These incredible Tahini Cookies are some of my favorite cookies because they are so chewy with a crunchy crust and crispy edges. They’re not too sweet, which I love, and will fulfill any cookie craving you may be having. So often, we associate tahini with hummus, salad dressings, and Middle Eastern dishes, but I think you’ll be shocked at how wonderfully these flavors work together. The tahini and honey complement each other perfectly and are the stars of the show. Although coconut and raisin cookies will forever be my favorite, I go back to them, whether for holiday baking or if I want to make a treat for my girls. These cookies come together so fast and are perfect for a last-minute craving fix.
Best cookies ever!!! Delicious!
Table of Contents
Why You Will Love These Tahini Cookies:
- These delicious cookies are ready in less than 30 minutes.
- With just a few simple ingredients, you can mix this in a bowl by hand with minimal kitchen cleanup.
- These are the perfect healthy cookies that your kids will love!
- Make a double batch and freeze these sweet treats for months.
- You will love this delicious cookie recipe and the fact that it is dairy-free, gluten-free, grain-free, Paleo, and Specific Carbohydrate Diet legal.
Ingredients You Need For These Tahini Cookies:
- Tahini: Tahini is one of my favorite “nut” butters, made from sesame seeds. It is sweet, savory, nutty flavor, and is a delicious seed butter.
- Honey: Honey compliments the tahini wonderfully, but you can substitute maple syrup or coconut sugar to make it vegan. If you are Keto or Whole30, you can use zero-sugar honey!
- Vanilla extract: For this recipe, use homemade or pure vanilla extract. I do not recommend imitation vanilla.
- Almond Flour: I love to use Bob’s Red Mill almond flour, but any superfine almond flour (aka almond meal) will work. You cannot substitute coconut flour or all-purpose for almond flour. I wish it worked, but it doesn’t.
- Salt: I love to use sea salt for baking, but you can use kosher salt too.
- Baking Soda: The leavening agent used in these cookies to help them spread beautifully.
- Egg: If you have an egg allergy, you can use a flax egg here. Proceed with caution though, as the results may not be the same, but I have confidence that those with an egg allergy are experts at modifying this key ingredient.
- White sesame seeds: White sesame seeds are the most common and most used sesame seeds on breads and pastries. It adds a delicious crunch on top! Toast them beforehand to give a delicious added nutty flavor.
How To Make These Tahini Cookies:
- Preheat the oven and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In the large bowl of an electric mixer or with a hand mixer, combine the wet ingredients and blend until smooth on a low speed. Stir in the dry ingredients and mix until fully combined on medium speed.
- Pour the sesame seeds onto a plate or a small bowl. With a cookie scoop, scoop out tablespoon-sized amounts of batter and roll it into balls. Roll the dough balls in the sesame seeds so that they are fully coated on all sides. Place the 20-24 sesame-coated balls onto the baking tray and press down firmly to flatten. Leave approximately 1 1/2 to 2 inches between each cookie, as they will expand when baked.
- Bake for 12 to 14 minutes until the cookies are golden brown.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for approximately 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooking rack.
Cookie Tip
If you find the cookie dough too soft to roll, you can cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate them for about 30 minutes to firm up the dough.
Ways To Modify These Tahini Cookies:
With these recipes, you can use white sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, all-purpose flour, or whole wheat flour if your diet does not require a gluten-free version. Here are a few ideas to take it to a whole new level:
- Chocolate Tahini Cookies: This delightful twist combines tahini with cocoa, cacao powder, or chocolate chips for a rich, chocolaty flavor.
- You could also sprinkle flaky salt on top as an added salty flavor.
- Tahini Oatmeal Cookies: These cookies mix tahini with oats, nuts, and dried fruits, creating a hearty and nutritious treat.
- Tahini Snickerdoodles: A variation on the classic snickerdoodle, using tahini for a nutty flavor while maintaining the traditional cinnamon-sugar coating.
- Tahini Shortbread Cookies: These buttery cookies use tahini as healthy fats, resulting in a unique texture and flavor.
- Tahini and Date Cookies: Tahini and dates combine for natural sweetness, making these cookies chewy and delicious.
Dietary Modifications
- Low Sugar: swap the honey for monk fruit syrup for a low sugar cookie
- Sesame Allergy: swap the tahini for cashew butter or sunflower seed butter
Common Questions
Yes, this is the perfect tahini cookie to freeze when you don’t want to eat an entire batch in one sitting. Allow the cookies to come to room temperature, then store them in an airtight container or a freezer-safe bag for up to three months for the next time you have a cookie craving.
There are several types of sesame seeds, and they all have their unique characteristics:
–White Sesame Seeds are the most common to be used for baking and cooking. They have a mild flavor and are often used as a topping of salads or breads.
–Black sesame seeds: These are slightly more bitter than white seeds. Black sesame seeds have a robust flavor and are often used in Asian cuisines, especially in desserts and sauces.
–Tan sesame seeds: These are hulled white sesame seeds with a light tan color. They have a slightly nuttier flavor than unhulled seeds.
–Golden sesame seeds: Similar to white sesame but slightly darker, these seeds are often used in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking.
