feed. I’ll probably make 2, but do you think it’s possible to double the recipe and make it in a 13 x 9 pan, extending the baking time?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Yes, you can definitely double it and make it in a larger pan – I’d say you’ll need an extra 20 minutes or so of bake time, but just keep checking it until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Hope you like it!
Aleshya Eden says
Any idea on vegan egg substitutes?
I just did the recipe exactly substituting aquafaba for egg ratio and it was obviously too much. Hasn’t set at all (tasty still haha). Wanting to make for a vegan friend (im GF so something we can both enjoy.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Sorry, I’m not familiar with egg free baking options and don’t have time to test this out. Maybe flax seed? I’ve heard that can help. ??♀️
G says
Apple sauce is a substitute for eggs. Google the ratio but I think it’s 1/4 cup of applesauce is equal to 1 egg
katja says
Hi! Can I substitute sugar for coconut sugar and how much of it do I have to use?
Thanks!
Alycia says
I am so glad I came across your site,; I love chick peas and all types of sweets but unfortunately have a gluten intolerance. I was looking for new dishes & desserts to make for Thanksgiving. I will definitely be making this cake tomorrow and again for Thanksgiving.
Danielle says
Hey! This recipe sounds awesome! Just a question, if we don’t have a grater is it possible to substitute with applesauce? And if so, how much?
Mellissa Sevigny says
I suppose you could sub an equal amount of applesauce for the shredded apples. Enjoy!
Robin says
This recipe was so delicious and now I use it all the time. Now it’s become a base recipe for me–I’ve made a pear-lavender version (replacing apple w 1 ripe green pear and adding 1.5 tsp dried lavender&vanilla: AMAZING) and today I’m going to try a banana-carrot-ginger version. Thank you so much for sharing and inspiring!
Mellissa Sevigny says
That pear lavender version sounds to die for! I’m going to have to try that soon since I have all the stuff! Perfect for spring – thanks for sharing!
Kirstin Dorsey says
I made this along with the 10-minute chili last night to kick off my new low-carb diet attempt and my husband and I both loved it! It was so quick and easy. Since I don’t have a food processor, I ended up throwing the chickpeas into my blender, with decent results.
Could this easily be converted to a carrot cake? It’s one of my favorites and would absolutely love to do it…though coming up with an icing might be more involved.
Thanks!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I definitely think this could be carrot cake Kirstin – I should try to make an official version for the blog soon, thanks for the idea! Let me know if you experiment and come up with something delicious on your own! Glad you guys are enjoying the recipes!
Adriana says
I made this today and it turned out really good. I did made some minor adjustments. I used 2 cups of cooked garbanzo beans, only 3 eggs cause that’s what I had and substituted the sugar for granulated stevia in the raw (1/2 cup). The texture and the taste was awesome its hard to believe its made with beans. Definitely will make this again! Thank you!
Amanda K says
It truly made the whole house smell wonderful! Its the very first recipe I tried with my new food processor :-) It tastes great but came out overly moist and squishy. I had it in for the full 50 minutes at 350, but I used a glass pan. Was that the problem? Everything else is exact. I hope the eggs are mostly cook because I’ve eaten a 1/3 of it already!
Ashley says
I was in the mids of making this but since I was using cooked chickpeas instead of can, the weight of 19oz turned out to be too much to get a runny batter. I ended up having to add one more egg. I also used honey 1/4 – 1/2 cup, along with 2 apples instead of 1. I didnt have cloves so added cardamom, so I just mixed 2 recipes together. The cake cracked all over on the top, and wasn’t as smooth as pictured above. What went wrong? I can only guess that 19oz (500+grams) of chickpea wasn’t the right amount.
Mellissa Sevigny says
All I can think of Ashley is that a 19oz can of chickpeas would contain a lot of liquid which gets drained from the can. I don’t know how much, but I’m sure the actual weight of the cooked chickpeas in a 19oz can would be quite a bit less – maybe even 12 oz or so. That was probably enough of a difference to give you a texture problem. Sorry! I liked the cardamom idea though, might try that sometime myself!
Ashley says
I suppose. I drained away all the water and I think left with too much chickpeas. hanks for the recipe. Hope to figure it out somehow…
Mellissa Sevigny says
I’m sorry Ashley, I’m confused. Did you start with 19oz of dried chickpeas? If so then you would definitely have way too much after you cooked them, even if you drained the water out. A 19oz can of cooked chickpeas like I used in this recipe would yield approximately 1 3/4 cup of cooked, drained chickpeas. I’m not sure what it would weigh at that point. If you purchase a can of cooked chickpeas and drain the liquid out, you should be good to go for next time.
