Protein Cookie Dough Cups (Vegan & Gluten-free)

My current cookie dough obsession continues! I recently posted these cookie dough bars and they seemed to go down a treat with you guys, so I decided to go back to the kitchen and whip up another cookie dough creation for you. This time with added protein 😀 

I try to make sure I consume enough protein throughout the day, which can sometimes be a struggle when trying to avoid meat and animal products. I ALWAYS add protein powder to my breakfast, whether that be in my smoothies, nicecream, overnight oats, porridge or chia pudding. I get the most awful blood sugar crashes between breakfast and lunch and need protein to help keep my blood sugar levels steady. Vegan breakfasts can so easily be high in carbs with very little protein and fat, potentially giving you a sugar boost, followed by a crash, which is exactly what I find.

So protein powder is a staple in my house, I always make sure I have a tub/bag of some sort of plant-based protein to add to breakfast and snacks if I feel I’m struggling to hit my daily protein requirement. I also love using flavoured protein powder in treats. It’s a good way to replace some of the flour and sugar you need to use making it a bit healthier and less sugary. 

The lovely people at Free Soul sent me their vegan vanilla protein to use in a recipe creation for them, and I wanted to stick to the easy, few ingredients recipe roll I’ve been on. You all seem to prefer easy recipes with few ingredients and few steps, so that’s what I aim to give you! I understand that everyone is busy with work, study, family and life ingeneral, and I want to show that eating healthier doesn’t have to be difficult, expensive or too time consuming. 

For example, these protein cookie dough cups only call for 6 ingredients, most of which you probably already have in your cupboard. No fancy ingredients or superfoods required here. Just some plain oats (or gluten-free oats if necessary), protein powder, nut butter, coconut oil and chocolate. 

These protein cookie dough cups are super handy to have in the fridge for when you need a quick snack post workout or fancy something sweet after a meal, but want to stay away from things like cakes and chocolate bars. 

What I love about the Free Soul vegan protein powder is that it’s made of amazing ingredients like pea protein and white hemp protein, flaxseed powder and is sweetened with xylitol and stevia. It also contains added bonuses like B vitamins, iron (42% of the recommended daily intake in 1 serving!), calcium and magnesium. I know my calcium and iron intake can sometimes be lower than I would like, so including Free Soul protein powder in my diet is such a great way to give my intake boost for those minerals. The vegan blend is designed to support female hormonal balance, bone density, energy, and mood.

Protein Cookie Dough Cups

Makes – 8-10 cups

Ingredients

50g oat flour – plain oats ground into a flour in the food processor. Use gluten-free oats if necessary.
50g Free Soul vegan vanilla protein powder
5 tbsp almond butter
4 tbsp melted coconut oil
50g dairy-free chocolate chips
250g dark chocolate – I used 85% cocoa chocolate

Method 

Start off by making the protein cookie dough layer – mix the protein powder and oat flour in a bowl, then add in the almond butter and coconut oil. Mix to combine, then fold in the chocolate chips.
Melt the chocolate – break up the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. You can either melt it in the microwave on high, stirring every few seconds to make sure it doesn’t burn. Alternatively you can use a double boiler method by placing the bowl of chocolate over a pan of simmering water (making sure the base of the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Stir until completely melted, then carefully remove from the heat.
Add a couple of teaspoons of the melted chocolate onto the base of a silicon cupcake mould or cupcake cases. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
Distribute the cookie dough between the cups, making sure there’s enough space at the top for another layer of chocolate. Top with more melted chocolate, then place in the fridge to set. This should take about an hour.
Enjoy! 

Thanks to Free Soul for sponsoring this post. Commissioned posts is how I’m able to continue working on the blog and creating recipes and recipe videos for you. As always, all opinions are my own.