It tastes just like whipped chocolate frosting but uses only the best-of-the-best whole-food ingredients that are likely found in your pantry and freezer right now. So, get ready to dip all the ripe, fresh fruits in this rich, decadent chocolatey goodness. You’re going to love this healthy, fruit-sweetened Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus!
Whether you’re nutritarian or just looking for a healthier way to crush those inevitable chocolate cravings, I think you’re going to be so happy to have this recipe in your healthy dessert arsenal.
What is dessert hummus?
It’s a bean-based dessert dip that’s been made popular in the last 5 years.
Like its savory counterpart, dessert hummus starts with a base of cooked beans, typically garbanzo beans or black beans. Then, it’s sweetened with either sugar, maple syrup or other natural or artificial sweeteners.
Finally, it has flavorings added to make it taste like a well-known dessert.
What makes this Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus Special?
- no oil, nuts or dairy
- sweetened only with dates and frozen cherries
- only 106 calories for every just-over-1/4 cup serving
- you can use it as a chocolate frosting/icing for your favorite cakes or muffins
What ingredients do you need?
- no-added-salt garbanzo beans
- pitted medjool dates
- frozen cherries
- coconut water (or regular water)
- cocoa powder
- ground flaxseed
- vanilla extract
Does this Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus taste “bean-y”?
No, because the main flavor add-in for this recipe is cocoa.
Cocoa is a dominant flavor so it covers up any bean taste in this recipe. The vanilla helps to accentuate the chocolate flavor and the cherries bring a light, tart, fruity aftertaste.
Also, we are using garbanzo beans in this recipe and that is a bean with a very neutral flavor to begin with.
If you’re brand new to healthy, fruit-sweetened dessert hummus recipes this is a great place to begin!
How to make this recipe:
It doesn’t get easier than this!
Simply add the ingredients to your high-speed blender bowl as listed in the recipe (that’s an important part!) and blend on high until smooth and creamy (about 40 to 60 seconds).
Make sure the dates go in first followed by the frozen cherries and the coconut (or regular) water. Then, add the garbanzo beans followed by the dry ingredients (cocoa powder and flaxseed), finish off with the vanilla extract.
Use your blender tamper as needed to get the mixture going.
What is the texture of the Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus?
It has a smooth, whipped consistency.
The texture is lighter than a traditional hummus thanks to the cherries but it will thicken up a bit after it’s stored in the refrigerator.
It holds its shape well and is pipe-able for frosting muffins, cakes and cookies. I recommend chilling it in the fridge for at least 4 hours before using it as a frosting and it’s best chilling it overnight.
Storage Recommendations:
This Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus has a great shelf life in your fridge!
It lasts for 10 to 12 days when stored in a glass Mason jar or food storage container with snaplock lid. Remember to condense down your storage container as you eat through the batch. To be honest I’ve gotten up to 14 days with this hummus but I’d recommend taking a look at my Fridge Love book when storing hummus recipes for longer than 12 days.
How does this dessert hummus taste?
The predominate flavor is chocolate.
As I said earlier, cocoa is a dominating flavor. The recipe calls for 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder so the main flavor is going to be chocolate. If you served this dip most guests would think it was a chocolate hummus. But the cherry flavor does come through a bit at the end and can be enhanced by what you eat with it.
I like to use coconut water instead of regular water or plant milks because it helps to bring that cherry flavor through.
What are the best fruits to eat with this Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus?
- strawberries
- cherries
- blackberries
- sliced apples
- pineapple
My personal favorite accompaniment for this hummus are fresh strawberries. The strawberries enhance the subtle cherry flavor and allows it to come through the cocoa a bit stronger. My second-favorite is fresh cherries because (hello!) this dip already has cherries in it.
What are other ways you can enjoy this recipe?
A delicious chocolate dip is never in need of friends!
I like to meal-prep this dip for the week and eat 1/4 cup with fresh berries as a simple and satisfying dessert.
I will also eat it with a half Ezekiel English muffin topped with fresh sliced berries and a sprinkling of hemp, flax or chia seeds (see my Nutritarian Bread Primer for information on eating bread if you’re following Dr. Fuhrman’s plan).
Finally, I created this healthy rice cake celebration “cake” using this Chocolate Cherry Hummus as the cake frosting!
How much dessert hummus can you have on the nutritarian plan?
If you’re following the Aggressive Weight Loss Plan stick to the recommended 1/4 cup serving along with some fresh fruit for dipping.
One serving is 4.18 Tablespoons of hummus (or just over 1/4 cup, ~67 grams). You will get .78 dates and .49 ounces of seeds in one serving of this dessert hummus.
Dr. Furhman recommends no more than 2 dates used per dessert serving and a total of 2 ounces of nuts/seeds consumed daily. You will still have allotment remaining in both categories!
If you’ve reached your ideal BMI (under 23) you can enjoy this dip more liberally.
If you want more delicious cherry deserts…
Check out my premium cookbook Nutritarian Celebrations where I share this Cherry Milkshake Smoothie and Soft-Batch Chocolate Cherry Cookies!
You’ll also find 22 more delicious desserts that are nutritarian, vegan, gluten-free, oil-free and fruit-sweetened!
Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus (no nuts, fruit-sweetened)
Sweetened only with dates and frozen cherries, this easy, healthy, vegan, oil-free Chocolate Cherry Dessert Hummus and tastes just like chocolate frosting!
Ingredients
- 7 medjool dates, pitted (~132 grams)
- 3/4 cup frozen cherries (~95 grams, about 16 - 18 cherries)
- 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. unsweetened coconut water or sub with plain water (~158 mL)
- 1 1/2 cups no-salt-added garbanzo beans (~240 grams)
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (~23 grams)
- 2 Tbsp. ground flaxseed (~13 grams)
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract (~5 mL)
Instructions
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Add the ingredients to a high-speed blender bowl in the order listed.
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Blend on high for 40 to 60 seconds, using the tamper to get the mixture going. Blend until smooth and creamy with a light whipped texture that holds its shape.
Recipe Notes
YEILD: Makes 2 1/3 cups (~606 grams), 9 just-over-1/4-cup servings (~67 grams)
STORAGE: Lasts for 10 to 12 days in the refrigerator in a glass Mason jar or glass food storage container with snaplock or tight-fitting lid.
USING AS ICING: If using the hummus as a frosting allow it to chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours and preferably overnight. It can be used in a traditional piping bag for cake decorating.
I’d love to know what you think if you give this recipe a try.
Your comments and recipe ratings motivate me so much to keep creating memorable and delicious recipes while helping the website get rankings in search engines.
One more use: straight from the jar with a spoon because, let’s be real! Love that this is a great dip without the nuts, though Choco Almond Dip is still in my fridge most weeks!
Hi Angie!
I’m SO, SO happy you already gave this recipe a try and it was a hit for you!
Can’t thank you enough for taking the time to leave your recipe review and rating–much appreciated!
All the best,
Kristen