As I mixed up the batch I was a little bit skeptical – no eggs, no sugar, no leavening, and only half a cup of flour? Not your typical cookie. But, as I pulled them from the oven and bit into one I was pleasantly surprised – they were some of the best cookies I’ve made in recent months. Crunchy, dense, and both sweet and savory they make a great snack, and are particularly good dipped in a little bit of orange tea. As an added bonus, they’re fairly healthy – although they are not low calorie (160 per cookie), the bulk of the calories in them are coming from the sesame seeds, which provide a massive dose of several minerals, as well as calcium, healthy protein, and fiber. I think these may become my more wholesome and natural alternative to power bars for the near future. Lastly, they can easily be made vegan with the simple substitution of olive oil for the melted butter, which is even recommended by the author. They’re easy to whip up, so pick up some sesame seeds in bulk (try wholefoods) and give them a try!
Sesame-Cranberry Cookies
Adapted from Peter Berley’s Modern Vegetarian Kitchen . Makes 9 cookies.
- 1/2 c. sesame seeds
- 1/2 c. flour
- 1/2 c. oats
- 1/2 c. dried cranberries, coarsely chopped
- pinch of salt
- 3 TBS maple syrup
- 3 TBS melted butter (could substitute olive oil for vegan cookies)
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Soak cranberries in hot water in a bowl for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, pulse flour, oats, and salt together in a food processor until oats are finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and mix in sesame seeds. In a separate bowl, whisk together melted butter, maple syrup, and vanilla until combined, then pour wet ingredients into dry and whisk together.
- Drain most of the water from the cranberries and add the cranberries to the dough. Mix together until it forms a thick dough. If the dough is too dry to press together, add a small amount of the cranberry soaking liquid to the dough to moisten it. Form the dough into small balls and then flatten into 2 inch disks and place on baking sheet. Bake for 15-17 minutes, rotating halfway through for even cooking, until cookies are just beginning to turn golden brown. Great straight out of the oven and several days later!
Dining and Cooking