I reserved some of the Salted Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookie dough to bake knowing I would be going to Monday morning coffee with the moms. Who can resist freshly baked cookies? Having scooped out all my dough on the first day, I had cookies ready to bake in the fridge. I came home from the gym (New Year’s Resolution number 1), turned on the oven, plopped the little doughboys on a sheet and popped them in the oven. Easy peasy-freshly baked cookies in a jiffy. I had lined the cookie sheet with a Silpat and whoa, what a difference. This latest batch was much more reminiscent of a Mrs. Field’s cholate chip cookie (who remembers those, lol), a bit denser, definitely softer and lacking that lightness and crispy edge from the first day.
The moral of the story: If you like crisp and light, bake on parchment and after 12 hours of chilling. If you like a classic chewy cookie, bake on Silpat and chill the dough for longer. The next time I bake these I will test my theory again.
Cookie on the left baked after 12 hours of chilling time and on parchment. The cookie on the right after 48 hours in the fridge and baked on a Silpat mat.
But do bake these cookies, they are absolutely scrumptious!
Holiday Cookie List: Number EIGHT. Very LATE. But worth the WAIT!
My friend Mel mentioned a recipe she had tried recently from the NYTimes for Salted Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookies. She could not stop raving about them, light, crispy, buttery, hint of sesame, they sounded scrumptious. Always on the lookout for riffs on classic cookies, I immediately made a mental note to put the recipe on my Cookie Bucket List.
I checked outNYTcooking and noticed the recipe contained only granulated sugar which may account for its crisp texture. I like a crispy and chewy chocolate chip cookie so I googled chocolate chip tahini cookies. Judging by the number of recipes that popped up in my search, this cookie is a winner. The grand dame for this cookie recipe appears to be from Danielle Oron’s Modern Israeli Cooking: 100 New Recipes for Traditional Classics. I settled on Davie Lebovitz’s version which calls for both granulated and brown sugars. Perhaps the moisture in the brown sugar would add a bit of chewiness to the cookie.
Sherlock Wanna Be
My aspiration to be an ATK food investigator. I baked the first sheet of cookies on parchment paper and the second on Silpat.
The difference was small but noticeable. The cookies baked on parchment were just a bit thinner and had a crackly top. The Silpat cookies did not spread as much and the top did not have the crackly appearance. Both were delicious and texturally quite similar. Of note about a minute before the cookies were done I rapped the pan on the rack which causes the cookies to deflate giving them the signature crackly top. The parchment-baked ones appeared to have more cracks. A trick I learned from SaraBeth’s Kitchen baking book.
Cookies on the left were baked on parchment, the cookies on the right on Silpat
It is super important to chill the dough. The dough is very soft and light and benefits from the time in the fridge. I used a 2 tablespoon scoop for a bit smaller cookie and baked the cookies for approximately 12 minutes. As soon as the cookies are removed from the oven, sprinkle them with a mix of fleur de sel or flaky salt and black and white sesame seeds. Cool on a rack.
BAKE THESE COOKIES NOW
They are delicious. Crispy edges, a little bit of chewiness in the center, buttery, chocolatey (there’s my fake word again) with a subtle hint of sesame. So, so, good. The Tahini seems to lighten the cookie. If you want a crisper cookie I would use granulated sugar only. A definite keeper.
A delicious twist to chocolate chip cookies by adding tahini
Course cookies
Cuisine American
Keyword Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookie, cookies
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 15 minutesminutes
Ingredients
The Stuff to be Creamed First
8tablespoons115g, 4 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2cup120ml tahini, well stirred
1/2cup100g granulated sugar
1/2cup90g packed light brown sugar (For a crisper cookie omit brown sugar and use 200gm granulated sugar or 1 cup)
The Wet Stuff
1large eggat room temperature
1large egg yolk
1teaspoonvanilla extract
The Dry Stuff
1cupplus 2 tablespoons AP FlourThe150g
3/4teaspoonbaking soda
1teaspoonkosherDiamond Crystal or sea salt (DL uses a french sea salt which is similar to a kosher salt, it is not like our sea salt, if using table salt use 1/2 teaspoon, if using Morton's kosher salt use 3/4 teaspoon)
The Bling
2cups280g bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chunks (I used TJ's chocolate chunks)
flaky sea saltsuch as Maldon or fleur de sel
black and white sesame seeds
Instructions
1. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and kosher or sea salt, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, tahini, granulated sugar and brown sugar on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, until fluffy.
3. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. Add the egg, the yolk, and vanilla, and continue to mix for another minute, stopping the mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl during mixing
4. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just combined, then add the chocolate chips. Do not overmix.
5. Cover the dough and refrigerate overnight.
6. Preheat the oven to 325ºF (160ºC). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
7. Form the cookies into rounds using an ice cream scoop. For small cookies make each 1 1/2-inch (3.5cm), for larger cookies, 2-inches (5cm) diameter. Place them evenly spaced on the baking sheets, 3-inches (8cm) apart.
8. Bake one sheet at a time, so you can keep an eye on them, use themiddle rack of the oven.
9. Bake the cookies, turning the baking sheet midway during baking, until the cookies are golden brown around the edges but still pale in the center. For small cookies, about 12 minutes, for larger cookies, about 14 to 15 minutes.
10. Remove from the oven, sprinkle cookies with a bit of flaky sea salt and sesame seeds.
11. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet.
Storage: These cookies will keep for two or three days at room temperature, but are definitely better the same day they're baked. The unbaked dough can be refrigerated for up to one week, and frozen for up to two months.
It isn’t intentional and may be a blogosphere faux pax for all I know. Like posting multiple pics on Instagram on a single day which my kids tell me I shouldn’t do. But after posting Sally’s Sesame Cookies I stumbled across another recipe for sesame seed cookies on of all places the Huffington Post. I did a bit of sleuthing as I am prone to do and found that the recipe was created by Dorie Greenspan and first published in Food & Wine magazine. That made this recipe a no brainer. After all Cookies + Dorie Greenspan is a slam dunk as far as I am concerned. So here it is a second sesame seed cookie!
This is perfect for cocktail hour. These cookies are salty with just a touch of sweetness and would compliment any happy hour libation. They have the fine crumb of shortbread and ooze buttery goodness. Totally my kind of cookie plus I love the black and white sesame seeds. To top it off they are quick and easy to make. See? SLAM DUNK.
I chose a duet to go along with this cookie since it has 2 kinds of sesame seeds and drinks are mentioned in the song. Its a classic with about a billion renditions out there. I like the version by a favorite artist of mine James Taylor. Here it is, JT (the original one) with Natalie Cole, Baby It’s Cold Outside.
A food processor makes quick work of the dough (snap) which is then chilled for couple of hours (time to cyber-shop). I originally thought I would cut the dough into little bars but they look better round. I used a 1.5 inch cutter which made them the perfect one bite cookie. Don’t be alarmed by the amount of salt, it is suppose to be salty but is not overly so. The recipe in Huffington Post calls for adding water to help the dough clump but Food & Wine does not. I was able to get the dough to clump without using water. I poured the dough into a ziplock bag and smooshed the dough just until it came together. Don’t overmix! Roll the dough to 1/4 inch thickness using the sides of the bag to create a nice straight edge. It may not fill the entire zip-lock bag but at least you will have 3 even sides. Chill dough until firm. If the dough gets too soft as you are cutting out the cookies, place in fridge or freezer for a couple of minutes to firm it up. You can find almond meal in most markets now a days thanks to the gluten free movement. Two pound bags are available at Costco and are quite reasonable. Black sesame seeds can be found at most Asian markets and probably at Whole Foods.
In a food processor, pulse the flour, almond meal, sugar and salt until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture forms large clumps.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead gently until it comes together. Divide the dough in half and press each half into a disk. Roll out each disk between 2 sheets of wax paper to 1/4 inch thick. Slide the wax paper–covered disks onto a baking sheet and freeze for at least 1 hour, until firm.
Preheat the oven to 350° and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with one piece of dough at a time, peel off the top sheet of wax paper. Using a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, stamp out the cookies as close together as possible. Arrange the cookies 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Lightly brush the cookies with the egg and sprinkle with the black and white sesame seeds.
Bake the sesame cookies for 17 to 20 minutes, until they are lightly browned; shift the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 3 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
MAKE AHEAD
The rolled-out frozen cookie dough can be wrapped in plastic and kept frozen for up to 2 weeks; thaw the dough slightly before using. The baked cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
NOTES
Almond meal is available at health food stores and at many grocery stores. To make your own, process 4 1/2 ounces blanched almonds until finely ground.
SUGGESTED PAIRING
Green-appley California sparkling wine: NV Scharffenberger Brut
