Tahini cookies

After a decade in Berlin, we're moving. And there are lots of sesame seeds to use up.

Photo: Ruth Barry

I moved to Berlin in November 2014, having only known the city in the summer. In the summer, every bar and restaurant with a sliver of sidewalk or green squeezes in as many tables as it can, parks fill with the smell of grilling, and the light stretches late into the night, urging long conversations, one more glass of wine, dancing until the wee hours. The heat builds and blisters into thunderstorms. It’s easy to fall in love with Berlin in the summer.

When I landed at Schönefeld, it was raining heavily, and it continued to rain for days. I hadn’t imagined a city could be more gray than London in the winter. But a new start makes the damp and cold bearable. I got a puppy. Even learning German was exciting.

Berlin winter, cute puppy.

A lot happened in ten years. After a romantic start, the layers of the city began to peel back, and at its core, I found Berlin to be hard. I’ve lost track of every hostility, though being shoulder-checked by a stranger in the street when I was nine months pregnant was unforgettable. Now, even the summer can’t help me see past the gray. And so, at the beginning of November, almost a decade to the day after I arrived, we’re moving to California. I’m not sure I’ll ever set foot in Berlin again. Let’s call it irreconcilable differences.

With the move looming, I’m in clear-out mode. A rummage through the kitchen cupboards turned up a substantial supply of sesame seeds, and it seemed like the best way to use them up was to make tahini cookies. I like my cookies crisp on the outside and chewy in the middle. But if you prefer a crisp cookie, this recipe will work for you too. Simply flatten the balls of dough into discs, then bake them a couple of minutes longer. Otherwise, for a chewy version, roll the dough into balls after dipping them in the sesame seeds, and plonk them on the baking sheet. Follow your heart when it comes to choosing white or black sesame seeds. I like to use a mixture of both.

Photo: Ruth Barry

Tahini cookies

Makes about 20 cookies

• 150 grams unsalted butter at room temperature

• 180 grams fine white sugar

• 50 grams light brown sugar

• 1 egg

• 100 grams tahini

• 1 teaspoon fine salt

• 200 grams all-purpose flour

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon cinnamon (preferably Ceylon)

• 70 grams sesame seeds for coating

Equipment:

• Electric hand mixer

• Cookie scoop (optional)

In a large mixing bowl, use an electric hand mixer on a low speed to cream together the butter, white sugar, light brown sugar, egg, tahini, and salt.

Sift in the flour, baking soda, and cinnamon, and mix until fully combined. Scoop 35 grams of the mixture, then coat in sesame seeds and roll into balls. Place the balls on a baking tray lined with baking paper, leaving plenty of space between each once. I use a 30 x 35 centimeter baking tray and bake a maximum of nine cookies per tray.

Preheat your oven to 180°C (with fan). Bake in the center of the oven for 10–12 minutes, turning the tray once to ensure they bake evenly.

Remove from the oven, and give the tray a bash on the counter to flatten the cookies a little. Leave them on the tray to set for at least five minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Enjoy them while they’re still warm or, when they’re cool, transfer to an airtight container, where they’ll keep for two to three days.