Categories: Desserts & Sweets

Tahini in cookies? You bet!

If you or someone you know is allergic to peanuts or peanut butter, yet craves a really good cookie, I have a perfect – super-easy – recipe… Tahini cookies. That’s right. Tahini (sesame seed paste), the same ingredient used in making hummus, is the key ingredient in this delicious, crispy, somewhat chewy cookie. It goes great with a cup of coffee (Armenian, of course) or tea! 

By the way, you could leave out the flour altogether for a gluten-free cookie, but the texture will be  ever-so-delicate.

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Tahini Cookies

This recipe uses tahini (sesame seed paste) to create a delicious cookie with a delicate, crisp, somewhat chewy texture.
Course Dessert
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 32 minutes
Servings 2 dozen

Ingredients

  • 1 cup tahini very well-stirred
  • ¾ to 1 cup granulated sugar For a sweeter cookie, add 1 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • tsp. cinnamon or to taste
  • dash salt
  • ¼- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour See note below for a flourless cookie.

Garnish

  • toasted sesame seeds optional

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Mix together the tahini, sugar, and egg in a mixing bowl. Sift-in the baking soda, cinnamon, flour and salt. Blend well.
  • Roll dough into walnut-sized balls with slightly dampened hands. (This helps to prevent sticking.) Place each ball on an ungreased baking sheet about 1 ½ inches apart. 
  • Using the tines of a fork, press down to slightly flatten each cookie and create a criss-cross design. 
  • Sprinkle tops with toasted sesame seeds, if desired.
  • Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes. Cookie bottoms should be golden and centers slightly soft.
  • Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Carefully move cookies onto wire racks and allow to cool completely.

Notes

Cookie Baking Tip:
 Roll the balls of dough the same size to ensure even baking and uniformly-sized cookies.
NOTE: Flour can be omitted in this recipe for a gluten-free option, but the texture will be extemely delicate.

View Comments

  • Yes! These are delish! And if you look in the dessert section of Alice Antreassian's cookbook (the vegetarian one), you will even find a recipe for cake with tahini! I am firmly convinced that tahini is the Armenian version of bacon (as in, "everything tastes better with bacon/tahini").

    Thank you thank you thank you for posting this!

  • Glad you like the cookie recipe, Ara.
    In reference to the cake... are you referring to the 'Sesame Seed Lemon Pound Cake'? That sounds really good. Maybe I'll give it a try when it's not so darn hot outside!

  • Thank you for your AMAZING website! I want to cook everything here. I am currently a college student living away from home & these recipes are invaluable to me :) THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

    Ani

  • Awesome. It is my first time to hear about this tahini cookies. I can't wait to try this one and share with my best friend who is allergic to peanuts.

  • Adding a tiny bit of cinnamon to the mix goes very well with this, and brings to mind 'tahinov hatz', which is a truly wonderful pastry my grandma used to make from time to time.

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