Ashley says
I started out with dried chickpeas and cooked them and drained the water and weighed them. I guess I’ll try the cup measurement next time. I can’t find can chickpeas easily.
Anonymous says
I was thinking of replacing two of the eggs with 1/4 cup of pumpkin puree for each one (so a total of 1/2 cup of pumpkin). That way it will be healthier for those concerned about cholesterol and stil have less sugar and carbs than using banana (even though they are good, natural sugars). It might give it a slightly different taste, but I think the apple/pumpkin combo would be delicious!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I’m intrigued and interested to see if it sets up with less eggs in it – you could add chia seeds or ground flax which would also act as a binder to help the two remaining eggs along. Let me know how it comes out!
Anonymous says
Does it matter what kind of apple(granny smith, fuji, jazz…)?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Because you are finely grating it I would say no, it doesn’t really matter what kind you use. Hope you like it!
Pale Magnolias says
I made this cake twice so far and have gotten rave reviews. I have also tried to substitute some banana for some of the eggs and it seemed to work out just fine. But you are right. This is a delicious recipe. And I find it easier to make than the one quoted on Dr.Oz’s website for Garbanzo muffins. Great job!!!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I like your idea of substituting the banana for some of the eggs. Were you able to decrease the sugar that way as well? So glad you liked it!
Debbi Does Dinner Healthy says
I am pretty sure I am going to make this today! It sounds wonderful. I just stumbled on your blog by accident and I’m so glad that I did!!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks Debbi, hope you like it!
Anonymous says
This is in the oven as I type! And it smells amazing. As a poor college kid who recently found out she is gluten and casein intolerant, I have been struggling for some time with the cost and relative complexity of gluten free flours and baking, so I’m happy to have found such a cost effective and what I believe will be DELICIOUS solution to my problem. Thank you so much!!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I’m so glad you liked this recipe! I hope it tasted as good as it smelled! Make sure you try the chocolate/orange version too!
Lorena // gemagenta says
I just tried this recipe, and what can I say? I LOVE YOU!
I’ve been craving for something sweet like this and it came out perfect!
I replaced regular sugar for a low calorie sweetener and I replaced canned chickpeas for home boiled ones.
The result was great, even my hubby loved it!
Thank you!
Mellissa Sevigny says
So glad you guys liked this Lorena! I’m looking forward to making it this fall and having it with some hot chai tea! Yum!
passmycoffee says
I found your blog via Pinterest. I made this wonderful cake for my husband’s birthday. I used Spenda instead of sugar so it it is also South Beach diet friendly (which we follow). It turned out amazing. I have another one in the oven right now and my house smells amazing. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Mellissa Sevigny says
I’m so glad you guys liked it! I will be making this one again this year when apple season is in full swing in a couple more weeks! I love the smell of it too! :)
Pale Magnolias says
Have made this and absolutely delicious. But I cooked it 60 minutes and seemed better for me. I would like to try and omit a couple of eggs and add banana instead. What a great idea!!!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks Magnolia! I do have a banana nut version on the blog too, it has a chocolate ganache frosting and it’s yummy! https://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/2011/10/bananas-gone-nuts-garbanzo-cake.html
Audra Majocha says
I am still poking around…I will definitely try this. I love using black beans as a base for sweet treats- ever tried the amazing black bean brownies?! fantastic! I am so excited to try this, maybe with the orange or hmmm… now the wheels are turning! Thank you, again!
Audra
http://www.oneloudlemon.blogspot.com
sevimel says
Deeba,loved your blog! If you make the cake let me know I’d love to see your spin on it! Thanks!
Deeba PAB says
Absolutely intriguing. Must try making this one day!
sevimel says
Juls, I don’t have celiac’s but I do have gluten issues that seem to come and go so I’m always looking for new things to try without spending a fortune on the specialty mixes and flours. This was inexpensive and delicious! I’m going to try it with the orange next time and see how it comes out–I think this base recipe could lend itself to all kinds of flavors, even chocolate! Let me know how it comes out if you try it! Thanks for the comment!
Juls says
I also wanted to try a cake recipe with chickpeas or beans in it. I have a friend that I do a lot of cooking for that’s coeliac soa dapting bean/chickpea recipes for breads/cakes seems like a good way to give some texture and moistness to the food! This does look lovely and you seem to have enjoyed it a lot! I’m definitely bookmarking this.
Wendy says
you can also consider making your own chickpea flour. Also easy to do. Good luck.