tahini chocolate chip cookies

These tahini chocolate chip cookies have soft centers, crispy caramelized edges, big chunks of dark chocolate and a sweet, nutty sesame flavor.

Tahini chocolate chip cookies are one of my favorite twists on a classic cookie. I love peanut butter and chocolate, but tahini feels a little more exciting and modern.

The toasty, savory sesame flavor is subtle yet distinctive. And when that delicate nuttiness is paired with bitter chocolate and sweet brown sugar? You’ve got a little bit of perfection on your hands. 

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tahini chocolate chip cookie ingredients:

how to make tahini chocolate chip cookies:

1. Whisk together dry ingredients and set aside.
2. Cream butter and both sugars until light and fluffy.
3. Mix in tahini and sesame oil.
4. Mix in egg and vanilla.
5. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
6. Mix in chocolate.
7. Scoop into 1 ½ oz balls, roll in sesame seeds and sprinkle with flaky salt.
8. Bake 16 minutes, tapping the pan 3 times (8 minutes, 11 minutes, 14 minutes) to collapse and ripple the dough.
9. If desired, swirl a round cookie cutter around the edges to shape the cookies into a perfect circle.
10. Let cool and enjoy!

what makes these the best tahini cookies?

Mix of sugars: Brown sugar adds a chewy texture, moisture and a sweet butterscotch flavor. Granulated sugar helps the cookies puff up (key for the ripples we talk about below) and get crispy edges. Best of both worlds!

 A lot of vanilla: We call for a full tablespoon of vanilla in this recipe. Tahini is like a flavor suck-- it soaks up and unites so many flavors. I really want the soft, sweet, mellow flavors to shine here. Vanilla is key to a homey and luxurious cookie.

Big on sesame: A tiny splash of toasted sesame oil echoes the nutty tahini flavor.

Dark chocolate feves: You can use any form of dark chocolate you want, but chocolate feves are extra special here. They create gorgeous layers of chocolate within the cookie, so you get a delicious mix of tahini and chocolate in every bite.

Tap 3 times: Pan banging is a great technique for creating ripples in your cookies. We firmly tap the baking sheet against the oven rack to deflate the cookies: this helps make crunchy edges, soft centers, and a really beautiful looking cookie. For this recipe, I prefer to tap only 3 times: after about 8 minutes, 11 minutes and 14 minutes. Too much tapping and the cookies can get too thin. If you choose not to tap at all, the cookies will be about ½-inch thick.

Perfect circles: I LOVE this technique. Use a round cookie cutter, slightly larger than the finished cookie, and swirll it around the edges of a just-baked cookie. Keep gently but quickly swirling until the cookie is perfectly round. It’s optional, of course. But so satisfying.

Sesame seeds + flaky salt: We roll these cookies in a 50:50 mix of white and black sesame seeds, then sprinkle flaky salt on top. Everyone knows to expect sesame, they look super pretty, and a chocolate chip cookie ALWAYS benefits from a pop of crunchy salt.

a few more cookie tips:

• The most annoying part of this whole recipe is mixing up the tahini. Lately, I’ve found that using a butter knife in the jar to slice and smash the tahini against the sides can be a less messy, but effective, way to mix it. You’ll still need a lot of elbow grease and at least a few solid minutes to get it right. If you have a good tahini mixing tip, PLEASE share it with me in the comments!
• The cookies will look underbaked! The edges will be slightly golden, but the centers will almost look doughy. They’re perfect! Shape them quickly (if desired) and let them sit on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes to “set”. The cookies will firm as they cook and be deliciously soft and chewy.
• I love this large cookie dough scoop. It gives about 16 cookies for this recipe (depending on how much dough we eat, of course). Plus, it keeps your hands super clean and gives you even-sized cookies without thinking.

more chocolate chip cookie recipes to try!

salted double dark chocolate cookies

white chocolate chip cookies

coconut chocolate chip cookies

miso chocolate chip cookies

pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

If you love tahini desserts, try our tahini mousse recipe with chocolate ganache.

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