Shop
Joyous Health Recipes Food
Joyous Health Wellbeing Well-Being
Joyous Health Beauty Beauty
Joyous Health Family Family
Podcast
Previous Episodes 
ABOUT
Contact
RESOURCES
Podcast
ABOUT
Contact
RESOURCES

Chewy Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookies

This recipe is my most popular cookie recipe! I love it so much that I included it in my latest cookbook The Joyous Cookbook! It's packed with fibre and goodness.
Dec 4, 2015 | Joy McCarthy

Update: This recipe has been so popular that I updated to make it even better and I also included it in my new cookbook The Joyous Cookbook! If you haven't tried them yet - this is the perfect treat to bring to your next party or family get together. 

ADVERTISEMENT

Have you tried tahini before? If not, you've likely had sesame seeds. Well it's the same thing -- essentially paste made from ground, hulled sesame seeds. In fact, you can make it yourself by tossing a cup or two of sesame seeds into a super high power food processor and after a minute or so, tahini!

I love the taste of it. It has a nutty taste similar to peanut butter but much more mild. Most people think of tahini in savoury recipes like hummus or in delicious Lebanese food. I love using tahini that way too, but I also LOVE tahini in recipes that are sweeter. It's great if you need to avoid nuts in your home due to an allergy or if you just want to mix things up a bit! And it's a great source of non-dairy calcium -- your bones will thank you. More on that below...

I like the Nuts To You brand. It's a Canadian company and you can find them in the natural foods section of pretty much every grocery store (in Canada at least) and in health food stores. For my American friends, you can find it on Amazon, but I'm sure there are other delicious brands of tahini.

These cookies reminded me of peanut butter chocolate chip oatmeal cookies but they are egg-free, dairy-free, vegan-friendly and you can make them truly gluten-free with gluten-free oats -- if that's important to you. I just use regular oats.

I adapted this recipe from an older post from 2013 for Ginger Tahini Bites with quite a few modifications. You can find out why oats are so gosh darn good for you in that post too! I used less maple syrup, nixed the ginger and sunflower seeds and added cinnamon and mini-chocolate chips instead. This recipe won't work with regular size chocolate chips because they will be too chunky and fall apart. 

They are chewy and soft straight out of the oven but don't remain super soft once totally cooled. They remain chewy though -- hurray!

Desserts
Rate Recipe • 
 (1)
Sign in or create an account to rate this recipe
Select Stars → 
Ingredients
  • 6 tbsp tahini paste
  • 1/4 tsp of sea salt
  • 1/3 to 1/2 cup real maple syrup*
  • 1-1/2 cups oats (I used Oak Manor "oat flakes")
  • 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Combine all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Stir together until fully combined. Make sure the tahini is evenly spread throughout the cookies.
  3. Grease a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.
  4. Drop 1 tbsp spoonfuls onto baking sheet.
  5. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Let cool slightly then transfer to a cooling rack.

Notes

*I went with 1/3 cup maple syrup because I added the chocolate chips. I would suggest adding 1/3 cup first and giving them a taste test. If they are not sweet enough for you, then use 1/2 cup. I used the ENJOY Life brand of mini chocolate chips because they are dairy-free and gluten-free. I personally find that cow's milk dairy in chocolate bothers me (makes my wrists achey due to inflammation).
They will seem a bit crumbly when you put them on your baking sheet, don't worry they solidify nicely when they are cooked.

By the way, people always ask me where I get my pretty plates from. I find the most inexpensive places are either garage sales or budget-friendly shops like Homesense and Winners. In fact, Homesense always has a shelf or two somewhere in the store of super discounted items. I bought a few plates today and one of them was only three bucks and it's gorgeous! I was due for some new plates because a few of mine have chipped over the years and are no longer photo-worthy.

Before I go, I wanted to share my handy dandy chart with you of non-dairy sources of calcium. Thanks (sarcasm intended) to the lobbying of the dairy industry with our government it's been drilled in our heads that the only source of calcium is dairy products. This is just total bologna!

While dairy is an excellent source of calcium, you can definitely get enough of this important mineral without slurping cow's milk. The key is to eat a variety of foods. If you have a mono-diet of eating the same foods every day and don't eat dairy, you are likely NOT getting enough calcium. A variety of whole foods is the way to go because they you get a variety of other nutrients that help with the absorption of calcium like magnesium, vitamin D and K.

I hope you love this cookie recipe. Be sure to hashtag #JoyousHealth if you make them and post a pretty photo to instagram or twitter because then I will see it! :)

Have a joyous day!

Joy

ps. If you like cookies as much as I do, then here's a link to all my cookie recipes on JH: http://www.joyoushealth.com/?s=cookies&post_type=&filter=#search-container

pps. I was interviewed by CNN (so cool!) on Reasons You Should Learn to Cook.

45 Comments
Khandakar   •   March 30, 2015

Very helpful post. keep it up.

Reply

Jasmine   •   April 3, 2015

Hi Joy! These are great. I love healthy cookies as a morning snack and I LOVE tahini. I made these little cookies with raw tahini and raisins instead of chocolate because I had some at home. They made my kitchen smell amazing!

Reply

Beth johnson   •   April 6, 2015

I have a severe nut allergy and i'm always looking for nut free healthy recipes and this is a great idea!! Thanks so much:) www.westingwellness.com

Reply

Sharon   •   April 8, 2015

I made these for the family on Sunday. They were gone .so good . Everyone loved them.

Reply
Kate McDonald Walker   •   April 8, 2015

Nicky   •   April 13, 2015

I made these last night and they were excellent! The only issue I had was that I found it very difficult to mold into cookies. It was a very sticky batter. Besides that, they were a big hit. Thank you!

