Vegan Gluten-free Tahini Chocolate Cookies
With a generous amount of cacao nibs and cocoa powder and only minimal sweeteners, these cookies let the true flavor of cacao shine through. Each crunchy bite releases bursts of deep, aromatic chocolate from the cacao nibs, followed by the smooth richness of 70% dark chocolate that balances the texture and keeps you coming back for more. These are genuine chocolate cookies made for true chocolate lovers. Give them a try!
Equipment
- Baking sheet (46cm (18") x 33cm (13") x 3.5cm (1.4"))
Ingredients
Cacao Tahini Cookie dough
- 100 g (1/3 cup) Tahini (White sesame paste)
- 20 g (2 1/2 tbsp) Powdered sugar
- 40 g (2 tbsp) Maple syrup
- 5 g (1 tsp) Vanilla paste
- 0.5 g (a pinch) Salt
- 20 g (3 tbsp) Brown rice flour
- 15 g (3 tbsp) Cocoa powder
- 30 g (1/4 cup) Cacao nibs
Topping
- 100 g (3.5 oz) 70% Dark chocolate
- Freeze-dried strawberries
NOTE: For best results, measure ingredients with a scale using grams. Cup measurements (US customary units) are provided for your convenience but are not always accurate.
Instructions
Cacao Tahini Cookie dough
- Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
- Line a baking sheet with Silpain or parchment paper
- Sift powdered sugar to remove clumps.
- Combine the tahini, sifted powdered sugar, maple syrup, vanilla paste, and salt together.
- Sift together brown rice flour and cocoa powder.
- Add cacao nibs.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until uniform.
- If the dough is too wet and sticky, add a little bit of brown rice flour.
- If the dough is too dry and doesn't come together, add a bit of soy milk or any plant-based milk.
- Roll the dough between 2 pieces of plastic wrap until the thickness is 3 mm.
- Cut out the cookie dough with a cookie cutter and place them on a prepared baking sheet.
- Bake them for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies become crispy and easy to break by hand.
- Let them cool completely.
Topping
- Melt the chocolate either on a double boiler or in a microwave.
- If you use a microwave, check every 10 seconds and stir well. Be careful not to heat it too much and burn the chocolate.
- Make a paper piping bag.
- Cut a square of parchment paper into two triangles.
- Take one corner and roll it toward the center, bringing the point around to meet the top tip.
- Repeat with the other corner, wrapping it around the outside.
- Adjust the corners until the bottom tip is very sharp and closed, so nothing leaks out.
- Secure the cone by folding the top edge down.
- Dip the cookies into the melted chocolate, remove excess chocolate, and sprinkle small pieces of freeze-dried strawberries.
- Fill the paper piping bag with melted chocolate.
- Pipe the melted chocolate on top of the cookies and sprinkle freeze-dried strawberries.
- Although the chocolate coating adds richness and depth to the cookies, you can also omit it and enjoy the cookies as light snacks or breakfast cookies.
Notes
- Depending on which region you live in, it may be difficult to find tahini. You can substitute tahini with white sesame paste. Tahini and white sesame paste are both made from sesame seeds, but they differ in processing, which affects their flavor and texture. Tahini is typically made from hulled sesame seeds that are lightly roasted or even raw, resulting in a mild, smooth, and pourable paste commonly used in Middle Eastern dishes like hummus. In contrast, white sesame paste, often used in East Asian cuisines, is usually made from unhulled seeds that are more deeply roasted, giving it a thicker consistency and a stronger and nuttier flavor.
- You can also substitute tahini with any type of nut butter, such as almond butter. Make sure to use pure nut butter without any additives such as salt, sugar, or oil.
- These cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a few weeks.