Chocolate and quinoa? Hear me out. The best thing about this recipe is that you don’t have to use the oven if you don’t want to. It seems like I’m always looking for more ideas in summer to make things that don’t require heat. My main staple for quick summer dessert is my mom’s no-bake cookies, which are the absolute best, or scotcharoos which are fantastic but take just a hint more of effort. These chocolate quinoa cookies, on the other hand, are easier than both of those and so quick that I know I’ll be whipping them up often.

Preparing Quinoa

The only thing that this really requires is to prepare your quinoa and there are a couple of different ways to do that.

To start, you can take just raw quinoa right out of the bag and toast it. You’ll just toast it in the oven on about 350 until it opens up. If you haven’t cooked quinoa before the little bubbles expand and open up when cooked. You’ll be able to visibly see this on the pan. Start with about 10 minutes and then monitor from there.

The other option is to bake some already cooked quinoa. The process is essentially the same as raw above. You can put it in the oven to be toasted on 350 until it gets crispy and darker brown. It may look a little burnt but that’s okay, you want it to be crunchy.

The other way, the way I prefer, is to use the Ninja Foodi or your air fryer. I put my Ninja (which has air fryer capabilities) on 350 and toasted for 15 minutes, stirred and toasted for another 15 minutes. This makes it nice and crispy, exactly what we want.

Ingredients for Chocolate Quinoa Cookies

1 1/2 cups quinoa (prepared as explained above)
1 cup chocolate chips
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup peanut butter or peanut butter chips (optional)

Directions

Melt chocolate chips and coconut oil. This can be done on the stovetop or in the microwave. If you are using peanut butter or peanut butter chips, this can all be melted together at the same time.

Once chocolate is melted, stir in the prepared quinoa.

Drop by the spoonful onto wax paper on the counter top.

Allow to cool and enjoy.

Tips & Tricks

The only tip that I have is to store these in the refrigerator, especially if it is warm out. They will get really melty really easy.

In Summary: Chocolate Quinoa Cookies

See what I’m saying- the easiest cookies ever! Plus they are so chocolatey and rich, it’s a true delight. The other thing I like about this recipe is that I’m typically stuck with some extra quinoa. I like to make it for our infant but I make it in the Ninja Foodi which creates a very large batch. Now I can have some leftovers for her but also use up a lot of it by making these cookies so it doesn’t go to waste. As usual, my recipe was born out of a need to prevent something from going to waste. I just love that because it makes it more practical for everyone in the sense that you’ll likely have the ingredients on hand and it helps all of our budgets which are so critical right now.

What’s your favorite way to reduce waste in your home?

Chocolate Quinoa Cookies

The easiest no bake cookies ever!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups quinoa toasted or prepared as shown above
1 cup chocolate chips
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1/3 cup peanut butter or peanut butter chips optional

Instructions

Melt chocolate, coconut oil, and peanut butter (if using) together. This can be done by melting on the stovetop or about a minute in the microwave.
Add prepared quinoa to the melted chocolate.
Drop by the spoonful on a wax paper lined counter or pan.
Allow to cool and enjoy.

Keyword chocolate, Cookie, quinoa

Recipes cookie dessert no bake