Skip the guilt this holiday season and indulge in these naturally sweetened, vegan, gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. Prep Time: 25 min Cook Time: 16 min Makes about 20 cookies Ingredients 1 cup dates (soaked in warm water for 10 minutes) 1 medium ripe banana, mashed 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter 1 cup almond meal 1 cup gluten-free rolled oats 1/4 cup dairy-free chocolate chips Directions Once the dates have soaked, drain them and add to a food processor or high-speed blender. Pulse to break into smaller pieces. Add banana and peanut butter and pulse until smooth. Add almond meal and oats until ingredients form a sticky dough. Scrape the mixture into a mixing bowl and gently mix in chocolate chips. Chill dough for 10 minutes. While dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350°. Place tablespoon-size dollops of dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for about 16 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for several minutes before serving. Tip: Allergic to peanuts? Use almond butter or cashew butter instead. Or try using sunflower seed butter.