Tahini is a creamy paste made from ground sesame seeds that is so unbelievably versatile, creamy and delicious. It is such a great ingredient and is a staple in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines and has a rich, nutty flavor. It is a key ingredient in hummus that adds creaminess and depth. It is often used in salad dressings mixed with lemon juice, garlic, and water. It can also be drizzled over falafel or roasted vegetables, like roasted cauliflower. If you have leftover tahini, I love to drizzle it over Grilled Broccolini, Zaatar Chicken, Butternut Squash, or a Crispy Caesar Salad, to name a few. You can find tahini at your local grocery store in the nut butter aisle or you can find it at your local health food stores.
Hulled seeds have an outer shell that has been removed, resulting in a softer texture and lighter color, while unhulled retain their outer shell, which adds extra fiber and nutrients but can be crunchier and more bitter.
Store the bottle upside down to mix everything well and be sure to give it a good shake before use. Runny tahini is important to ensure you have soft, delicious cookies. If it’s dry or clumpy, it needs to be mixed better or tossed.
Here are a few other cookie recipes that you might enjoy…
- Hazelnut Butter Cookies
- Chai Spiced Cookies
- Coconut & Raisin Cookies
- Dried Cherry & Macadamia Cookies
- Lemon & Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Tahini and Honey Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup white sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the tahini, honey, vanilla and egg and blend until smooth. Stir in the baking soda, salt and almond flour and mix until fully combined.
- Pour the sesame seeds onto a plate. Scoop out tablespoon sized amounts of batter and roll into balls. Roll the balls in the sesame seeds so that they are fully coated on all sides.
- Place the 20-24 sesame coated balls onto the baking sheet and press down firmly to flatten. Leave approximately 1 1/2 to 2 inches between each cookie as they will expand when baked.
- Bake for 12 to 14 minutes until the cookies are golden brown in colour.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for approximately 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried This Recipe?
Leave a comment below and let us know how it was!
These are absolutely delicious! My son’s favorite dessert is halva but since starting SCD he hasn’t been able to have it. These are very reminiscent of that. Do you think using even more tahini would be ok (we love the sesame flavor!)? Or would it not work?
Yes definitely, extra tahini should work! So happy they are a hit with your son!
These are interesting. I made them for my son with lots of allergies. I omitted the egg and used oat flour. They were light and fluffy but the taste was bland.
I’m amazed that they were bland, they should have quite a strong sesame flavour.
These are absolutely amazing. I have a friend who is gluten free and one who is completely dairy free and another one who watches their sugar intake. You nailed it. All three boxes checked off. They were exactly how you described them.
I am attempting to make them with almond butter, almond liquor and almonds. Wish me luck lol
Yea!! I’m so happy to hear they were a hit Michelle! Let me know how they turn out with almond butter!
I added a few medjoul dates (put through the processor). They added an amazing flavor and were super moist.
These cookies are delightful! I substituted regular flour for almond flour as I did not have any. I made no other changes, and I ended up with around 30 cookies. Great recipe! Thank you! ๐
So great to know that the recipe works with regular flour! I’m sure others will find that really useful to know! Thanks for leaving a comment!
Angelina, Did you use the same amount of regular flour that was listed for almond flour? Did you still use a little coconut flour? I made these but only substituted some of the almond flour with regular flour and it didn’t turn out as many cookies, plus they were really sticky and difficult to roll. I’m going to try them again next weekend and am looking for some help.
I had the same issue. Too sticky to roll into balls and it was did not yield 20 barely made 10. Help!
I recommend putting the batter in the freezer for 10 minutes, that will make it much easier to roll them.
Oh thanks for letting us know reg flour worked. ย I wanted to make these for school treats but almonds are prohibitedโฆ. ย Sesame is allowed. ย I also have chickpea flour but that might too strong a flavour profileโฆ.
Just made these. They are yummy!!!! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Awesome! So happy to hear that!
Looks like amazing for sure I’m going to bake them soon but I have a question, can i use coconut sugar instead of the honey? will it change the texture of the cookies?
Swapping coconut sugar for honey will give the cookies a much dryer consistency. Ideally using a liquid sweetener will create the best texture for these.
These are so good! Light and fluffy, a little crunchy on the outside and nice and chewy on the inside. I may add almond oil next time but as an experiment, these are perfectly tasty just as they are. I did have to refrigerate the dough a few times while rolling out the cookies, they were sticking to my hands, not a big deal though. Thanks for a great recipe!
Iโm so happy to hear that you enjoyed them! You could always add a bit more almond flour if you find the dough to be too sticky. Almond oil would be a delicious addition to these cookies, great idea!
These cookies are so wonderful. I’ve been following the SCD diet for 9 months now, and have been missing cookies something fierce. These have a wonderful chewy texture. They are not too sweet, and I love the sesame flavor. I needed to add a bit more almond flour in order to get the dough balls to hold their shape. I’m wondering if they’d be good with some dried fruit–raisins or cherries? I may have to try. Thanks for the great recipe! I’ll definitely be making these again soon.
I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed these! I think dried cherries would be a fantastic addition for a bit of texture. If you are looking for other cookie recipes, these Coconut & Raisin are my personal favourite. Thanks for the kind comment Johanna!
Oh… I can’t wait to try those cookies too for my friends. Yum
Cookies looks amazing….but can someways is it possible to substitute egg with any other ingredient
Thank you! I havenโt tried it but I suspect that you might be able to subsititute the egg with 1 tbsp ground flax meal and 2.5 tbsp water. Let me know if you give it a try!!