Rich and chewy, these gluten free Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies have become a household favorite!
With subtle sesame flavor studded with dark chocolate chips, these gluten free cookies make the perfect treat!
Quick Look: Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies
⏲️Ready In: 55 Minutes (including 30 minute rest time)
🍽Servings: 12
🥗Nutrition: 348 Calories
🥘Main Ingredients: Tahini, Gluten free flour, Butter, Egg, Brown sugar
📋Dietary Notes: Gluten free, Grain free, Nut free
⭐Why You'll Love It: These rich, chocolatey gluten free cookies are chewy and unique!
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These gluten free cookies are phenomenal. Typically, I'm a little more humble about my baking prowess, but tahini chocolate chip cookies may seriously take the cake for my favorite cookie of all time, right next to White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies (Gluten Free).
Of course, I've got even more gluten free cookie recipes to try, including nut free Gluten Free Sunbutter Chocolate Chip Cookies or Gluten Free Halvah (Tahini) Cookies!
The sesame flavor from tahini is a big win in these cookies. I love incorporating tahini in all sorts of ways, from sweet like these cookies to savory in Wild Rice & Arugula Salad with Maple Tahini Vinaigrette!
Key Ingredients
Tahini: Also known as sesame seed paste. You can use store bought - my go-to brand is Joyva tahini - or make your own using the same instructions for homemade sunflower seed butter. Make sure you grab tahini without added ingredients.
Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar keeps the flavor deep and rich in these gluten free cookies! You can use coconut sugar for a paleo option.
Gluten Free Flour: This recipe originally called for cassava flour, and you can still go that route if you'd like. However, I've updated the recipe to use my go-to Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Flour and loved the results!
Chocolate Chips: Enjoy life chocolate chips are my go-to allergy-friendly chocolate chips, and dark chocoalte chips are the way to go!
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you've made cookies before, these steps will be very familiar to you!
Step 1: Combine gluten free flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Step 2: Add softened butter, tahini, and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer.
Step 3: Cream butter, brown sugar, and tahini until fully combined, fluffy, and lightened in color.
Step 4: Add the egg and beat until combined. Add the flour mixture and continue continue beating until no dry flour remains.
Step 5: Stir in the chocolate chips. Then set the dough aside to rest for 30 minutes.
Step 6: Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form 12 balls of dough with your hands and space 2-3 inches apart on the baking sheet.
Step 7: Bake for 15 minutes. If desired, sprinkle with flaky sea salt as soon as they come out of the oven. Let the cookies cool completely before eating.
Variations and Substitutions
- To make these cookies dairy free, use vegetable shortening in place of butter.
- Cassava flour makes a suitable replacement for Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour, and makes these cookies grain free!
- If brown sugar doesn't fit your needs, feel free to substitute coconut sugar. The cookies may end up a little more crispy/crumbly instead of chewy.
Top Tips from Chelsea
Cream butter and brown sugar properly. If your cookies don't get the spread you're after, this could be the culprit. Creaming butter and sugar until it's lighter in color and fluffy (3-5 minutes) is essential for the best cookies!
Rest the dough. "Resting" the dough before baking the cookies does wonders for gluten free baking - since there's no gluten in the flour, the fats and moisture aren't absorbed as readily. Giving the dough a little rest period helps!
Bake a test cookie. To make sure you get enough spread (but not too much), bake a single test cookie before the whole batch. If the cookies spread too much, you can refrigerate the dough or add a little more gluten free flour. If they don't spread enough, increase the oven tempearture to 350 degrees F or stir in a couple tablespoons tahini.
Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookie FAQs
Besides the nutty, toasted sesame flavor, tahini helps to make a soft and chewy cookie with buttery texture. While this recipe still uses butter, tahini provides fats to help these cookies spread and crinkle!
Yes, you can certainly give it a try! I've used sunflower seed butter for cookies like Gluten Free Sunbutter Chocolate Chip Cookies, and I imagine other nut butters would work similarly. However, I can't guarantee results.
My go-to gluten free flour blend is Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Flour - it's widely available and I am typically happy with the results. You are welcome to use a different flour blend, but they're all a bit different so I can't speak to how these cookies will turn out.
I have used cassava flour for these cookies with good results!
More recipes with tahini
Did you try these gluten free tahini chocolate chip cookies? I'd love to hear what you think! Please leave a comment and rating or tag me on Instagram - I appreciate your feedback.
📖 Recipe
Gluten Free Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Rest Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: ~1 dozen cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Rich and chewy, these gluten free Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies have become a household favorite! You can use whatever gluten free flour blend you'd like, but my go-to is Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour.
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons butter, softened
- ½ cup tahini
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup gluten free flour blend (I use Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour or cassava flour)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup Enjoy Life dark chocolate chips
- Flaky sea salt, for garnish, if desired
Instructions
- Combine dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, combine the cassava flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Cream butter, tahini, and brown sugar: Add the butter, tahini, and brown sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat at medium-high speed for 3-5 minutes, until lightened in color and fluffy.
- Mix cookie dough: Add the egg and vanilla extract and continue beating until smooth. Stir in the gluten free flour mixture until no dry flour remains. Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula.
- Rest dough and prep oven: (Optional, but recommended) Set the dough aside for 30 minutes to rest. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Bake cookies: Use a spoon to portion the cookie dough out into 12 dough balls. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and space the dough balls 3 inches apart on the baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. If desired, sprinkle with flaky sea salt as soon as the cookies come out of the oven. Let cool completely before eating.
Notes
- Make sure the tahini you use is just one ingredient: sesame seeds. Any added ingredients could throw off the cookies.
- Let the dough rest before baking. Gluten free flours need a little more time to soak up the moisture and fats in the dough, and a little rest time makes a big difference!
- Bake a test cookie before the entire batch. If the cookie spreads too much, add a little more gluten free flour to the dough or refrigerate the dough before baking. If they don't spread enough, increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees F or add a little more tahini.
Helen says
These cookies are really good! My daughters and I love them. I've made them a number of times now. I normally double the recipe (and freeze most of the cookies). The only changes I've made are: when I double the recipe, I use 3 whole eggs (rather than 2 eggs and 2 yolks), I use chopped 90% Lindt chocolate and halve the salt (my celtic sea salt is very strong). When I bake them for less time, they come out chewy/soft rather than crunchy. (I've tried using Sunbutter instead of the tahini, but the taste and texture is much better with the tahini.) Thanks Chelsea for such a great recipe!!
Chelsea says
I'm glad you enjoy the recipe, Helen! I'm going to have to try out your adjustments - sometimes a soft & chewy cookie are more in line with what I'm craving!