Tag Archives: tahini

Chocolate Tahini Bars

chocolate tahini bars
chocolate tahini bars

Bar cookies are often rustic looking and are best to grab for a quick dessert. But these bars are different. They are elegant, delicious, and decadent, making them a perfect party treat. They also have no refined sweeteners so they are a healthier option. But if you don’t tell your guests, I won’t.

The original recipe seemed like it had so many ingredients, but it comes together easily. Choosing the tahini option reduced sweetness; they are plenty sweet so you won’t miss it and the layers complement each other nicely. I used Soom’s chocolate tahini to emphasize the chocolate flavors. You can use all regular tahini instead, or try regular tahini with a bit of cocoa powder or chocolate syrup stirred in.

Another bonus to this delicacy is that it requires no baking, meaning you don’t have to heat up the house on a hot summer day. So, the next time you want to make a simple but impressive dessert (maybe for upcoming Father’s Day?), give these a try.

Chocolate Tahini Bars adapted from Triple Layer Tahini Bars

Bottom Layer
200 grams walnuts, chopped
150 grams pitted Medjool dates
2 tablespoons almond butter
pinch sea salt
Middle Layer
50 grams Soom Dark Chocolate Tahini
65 grams sesame tahini
1 tablespoon almond butter
3 tablespoons refined coconut oil, melted
pinch sea salt
75 grams pitted Medjool dates
Top Layer
5 tablespoons refined coconut oil, melted
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
4 teaspoons maple syrup

cocoa nibs, optional

Line an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with parchment, leaving overhang on two opposite sides for removing the bars. Set aside.

Place the bottom layer ingredients (walnuts, dates, almond butter, and salt) into a food processor fitted with the S blade. Pulse until the mixture holds together. Press the mixture into the lined baking pan, spreading it evenly and pushing it down with your hand. Put the filled pan into the freezer while you make the next layer.

Wipe out the food processor with a paper towel; no need to clean it yet.

Take the tahinis, almond butter, and coconut oil of the middle layer and place them in a small saucepan. Heat on low until just blended. Place the mixture in the food processor with the salt and dates of the middle layer. Process until smooth. Remove the baking pan from the freezer and spread this middle layer over the base layer. Return the pan to the freezer for one hour.

Place the top layer ingredients (coconut oil, cocoa powder, and maple syrup) in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir to combine until just melted. Remove the baking pan from the freezer and spread this top layer over the middle layer once it has set. Sprinkle with optional cocoa nibs. Place the pan in the fridge for two hours until the top layer has set.

Take the pan from the fridge and remove the bars by grasping the overhanging parchment flaps. Place bars with parchment cradle onto a cutting board and cut into bars. Serve cool or cold.

Until next time, happy non-baking!

Healthier Chocolate Cookies

healthier chocolate cookies
healthier chocolate cookies

When I mention that the desserts I bake are vegan, the usual response is, “That’s healthy, right?” Well, I hate to burst a person’s bubble, but I can’t say that food made with sugar and flour promotes physical health. I would admit that it boosts my mental health but, generally speaking, desserts aren’t overly healthy. So, I dug into my recipe collection and found a cookie that was healthier and wasn’t just a blast of carbs. Now, wait a minute; don’t be alarmed. That’s not a bad thing. You see, I added chocolate to it.

The recipe I worked with was already vegan, and high altitude doesn’t have a big affect on cookies. I did sub in gluten-free flour to lighten the texture a bit, and added non-dairy milk to account for dryness at altitude. The other changes I made were for flavor. I used chocolate tahini (made by Soom Foods – it is as amazing as it sounds) and added chipotle powder to give the chocolate a kick. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if the dense dough balls were going to be more than hockey pucks. But the cookies came out light and chewy at the same time. It was the winning combination of a healthier cookie with a tempting flavor and satisfying texture. Maybe vegan desserts can be healthy.

Healthier Chocolate Cookies adapted from Maple Tahini Cookies

1/2 cup + 1/3 cup gluten free flour
1/2 cup fine almond flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp chipotle powder
1/2 cup Soom Foods Chocolate Sweet Tahini
1/3 cup + 1 TBS maple syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp non-dairy milk

Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, sift together the gluten free flour, almond flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and chipotle powder. In a large bowl, whisk together the chocolate tahini, maple syrup, vanilla, and milk. Add the flour mixture into the tahini mixture and stir with a spatula until a dough forms. It should be moist and rollable, but not sticky. Roll walnut-sized balls of dough in the palm of your hand then place them 2-inches apart on a baking sheet. Lightly press down on the cookies to flatten.

Bake for 12-13 minutes. The cookies may seem soft but they will firm up upon cooling. Place the baking sheet on a wire rack for the cookies to cool and get firm enough to remove. Makes 20 cookies.

Until next time, happy baking!

