Rye Tahini Shortbread Cookies

Photo by Michael Piazza / Styled by Catrine Kelty

The slight bitter edge of both rye flour and tahini mean they pair wonderfully, especially in this savory-sweet shortbread cookie. This recipe can be made with either whole (dark) or sifted (medium or light) rye, though the coarser texture of dark rye is slightly preferable here. Nigella seeds—also known as kalonji—are available in Middle Eastern or Indian markets, or online; if unavailable, they may be left out. It can be hard to tell when brown cookies like these are fully cooked; the best way to be sure is to flip one over and check to see if it’s golden brown on the underside. As always, using a kitchen scale to measure the weights of your ingredients will lead to a more precise bake, but I have included volume measures here as well.

Makes 40 cookies

170g (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes and chilled
170g (packed ¾ cup) brown sugar
120g (½ cup) tahini, stirred well
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
282g (2½ cups) dark rye flour
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon flaked or kosher salt, divided
40g (¼ cup) hulled sesame seeds
2 teaspoons nigella seeds (optional)

Process butter and sugar in a food processor until uniform mass forms and no large pieces of butter are visible, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add tahini, egg and vanilla and process until mixture is smooth and paste-like, about 10 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add flour and sea salt and process until dough forms and no dry flour remains, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

Transfer dough to bowl and knead gently with spatula until dough is uniform and smooth, about 10 seconds. Halve dough. Place each half on an 18- by 12-inch sheet of parchment and shape into a rough log about 9 inches in length. Fold parchment over log and roll dough 1½ inches in diameter, pressing bench knife or ruler along edge of parchment at each turn to narrow log (see below for detailed instructions). Refrigerate logs until firm, about 2 hours (or freeze for 30 minutes). (Dough may be wrapped well and held in the fridge for up to 48 hours at this stage, if desired.)

Set oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 300°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 log of dough at a time, unroll parchment and re-roll log under palms to round. Sprinkle exterior of log and surrounding parchment with ½ teaspoon flaked (or kosher) salt and roll dough back and forth to embed salt into dough. Place sesame seeds and nigella (if using) in an even layer on the baking sheet and roll log over seeds to coat completely. Using a sharp serrated or paring knife, cut log into ⅜-inch-thick rounds (you should get 20 to 24 rounds per log). Space the cookies at least ½ inch apart on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with second log.

Bake until cookies are lightly browned around top edges and golden brown on undersides, 34 to 40 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let cookies cool completely on sheets, about 20 minutes. (Cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.)

This recipe appeared in the Winter 2022 issue as part of a larger story on rye flour cookies.