I’m that kid that always snuck bites of cookie dough when making cookies, and when it came time to actually eat the baked cookies, I wasn’t really hungry anymore. Anyone else??

If that sounds like you, you’ll enjoy this treat too. A vegan, gluten-free, paleo-friendly cookie dough that you can snack on as a treat, or turn into these cookie dough cups. They’re like a Reese’s cup, but tastier, for a few good reason. There’s a cashew-based cookie dough filling that’s caramel-y and not too sweet and dotted with mini chocolate chips enveloped in a rich, dark chocolate coating, all topped off with a generous sprinkle of flaky salt for the perfect sweet-salty balance. Yup, these are a goodie.

The other great part about these is they don’t require any special equipment and you only need a few ingredients. Although you could substitute in a different nut butter here, in my opinion the cashew butter is essential in replicating the cookie-dough flavour and is worth seeking out. You can find cashew butter at your local Bulk Barn, or grocery store. I used this brand that I found at my local bulk store.

I always use 70% cocoa chocolate bars for baking, but you can go for something sweeter if you’d like too. So far, I’ve only tested these with almond flour, but I think a finely-ground oat flour would absolutely work here too.

My other recommendation would be to arrange the cupcake liners in a muffin tin before filling them with the melted chocolate and cookie dough, which will help them set up more evenly and also makes it easier to transfer the cups to the fridge or freezer to chill. You can also forgo the cups altogether, and just roll the dough into balls and coat with melted chocolate instead.

Anyway you flip it, these are undeniably decadent and delicious.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cups

makes 6 cookie dough cups

1/4 cup of cashew butter

1/4 cup almond flour

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 tbsp mini chocolate chips

1 100g 70% chocolate bar, chopped

flaky salt, such as Maldon, for topping

1. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the cashew butter maple syrup and vanilla to combine. Add the almond flour and salt to the bowl and stir until well combined and no dry spots remain. Fold in the chocolate chips.

2. Roll the cookie dough into 5-6 tablespoon-sized balls, place on a plate and freeze until firm, about 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, add 2/3 of chopped chocolate to a small bowl and microwave for 1 minute. Remove from microwave and stir. Some of the chocolate may still be in pieces at first, but will melt as you stir it. Add in the remaining 1/3 of chocolate, return to the microwave and cook in 10-second bursts, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted and smooth ( it usually only needs 10-20 seconds to achieve this).

4. Line a muffin tin with 5-6 cupcake liners. Spoon about 2 teaspoons of melted chocolate into each cup. Flatten the chilled cookie dough balls into a flat disc and place on top of the chocolate in the cupcake liners. Top each cookie dough disc with enough melted chocolate to cover it, about 1 tablespoon. Tap the muffin tin gently on the counter to help distribute the chocolate evenly. Sprinkle each cup with some flaky salt and place the cups in the muffin tin in the fridge until the chocolate is set, about 10 minutes. Store the ups in the fridge or freezer for up to 2 weeks.

*Note: Feel free to double this recipe to make more cups, or simply roll the extra into balls and save for a sweet treat.