Chunky chocolate tahini cookies

These chunky chocolate tahini cookies are nutty, sweet and utterly delicious. Using brown butter for the base, creamy tahini, Dutch cocoa powder and high quality dark chocolate, the resulting cookies are perfectly chewy and crispy. I’m sure these will quickly become your go-to chocolate cookie to make at home.

When I had envisioned this recipe, initially I pictured a flat, wrinkled cookie. But through rounds of testing and finding the perfect balance of flavour between the brown butter, chocolate and tahini, I came to realise that this cookie was just destined to be more of a chunky one, and there are no complaints here.

I think that’s what wonderful about the whole recipe testing process. From ideation through to research, planning and actually cooking the recipe – including rounds of trial and error – we come to the finished dish, and sometimes it’s different to the hypothetical vision that I had at the start, and for the better!

Testing notes from this recipe

See without the chunk and chewiness of these cookies, I just don’t think the’d be as good. The cookies stay small but dome-like, making them chewy in the best way possible, with a crispy bottom and edges. The inside delivers a combination of chocolate/tahini, with pieces of melty dark chocolate studded throughout. When I tested a thinner version of these, the flavour and texture that the tahini brings just doesn’t sing as much as their chunkier, chewier counterparts. And the chunks of chocolate get a little lost as they spread.

Without wanting to compromise on the balance of flavour, I also tried testing these with bicarbonate of soda instead of baking powder, and while they did spread more, I found they were slightly crispier but less chewy. Were they still good? Yes – but they didn’t beat the ones made with baking powder IMHO.

However, you could use baking powder and bicarb of soda interchangeably here, just noting the difference in result 🙂

Why I think you’ll love these chunky chocolate tahini cookies

• Tahini and chocolate are a match made – the nuttiness of tahini and bittersweet chocolate work perfectly together. If you’re a fan of sesame seeds/nuts in chocolate/halva – these are going to be right up your alley.
• Easy to make – no difficult techniques involved, once the butter is browned all you have to do is mix everything together.
• Can be prepped ahead – the cookie dough can be prepped ahead and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Just bring it out to room temperature while you preheat your oven and bake!
• Crispy and chewy – really the best of both worlds. Wonderfully crispy bottoms and edges, and a seriously chewy centre.

Ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe

• Unsalted butter – browned for another dimension of wonderfully toasted, nutty flavour.
• Tahini – I like to use a hulled tahini for a lighter, creamier vibe.
• Sugar – a combination of soft brown sugar and caster sugar add a caramel undertone and sweetness to offset the tahini and dark chocolate
• Cocoa powder – Dutch-processed cocoa powder adds a double chocolate element to these cookies.
• Eggs – one whole egg, plus on egg yolk are mixed into the dough.
• Vanilla – I like to use a vanilla bean paste here – this one is really good value for money.
• Flour – all purpose/plain flour
• Salt – a pinch of salt to season
• Baking powder – this helps keep that lovely dome shape, and results in a chewy, cakey centre
• Dark chocolate – a minimum of 70% cocoa works really well here, bringing a deeply chocolatey, slightly bitter note to these cookies.

What is tahini?

Tahini is a seed paste made from ground sesame seeds. It comes either as hulled tahini, or unhulled tahini. The difference between the two is that the former has had the outer shell (hull) of the seeds removed before processing into tahini. Hulled tahini is lighter in colour, more mild in taste and often creamier – it’s my preferred tahini to use for cooking and baking.

Unhulled tahini however does have more fibre and nutrients as much of those properties belong to the outer hull, though the flavour is more intense and a little bitter.

How to make these cookies (step by step)

1. Brown the butter

Add the butter to a pan and heat over a low-medium heat, stirring with a whisk to break up the milk solids as you do. Once the butter has melted, becomes frothy and smells deliciously nutty, remove from the heat and pour into a large mixing bowl and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes.

2. Create the wet mix

Add to the browned butter the combination of sugars, Dutch-processed cocoa powder, vanilla, tahini and eggs and mix well to combine, creating your wet mix.

3. Add the dry ingredients

Add the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt and mix with a spatula until just combined. It’s important not to over-mix the cookie dough here! Over-mixed dough can make your cookies dense and chewy, but not in a good way 🙂

4. Combine with the chocolate

Chop the chocolate into rough chunks and use a spatula or wooden spoon to carefully fold them in. I like to leave a little bit of flour still visible during the previous step so when I mix in the chopped chocolate, I’m reducing the risk of over-working the dough.

5. Chill, scoop and bake

Chill the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 175c (155c fan forced/345f). Use an ice cream or cookie scoop to portion the cookies, then bake in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes.

Tips and tricks for making the best chunky chocolate and tahini cookies

• Allow the brown butter to cool before creating the wet mix – this will help the sugar cream properly, and prevent the eggs from scrambling.
• Avoid over-mixing the cookie dough – I know this is a bit of a blanket prescription often found in recipes but there is a good reason for this instruction. Over-working the cookie dough can lead to an overly dense cookie, because when flour and liquid combine, you start working the gluten-proteins, turning your cookie from soft and tender to chewy and rubbery.
• Taste your tahini first – some tahini brands can be a little more salty than others – have a taste before you make the recipe and determine whether you need to add any additional salt to the mix. If your tahini has a nice kick of salt, feel free to omit the listed salt in the recipe.
• Use a good quality dark chocolate – at the moment I absolutely love using this brand. Ideally you want a dark chocolate with a minimum cocoa content of 70%.

Frequently asked questions about these cookies

Do I have to use unsalted butter?

I prefer to use unsalted butter as a standard, but you can absolutely use salted butter if that’s what you have on hand, though I would recommend omitting the salt that’s added later in the recipe.

Do I have to chill the cookie dough?

Chilling the cookie dough helps to prevent extra spreading, but also allows the flour more time to absorb the liquid in the mix, resulting in a chewier centre, with crispy edges. So while you theoretically can skip this step, I wouldn’t recommend it (especially for the sake of 30 minutes!).

Can I make these cookies in advance?

Yes you can – once made the cookie dough will last well for 3 days in the fridge, you can either freeze the dough in one portion, or alternatively portion out your cookies and keep on a baking tray (though this takes up a bit more space!).

Can I freeze the cookie dough before baking?

Yes! You can scoop your dough into portions, flash freeze on a baking tray until solid then transfer to a ziplock bag or airtight container. When it comes to baking them, remove from the freezer and place onto a baking tray while you preheat your oven, then bake as normal.

So there you have it, my chunky chocolate tahini cookies! I really hope you enjoy these, and if you do please consider leaving a comment and rating below – I’d love to hear how you got on!