Tahini Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies. These are not words I thought I would willingly say together in a sentence.
If you’ve seen the post for my quick hummus recipe, you know how generally indifferent I am (or was) about tahini. Fast forward several months later to a random jar of it that ended up in our kitchen cabinet and things have changed around here! I didn’t want it to go to waste so I’ve been trying to be more creative in how to use it. This is where these delectable Tahini Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies come into the picture.
I guess with the changing seasons, lower temperatures and dimly lit days my taste buds have been craving richer, deeper flavours. You know — to help soothe the soul. I’ve been true to milk chocolate for as long as I can remember, but that’s changing, too. ‘Tis the season to be cosy, and a blooming field of cosiness sure lies beyond that with which I’ve let myself become accustomed to.
Because in the end, I really do want to swim in a delicately salted hunk of cookie that breaks with a slight crisp and later melts into chewy puddles of dark chocolate; with sprinklings of cranberries and crunchy walnuts, keeping me afloat in this dream.
However, not all began as this fairy tale of velvety goodness for these Tahini Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies. I did about 3 test runs before landing on this last one. All of the versions tasted great (if I may say so myself) but the first few were missing that thing that would eventually make this recipe sing. The first one needed more butter — more butter is always the answer, duh. I also used both spelt and whole wheat flour. Though great to eat, this batch looked a little sad and I wanted something that would invite the eyes in and lead your mouth directly to that first bite. The second was better; it looked great visually because white all-purpose flour replaced the whole wheat flour, helping to soften things out a smidgen. But in adding more butter to this one I didn’t think to double the tahini, so it was missing a bit of that nuttiness. In lacking that richness from the extra tahini it was more crunchy than my ideal mix of crispy and chewy. My third test run was with the same dough from the second batch. I thought that by baking it at a lower temperature it may help alleviate some of that overall crunchiness. It just made the cookies spread to almost double the size; these are already huge to begin with, so that was a no-no.
So, in the end, we have the recipe below. Like I said, these are big cookies as I used a 1/4 cup ice cream scoop to size these babies. You can definitely proportion them to a smaller size — just remember to adjust the baking time accordingly. I’ll leave a few extra notes for these Tahini Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies below the recipe, but honestly these are super basic in their method yet yield a luscious result. I would highly encourage you to serve them warmed up for the ultimate chocolate-y effect!
If you do try them out (you won’t regret it, even if you’re a stickler for classic chocolate chip!) or any other recipe/DIY from my site, please tag me on Instagram @onceuponatimeinvancouver or use the hashtag #wondrousmoments! This would make me so happy, and I’ll be sure to share your beautiful creations on my IG Stories. Happy baking and melting into oodles of chocolate-y goodness!
Tahini Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Makes about 14-16 large cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup of smooth tahini
- 1 cup of packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup of white sugar
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 TSP vanilla
- 1 cup of spelt flour
- 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour
- 1 TSP baking powder
- 1/2 TSP baking soda
- 1/4 TSP salt
- 1 heaping cup of dark chocolate (roughly chopped), plus more for placing on top of cookies
- 3/4 cup of walnuts, roughly chopped
- 1/3 cup of unsweetened dried cranberries
- Sesame seeds, for sprinkling (optional)
- Flaked sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)
Directions:
- In a large bowl or stand mixer on medium-speed, cream the butter, tahini, and both sugars until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
- Add the egg and vanilla to tahini mixture. Mix until well incorporated, about 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to the tahini mixture and mix on medium-low speed until several streaks of flour still remain in the dough, just about 10-15 seconds. Do not over-mix.
- Add the chocolate chunks, walnuts and cranberries. Mix just until everything is incorporated.
- Because the dough will be soft, place the bowl in the fridge until it firms up enough to be easily scoop-able, about 30 minutes.
- Using a 1/4 cup scoop, create equal-sized balls and place on a parchment-lined tray. You will have about 16 cookies. Once all of the dough is scooped, add more chocolate chunks (if you wish) to the centre tops of the cookies and press them into the dough gently. Place the tray in the fridge to chill further, at least 1 hour or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Dough should be baked straight from the fridge, so keep any dough you’re not using right away in the fridge.
- Place cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Put only enough so that there are 3-4 inches of space between each cookie as they are large and will spread (I had to bake in batches because only 4 cookies fit on my 15 inch-long baking sheet).
- Bake for about 14-16 minutes (turning the tray halfway through if your oven cooks unevenly), until they begin to turn golden around the edges. They will be crispy around the outside and chewy in the middle, yum! Remember to adjust the baking time if you used a smaller scoop to make your cookies.
- Once you remove the tray from the oven, (using oven mitts) drop it carefully from a height on a solid and flat surface. You may need to do this 2-3 times. This will achieve a bakery-style crinkled effect.
- Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Repeat the baking steps with remaining batches, or simply freeze dough in a tighly-sealed container and bake when needed.
- Sprinkle tops of cookies with sesame seeds and flakes of salt for a fun (and optional, but game-changing) garnish! Enjoy warm!
Notes:
- Stir your tahini to properly mix the oil and solid portions. It’s also preferable to use a new(ish) jar because this will ensure a better consistency, helping the tahini to act as a proper fat in this recipe.
- You can use your preference of chocolate, whether that be milk chocolate, or chocolate chips instead of chunks. If using milk chocolate, you can decrease the quantity of sugar slightly to balance the sweetness. I preferred chopping a chocolate bar instead of using chocolate chips because the chips are meant to hold their shape, and therefore melt less; the puddles of chocolate are one of the highlights of this recipe, but chocolate is chocolate. Do what floats your boat.
- Placing a bit more chocolate on the centre tops of the cookies once they have been scooped really helps create those visible signature puddles of chocolate when baked. Just add 2-3 more chunks per cookie to the tops and press down gently, making sure they still retain their original shape.
- Do make sure to chill your dough for at least 1 hour once it’s been scooped. This will really help in creating that crispy but chewy texture as it lets the butter harden, and later slowly melt while in the oven. This will prevent the cookies from spreading right when they hit the heat.
- Lastly, if making the cookies using a large scoop, only place a few on the baking tray (depending on its size) to prevent them from forming a giant blob as they spread.