You may have noticed tahini showing up on the ingredient list for recipes near the end of 2018. Maybe you noticed it among several ingredients in a creamy dressing, or noticed it was used as an ingredient in your new favorite dinner recipe, or maybe (just maybe) you noticed it had become nearly impossible to find a “healthier” dessert recipe that didn’t incorporate tahini as the main ingredient. With now being over 3 months into the year, it’s safe to say that tahini is no longer a subtle ingredient across the dessert scene in 2019. Incredibly trendy and a health nut’s prized possession, tahini has taken the dessert scene by storm, leaving everyone wondering what prompted this swift claim to fame.
For those who haven’t entered the magical world of tahini-everything, let’s catch you up to date and fill you in with everything you need to know. Tahini is made from ground, toasted sesame seeds, and is described as having a savory and slightly nutty flavor. Similar to your favorite natural peanut butter, tahini should be rich, creamy, and able to drip easily from a spoon. If you are looking for the highest quality tahini, search for a jar sourced from Ethiopia, as the country is claimed to grow the best sesame seeds. And if you are feeling ambitious, give it a whirl at making your own tahini.
Being similar to peanut butter in function, tahini has made for an excellent addition to dessert recipes. Tahini offers a high fat content which allows for desserts to retain their moistness and to satisfy our cravings. In healthy dessert recipes, tahini serves to replace excess oils with a nutritionally dense “good fat” full of vitamins B and E, magnesium, calcium, and iron. Additionally, tahini is a great substitute ingredient to use in place of nut butters for those dealing with allergies.
Now that you have been entirely convinced of the magic of tahini and have scribbled it down on your grocery list, we’ll leave you with five of the best healthier dessert recipes that will put that fresh jar of tahini to good use.
Recipes
Self-proclaimed #TahiniQueenie, Monique from Ambitious Kitchen has made tahini the star of countless dessert recipes on her blog. These Grain Free Tahini Brownies are incredibly decadent and are claimed to be the best brownies that she has ever eaten.
Introducing the cookie that has blown up the foodie world on Instagram for the past six months. These Life Changing Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookies from Nicole of @kalejunkie are the only cookies you’ll ever want to make.
Drinkable liquid gold? Sarah from Broma Bakery calls the Tahini Hot Chocolate recipe from her blog just that.
One of the OG tahini lovers, Molly from the blog, my name is yeh, ups the cinnamon roll game with a tahini cream frosting. If you are ever questioning what tahini can’t do, Molly is sure to prove you wrong.
Erin from Erin Lives Whole has us memorized with her take on Tahini Freezer Fudge. She combines chocolate with tahini to create a dynamic duo that plays with our tastebuds. Deceptively simple to make, this fudge makes even an unseasoned baker look like a professional.