Apricot Nut Bars

Apricot Nut Bars

Apricot Nut Bars

Today’s recipe had quite the evolution. The initial idea was to make a no-bake bar, but then my hubby said the creation needed more chocolate. My mind wandered to chocolate bark as a topping, with a nod to Mediterranean flavors. What started out as a recipe with few ingredients morphed into a multi-step concoction. When I explained what I was about to construct, hubby’s response was that it didn’t sound simple. I said no-bake, I didn’t say simple …

The experiment began with a raw bar recipe. The changes I made were just from my imagination. I reduced the amount of tahini because the original crust was too oily. I added more chocolate to keep hubby happy. The additional ingredients borrowed loosely from baklava while adding a cardamom syrup for depth. The result was a delicious burst of flavor.

Apricot Nut Bars based on No-Bake Cashew Tahini Bars

1.5 cups raw cashews
1 cup soft, pitted dates, tightly packed
1/3 cup tahini
4.5 ounces vegan dark chocolate, divided
1/2 cup dried apricots, roughly chopped
1/2 cup roasted pistachios, roughly chopped
2 TBS Cardamom Syrup (recipe to follow)

Line an 8” square baking pan with 2 overlapping strips of parchment paper and set aside. Add cashews to a food processor and pulse until mostly broken down. Add dates and tahini and mix until it just comes together. With your hands, press the dough into the prepared pan and smooth it out.

In a double boiler, melt chocolate until smooth and creamy. Use a spatula to spread most of the chocolate over the bars. Sprinkle the apricots over the bars, then add the pistachios on top. Drizzle first the cardamom syrup and then the remaining chocolate over the top of the bars. Place in freezer for an hour. Lift out of the pan by the parchment sling, place on a cutting board, and cut into squares.

cardamom seeds for syrup

cardamom seeds for the syrup

Cardamom Syrup adapted from Spiced Simple Syrup
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cardamom seeds
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring continuously until sugar dissolves. Lower the heat to a simmer and stir in cardamom seeds. Allow to simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. Store leftovers in a covered jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. You will have extra — I use mine to sweeten tea.

Happy non-baking!

Spiced Tahini Cookies

spiced tahini cookiesRose is my all-time favorite scent. Walking in to a rose garden puts a relaxed smile on my face that lasts for hours. When I saw a cookie recipe that included (gasp!) rosewater, I knew I had to try it. The recipe also included cardamom, another fave of mine, so it had to be good.

The cookies were already vegan and didn’t need adaptation for high altitude, so I had that covered. I did add ginger to give them some zing, and decorated them with sesame seeds for looks and texture. They have a low-glycemic sugar, healthy fats, and lots of calcium making them good for you. So go ahead, have another.

Spiced Tahini Cookies adapted from Cardamom Rose Tahini Cookies
1/4 cup + 2 TBS coconut sugar
1/4 cup + 2 TBS almond flour
1.25 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/4 cup + 2 TBS tahini
1 TBS + 1/2 tsp rosewater
1 TBS sesame seeds, for garnish
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place coconut sugar, almond flour, cardamom powder, and ginger powder in a bowl and whisk. Add tahini and rosewater and mix well. Form batter into walnut-sized balls. Place cookie balls on prepared baking sheet. Gently press down until they form thick discs. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 10-11 minutes, or until slightly brown. Wait until cooled to remove from the baking sheet. Makes 16-18 cookies.

Until next time, happy baking!

Surprisingly Good Tahini Oat Cookies

Tahini Oat CookiesThis recipe comes from dubious beginnings – I was just looking for a way to use up extra oats I had ground. I was skeptical about these cookies because although I have been trying to bake healthier, these seemed too healthy. What emerged from my oven was a pleasant surprise. They taste a bit like peanut butter cookies but are more complex and with a hint of caramel. Even my chocoholic husband went back for more.

The cookies were already vegan, so the high altitude changes I made were adding flour and reducing baking powder. I also added milk for a moisture boost. They can easily be made nut-free depending on the type of non-dairy milk chosen.

Surprisingly Good Tahini Oat Cookies adapted from the Whole Foods blog
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup + 1 TBS whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
2 tsp arrowroot
1 tsp vanilla extract
5 TBS sesame seeds
1/2 tsp non-dairy milk
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Grind oats in a blender until coarsely ground. Place in a bowl and whisk together with flour, baking powder and salt. Combine maple syrup, tahini, sesame oil, arrowroot and vanilla in a blender and blend until smooth. Stir tahini mixture into oat mixture.
Spread sesame seeds onto a large plate. Form small balls of dough with your hands and roll the balls on the plate to coat with seeds. Tap to release excess seeds. Arrange dough on prepared baking sheets 2” apart. Bake until cookies are golden brown on bottom and puffed, 13-14 minutes. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Makes 24 cookies.

Until next time, happy baking!