These cookies are perfect. They are nutty from tahini and whole-wheat flour, chock full of chocolate and crisp-soft, or if you prefer, soft-crisp. Either way, you will fall in love.
The dough is almost as good as the baked cookies, so if you’re the raw egg-type, make sure to generously sample the dough. These are plan-ahead cookies as you need to refrigerate the dough for at least 12 hours to hydrate the flour and develop the flavors. I hope you have some dough left when it comes time to bake!
I’ve fallen hard for tahini. It can take a little getting used to because aside from sesame-topped buns, it’s not a familiar flavor to Americans. My favorite and most used brand is Soom*. It’s a high-quality pure roasted sesame paste and is manufactured in Israel with Ethiopia-grown sesame seeds (the best in the world!). It is so rich and nutty, and adds complexity and deep flavor to anything it’s in. And it’s a multi-tasker! While we usually see it in savory foods (looking at you, hummus), it’s equally adaptable for use in a lot of baked goods. Sesame is not common in traditional American baking save for a few recipes, but is a frequent flavor in Middle Eastern baking and savory cooking. Let’s all welcome it into our homes by baking a batch of these cookies!
My perfect version of chocolate chip cookies are soft in the middle, crisp around the edges with just barely enough dough to hold the chocolate. I love a crisp cookie, I love a soft cookie, but there’s a time and place for those. My everyday cookie has both! (Don’t you wish you had a cookie every day?)
Salted Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies
Description
The perfect chocolate chip cookie with a slight twist! Nutty from both the tahini paste and whole-wheat flour, chock full of chocolate, with a soft center and crisp edges!
Ingredients
- 1 stick (4 ounces) butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup tahini, well stirred
- 1/2 cup (99 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (101 grams) lightly packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (90 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (57 grams) whole-wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups (about 250 grams/9 ounces) chocolate chips or chunks, combination of or all bittersweet/semisweet/milk chocolate
- Flaky salt, such as fleur de sel or Maldon
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, tahini, granulated and brown sugars over medium speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and continue to mix over medium speed for an additional 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl before adding the flour.
- Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Add the flour mixture to the sugar and mix on low speed until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips/chunks by hand with a rubber spatula. Cover and refrigerate at least 12 hours before baking.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325°. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper. Using an ice cream scoop, portion the dough onto the prepared sheet pans at least 3 inches apart. You should have enough dough to form 15 to 18 balls. Sprinkle the tops lightly with sea salt. Bake for 14 to 17 minutes, until the edges just begin to turn golden brown, but the middles are still light-colored and soft. Sprinkle a little more salt on top to finish. Allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Notes
Inspiration: Salted Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies on nytimes.com
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