Reply
Pamela   •   April 21, 2015

lorraine   •   April 15, 2015

Thanks for this recipe, I just made them and they went down a treat even with my youngest son who is a very fussy eater, thanks Joy

Reply
Kate McDonald Walker   •   April 15, 2015

Susan   •   April 20, 2015

I have to try these! they look so yummy :D

Reply

Pamela   •   April 21, 2015

We LOVED these cookies, tasted great plus they were so easy & quick to make! I used 2 tbsp of almond butter and 4 tbsp of tahini.

Reply

Liz   •   August 27, 2015

Having had delicious black sesame gelato, I love the idea of tahini desserts, but I just wonder - doesn't the tahini taste bitter? Seems like there are a lot of desserts out there with tahini and I always wonder if the creators of the recipes don't experience tahini as bitter, or if they found a specific kind that just isn't as bitter as the rest. I see you recommend a specific brand, and I'm wondering is that brand not bitter, or is tahini just not bitter to you? The black sesame gelato wasn't bitter, but also didn't taste a bit like tahini. More nutty - like a smooth, almost smokey peanut butter... What's your experience?

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   August 27, 2015

Vitamin Manufacturer   •   December 8, 2015

I never knew tahini can be used in baking! This is very interesting! I'm love tahini and hummus, they're very delicious and healthy! I'll ask my wife to make this for me, thank you for sharing this recipe!

Reply

Monique Robinson   •   December 12, 2015

Hello there!! Just thought I should let you know that I just finished making your recipe for Chewy Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookies. WOW, WOW, WOW, are these ever easy AND yummy!!!! Even licking the sticky batter from my fingers, once I was done placing the cookie dough on the baking pan, was so good!!!! 1 cup oats and 1/2 cup coconut flakes is the only thing I changed, and only because I had some coconut to use up. Thought I would try it, and it worked out fine!!! I'll send you a picture in a few minutes. Thank you so much for this super simple, but oh so yummy treat!!! All the best, Monique Robinson

Reply
Kate McDonald Walker   •   December 14, 2015

DE   •   January 8, 2016

Just made these with pumpkin seed butter because my jar of tahini was almost empty. They are so delicious! I will definitely be making again (with either seed butter!).

Reply

Candace Anderson   •   March 13, 2016

Hi Joy! I Made these cookies today and they are absolutely fantastic - so quick and easy with just one bowl and minimal cleanup. I wonder if you've tried making these with other "butters" (almond, cashew, hazelnut)? Cheers, Candace

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   March 13, 2016

Amy   •   July 13, 2016

Hi made these with almond butter, absolutely delicious! Just wondering how long they will keep for? x

Reply
Heather Allen   •   July 14, 2016

Christine   •   October 21, 2016

These are probably my all-time favorite gluten-free cookies. Thanks for the delicious, simple, quick recipe!

Reply

Evelyn   •   May 23, 2017

I've made this recipe three times with similar frustrating results. The batter is so crumbly and difficult to mold into cookies. I always second guess myself, thinking I've missed a wet ingredient, but no. Any tips?

Reply
Rachel Molenda   •   May 23, 2017

Amy   •   March 13, 2018

These are awesome! Super easy to make and already had everything on hand. Next time I think I'll add raisins too :-)

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   March 13, 2018

Amanda   •   April 11, 2018

Hi There I can't have oats but love how simple the recipe is! What can I substitute instead of the oats to get the same consistency in this recipe?! Please let me know

Reply
Rachel Molenda   •   April 12, 2018
Amanda L.   •   April 12, 2018

Amanda L.   •   April 13, 2018

Hi There Thank you for the reply. Are the quinoa flakes a 1:1 substitute for the oats?

Reply
Rachel Molenda   •   July 11, 2018

Moishy   •   July 10, 2018

Do you know the Nutrition facts?

Reply
Rachel Molenda   •   July 11, 2018

Ania P.   •   October 16, 2019

Made these last night. I have to admit the batter was a bit hard to work with, very sticky and hard to shape into cookie form. However, I did manage somehow and with what I could no longer roll, I just threw the crumbs onto the baking sheet. These crumbs made the most amazing granola!!! For next time I will try adding a bit of coconut oil, hopefully that will help a bit with the forming of cookies, although I will be using the unaltered recipe as granola - so simple and quick!

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   October 16, 2019

Mary-Jo Leggo   •   July 25, 2020

Oak Manor oats! So cool. I know the family. My daughter goes to school with the grandson. Oak Manor is in Tavistock, Ontario.

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   July 27, 2020

Nancy M   •   September 13, 2022

This is my favourite cookie recipe - easy to put together and delicious! Sometimes I swap out the cinnamon for ground ginger (suggested by Joy) - both are tasty versions.

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   September 14, 2022

Loretta   •   September 14, 2022

I’m looking to get some calcium in my 7 year old daughters diet so these suggestions are super helpful as she gets growing pains/leg cramps . She doesn’t drink cows milk but almond. I already give her liquid calcium \ magnesium supplement and mini calcium absorber pills and electrolights drops from the Heath food store. But I want her to eat it too in foods. She doesn’t eat greens yet. Raw veggies yes. So I think that will help. She doesn’t like any sauces or dressings, so salad with dressing is not a thing right now so I was just going to give her lettuce with salt and cucumbers as she likes those. Or maybe increasing her steamed broccoli would help. She likes that already. I’m a look ways looking for ideas.

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   September 15, 2022

Norah   •   February 3, 2023

Con I use Bob’s rolled oats in the choc chip tahini oat cookie recipe?

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   February 6, 2023

Mila   •   January 29, 2024

I cannot stop eating these - they are sooo addictive.

Reply
Joy McCarthy   •   January 31, 2024

Post Comment

Welcome to thoughtful, organic beauty

Hello Joyous is an organic, plant-based, sustainable beauty brand here to bring more joy to your day.