There’s a part of every day where I need stop everything and take a breath or two. It’s usually in the late afternoon when I crave a cup of coffee or tea and just a little something. These cookies are one of my most favorite. I’m all for ooey-gooey cookies with chocolate and cream fillings, but the simplest cookies make me the happiest. Nothing complicated. Just a little button of crunch with a nuttiness from the sesame and tahini.
I’ve actually been making these cookies for years with all butter…and they are delicious. But, in trying to reduce the amount of saturated fat in my diet, I wanted to try substituting tahini for the butter. In comparing a tablespoon of butter to the same amount of tahini, butter has about twelve grams of fat, seven of them are saturated. Tahini has eight grams of fat and just one gram saturated. I’ve made several batches with different combinations of butter and tahini, but I have to say, omitting the butter completely and using all tahini is wonderful! You get a denser cookie that is so satisfying.
So, if it’s about three o’clock and you need to find me, I’ll be sitting in my favorite chair on the deck with a cup of coffee and one or two of these nuggets of happiness.
Sesame Tahini Cookies
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup tahini
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup sesame seeds
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Prepared baking sheets by lining with parchment.
In a medium bowl, whisk to combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
Cream the tahini and sugar in a large bowl for a minute or two. Add the eggs and vanilla and continue to beat until fluffy.
Add the flour mixture in three parts, mixing on low just until combined with each addition.
Scoop the dough using a one tablespoon cookie scoop and drop the ball of dough into your hand. Roll the dough into a bowl of sesame seeds then place on a baking sheet, spacing the cookies about two inches apart.
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the cookie just becomes a bit golden. Remove from baking sheet and cool completely on a rack.
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Another favorite that goes perfectly with a cup of coffee, Sesame Almond Biscotti Thins…
These are AMAZING! I grew up eating desserts with tahini in them and was so pleased to find this recipe. I did find that mine only needed 8 minutes in the oven at 375, but this could be because I didn’t cover the cookies with sesame seeds. I’ll definitely be baking these regularly! Thank you for sharing!!
I’m thrilled that you enjoyed these, Sarah! Wow…your’s baked quickly! Honestly, between all of the variables, like oven fluctuations, humidity, ingredients, etc., baking times can differ. Thanks for your comment! :)
Hi Caroline. I am a first time visitor to your site, and am looking forward to having my way with your Sesame cookies within a day or two. I have not delved into your site, and am throwing out a query that indeed may have been covered before. Do you have a preferred technique that you use for measuring flour? I’ve been told many times that measuring technique changes the weight, and I do enjoy weighing out ingredients whenever possible. Can’t wait to give your cookies a try! Best wishes, Jeff.
Welcome, Jeff! I’m so glad you found your way here! Ahhh…this is such a great question. So, this recipe was written several years ago and I’ve learned so much since. I bake by weight now and am in the process of rewriting my old baking recipes to include weights. That said, when measuring by volume, I personally like to whisk the flour before gently dipping my measuring cup in and level off with a knife. I hope that helps and hope you enjoy these cookies! :)
Hello Caroline – these look delicious! How many cookies does one batch typically make? They look so good, though, that I am going to double the recipe :-) Instead of vanilla, have you ever tried orange blossom or rose water? Thanks!
Hi Michele! This recipe makes about 45 cookies…give or take. I haven’t tried them with orange blossom or rose water, but they both sound incredible!
These look great! Have you tried them with honey instead of sugar?
Thanks, Gaby! Ooooh…I haven’t, but that sounds great! I will say, honey will probably give you a softer texture. I’d love to hear back if you try it! :)
How much time in advance to eating them can I make them? How long do they stay fresh?
That’s a great question, RJ. These don’t last very long in my house, but typically, crunchy cookies like these will stay fresh for two to three weeks if stored in a sealed container. Thanks for stopping by!
Thank you for posting this recipe! These cookies are fantastic – like halvah, only better! The only change I made was to slightly flatten the cookies by pressing with the bottom of a glass before baking. Also baking took much less time, only about 10 minutes, than you mentioned (350° in a convection oven).
My friends, who had never heard of sesame used in a sweet (sesame seed buns were the extent of their experience), LOVED them.
I’ll make these again and again. In fact, I think they may become “my” signature recipe.
I love that you flattened them, Karen! I’m going to give that a try this week! So happy you and your friends like these…they are one of my favorites. Thanks for sharing your tips and taking the time to comment!
This looks like the perfect cookie when you’re looking for just a little something. I like how simple this is and subbing the tahini for butter makes these a smart indulgence!
Thanks so much Alexis!
what a great idea.. perfect that i found this recipe as i have a newly purchased jar of tahini in my pantry. thanks!
Yay! I hope you get a chance to make these, Thalia! I think you’ll love them!
These look really good! I’ve never had these cookies before, but they look perfect for a hot cup of tea!