Tahini is a creamy, bittersweet paste made from ground sesame seeds. A key ingredient in hummus, tahini is a staple of the Middle Eastern pantry — as well as Milk Street’s. We use it to enrich sauces, enhance roasted meats and vegetables, even add richness to desserts. Here, this pantry powerhouse elevates dishes savory and sweet, a testament to its versatility. A tahini-lemon dressing brings earthy, tangy notes to our roasted broccolini and chickpea salad. We also slather cod fillets in a tahini-herb butter; in the oven, the tahini caramelizes into a deeply savory, nutty coating that beautifully contrasts the mild, delicate fish. And for dessert, tahini is the secret to our sophisticated riff on the classic peanut butter cookie. We use tahini’s subtle bitterness to balance the sweetness, while browned butter plays up the nuttiness.
Roast Cod With Tahini-Herb Butter
Makes 4 servings
A compound butter made with nutty-tasting tahini and fresh herbs lends richness to simple roasted cod fillets. We used 1-inch-thick fillets when developing this recipe, but they can vary in thickness, so assess yours before cooking and adjust the time as needed. If your fillets vary in size, check the thinner ones for doneness before the thicker ones and remove from the oven as they finish.
Make sure to take the butter out of the refrigerator and allow it to soften before beginning this recipe. If the butter is cold, it won’t mix easily with the other ingredients.
4 6-ounce cod fillets, about 1-inch thick, patted dry
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
4 tablespoons (½ stick) salted butter, softened
3 tablespoons tahini
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest, plus lemon wedges, to serve
1⁄8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems
1 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
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Heat the oven to 450 degrees with a rack in the middle position. Brush the fillets on both sides with the oil, then season with salt and pepper. Place the fillets skin side down in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Roast until the center of each fillet reaches 120 degrees or the flesh flakes easily, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the butter, tahini, lemon zest, cayenne, and 2 tablespoons each of the parsley and cilantro. Taste and season with salt and pepper, then set aside.
When the fish is done, leave the fillets in the pan and dollop the butter mixture over them. Tent with foil, then let rest for 5 minutes. Transfer the fillets to a serving platter. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and the remaining herbs. Squeeze 1 lemon wedge over the fillets and serve with the remaining wedges on the side.
Roasted Broccolini and Chickpea Salad With Tahini-Lemon Dressing
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Roasting brings out nutty notes in broccolini (or broccoli) and accentuates the vegetable’s natural sweetness. For this salad, we roast chickpeas alongside the vegetable, which gives the legumes a denser texture and a more concentrated, earthy flavor. To pull all the elements together, we toss in a tahini-lemon dressing that adds a creamy, tangy richness, as well as a garlicky kick.
This dish is hearty enough to be a vegetarian main, and it’s great warm or at room temperature.
1 pound broccolini, stems chopped into ¼-inch pieces, florets cut into 2-inch pieces, or 1 pound broccoli, stems halved and chopped into ¼-inch pieces, florets cut into 2-inch pieces
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2 15½-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
¼ cup tahini
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest, plus 3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons honey
1 medium garlic clove, minced
¼ cup chopped drained roasted red peppers or chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
Toasted sliced almonds or roughly chopped roasted pistachios, to serve
Heat the oven to 425 degrees with the rack in the upper-middle position. In a large bowl, toss together the broccolini, chickpeas, 2 tablespoons oil, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Distribute in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet; reserve the bowl. Roast until the florets are charred and tender-crisp and the chickpeas begin to brown, 20 to 25 minutes; stir once about halfway through.
Meanwhile, in the same bowl, whisk together the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, the tahini, lemon zest and juice, honey, garlic, 1/4 cup water, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper; set aside.
When the broccolini-chickpea mixture is done, immediately add it to the tahini mixture along with the roasted peppers. Toss, then taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with the almonds.
Tahini and Browned Butter Cookies
Makes 18 cookies
Tahini isn’t just for hummus and savory sauces. Here, it gives rich, chewy cookies a nutty flavor and pleasant bitterness that plays off the sweetness of the sugar.
Browned butter is butter that is cooked until the milk solids caramelize, which infuses the fat with a flavor reminiscent of toasted nuts. In these cookies, browned butter accentuates the sesame notes of the tahini.
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Make sure to stir the tahini. The oil separates and rises to the surface on standing, so before use, tahini requires mixing until the paste is creamy and homogeneous.
The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days.
260 grams (2 cups) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon table salt
141 grams (10 tablespoons) salted butter, cut into 8 to 10 pieces
120 grams (½ cup) tahini
299 grams (1½ cups) packed dark brown sugar
54 grams (¼ cup) white sugar
2 large eggs
Heat the oven to 350 degrees with racks in the upper- and lower-middle positions. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with kitchen parchment. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
In a 10-inch skillet set over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Cook, swirling the pan often, until the milk solids at the bottom are golden brown and the butter has a nutty aroma, 1 to 3 minutes. Pour into a large heatproof bowl, being sure to scrape in the browned bits. Whisk in the tahini. Cool, stirring occasionally, until just warm to the touch.
Add both sugars and the eggs, then whisk until homogeneous. Add the flour mixture and stir until no streaks remain.
Scoop the dough into 18 even portions (a generous 2 tablespoons each), placing 9 on each prepared baking sheet, spaced evenly apart. Using the palm of your hand, flatten each portion into a round about ½ inch thick. Bake until the cookies are light golden brown at the edges, 16 to 18 minutes, switching and rotating the baking sheets about halfway through.
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Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes. Using a wide metal spatula, transfer to wire racks and cool completely, about 30 minutes.
VARIATION
Chocolate-Dipped Tahini and Browned Butter Cookies
Once the cookies are fully cooled, in a medium saucepan set over medium heat, bring about 1 inch of water to a bare simmer. Put 170 grams (6 ounces) of chopped, bittersweet chocolate in a heatproof medium bowl and set the bowl on top of the saucepan; be sure the bottom does not touch the water. Stir occasionally until the chocolate is completely melted.
Remove the bowl from the pan. Dip half of the surface of a cookie in the chocolate and return dipped side up to the wire rack. If desired, sprinkle the chocolate-coated area with toasted sesame seeds. Dip the remaining cookies in the same way. Let stand until the chocolate sets, about 1 hour.
Christopher Kimball is the founder of Milk Street, home to a magazine, school, and radio and television shows. Globe readers get 12 weeks of complete digital access, plus two issues of Milk Street print magazine, for just $1. Go to 177milkstreet.com/globe. Send comments to magazine@globe.com.