Tahini Brownie
March 6, 2010 • Category: Dessert
I saw a Lent-friendly recipe on Maryline’s blog En Direct d’Athènes. It was for a large chocolate cake in which the butter (forbidden) was replaced by tahini and the milk (forbidden) replaced by rum!
I thought: Why don’t I try to make a brownie for Lent? Or just any day! I would use our tahini as the only fat in it as well and replace the rum with orange juice.
Not only is this brownie delicious, but it is also easier to make than pancakes! no need for a mixer, all one needs is a bowl, a wooden spoon and a sifter. I halved the recipe (hers yielded two cakes) and I will only recommend that you line your cake pan with parchment or wax paper.
That brownie is moist in the middle, crispy at the top and will leave you the (intoxicating) aftertaste of halvah in your palate. What more can one ask for?
INGREDIENTS:
- 4.5 ounces Baking chocolate, such as 60 or 70% bittersweet, 125 g (can use chocolate chips)
- 5 1/3 ounces of tahini (don’t forget to stir the jar before pouring) or 150 g.
- 5 1/3 ounces of all-purpose flour (150 g.)
- 1 heaping teaspoon of Baking Powder
- 5 1/3 ounces of powdered sugar (150 g.)
- 5 1/3 ounces of orange juice, freshly squeezed preferably (150 g.)
METHOD:
- Melt the chocolate in the microwave following directions on the package; it took 1 minute, 15 seconds to melt the bar. You can also melt it in a double-boiler if you prefer.
- Mix the tahini, orange juice and rum or other liqueur in a large bowl. Add the melted chocolate and the powdered sugar. Mix well.
- Add the flour and baking powder through a sifter into the mixture. Mix well.
- Grease an 8 inch baking pan and line with parchment. Pour the batter and spread it as evenly as possible. Heat the oven to 350F and bake the brownies 15 to 20 minutes. Serve.
/www.wikeez.com/en/music/watch-yara-lapidus-video-le-cedre-6213. This is a short clip shot in Lebanon by Yara Lapidus, wife of designer Olivier Lapidus (whose father Ted dressed the Beatles). Yara is a Lebanese-born musician and this is a song (in French) from her new album.
Comments
50 Comments • Comments Feed
Stella says:
I like the idea of this tahini brownie. A bit of toasted nuttiness to chocolate sounds wonderful. Oh, and I really like your blog-the food looks wonderful.
Leila Saida
On March 6, 2010 at 9:50 pm
Joie de vivre says:
I bet the tahini made it really dense and gooey…just the way I like my brownies!
On March 6, 2010 at 9:59 pm
Sushma Mallya says:
Thats something new way of making brownie…using tahini is such a different and innovative idea….looks great and sounds so good..thanks for sharing…
On March 6, 2010 at 10:47 pm
rebecca says:
wow this is so cool must have had a nice nutty toasty taste, your kids have good taste to like bubble tea lol
On March 6, 2010 at 11:01 pm
Mona says:
Great! I never even imagined using tahini in baking. Sounds yumm.
On March 6, 2010 at 11:46 pm
Stef says:
oh wow that brownie looks/sounds amazing!! yum! i’m so happy i stumbled across your blog, i would LOVE to go to beirut! i studied arabic for a little while and while i can barely speak 2 words i would still be thrilled to take a trip there 🙂 you have a beautiful blog!
On March 7, 2010 at 12:11 am
Ivy says:
Unbelievable. I made some eggless tahini muffins last october which were filled with jam. They tasted great but I didn’t like their appearance so I was planning to perfect them so I haven’t posted them yet. Thanks for reminding me of them
On March 7, 2010 at 12:22 am
Trissa says:
Tahini? No eggs? I would have thought – NO WAY! But I can’t help but stare at the pictures because it looks sooo moist and delicious! You’ve proved me wrong.
On March 7, 2010 at 5:12 am
Katya says:
mmm, I love halvah and I am adore brownies so it is inevitable that I will try this recipe. Thanks!
On March 7, 2010 at 5:35 am
Priya says:
Absolutely divine, truly irresistible…
On March 7, 2010 at 6:10 am
Rosa says:
Wow, I’m sure I’d love that as I’m a big tahini fan!
Cheers,
Rosa
On March 7, 2010 at 6:16 am
oum mouncifrayan says:
une trop belle version que je découvre!!! merci
On March 7, 2010 at 6:17 am
Angie@Angie's Recipe says:
Egg-free brownies sound pretty awesome. I don’t know the butter can be substituted with sesame paste…..the brownies must smell and taste heavenly.
On March 7, 2010 at 6:19 am
Joanne says:
You probably don’t realize just how much I love tahini. Let me tell you. A lot. I can’t wait to try these! They look so fudgy and delicious.
On March 7, 2010 at 6:41 am
peter says:
I met Maryline last year in Athens and she’s a lovely lady and enthused about Greek food. I must really try this Lenten Brownie soon!
On March 7, 2010 at 7:24 am
Julie says:
Je n’aurais jamais eu l’idée de remplacer les oeufs par du tahini. Du coup, ça m’intrigue !!
En tout cas il a l’air moelleux à souhait.
Gros bisous et bon week-end !
On March 7, 2010 at 8:04 am
maninas says:
How interesting! Will definitely try it!
On March 7, 2010 at 8:04 am
Cathy at Wives with says:
Dense, gooey brownies are one of my favorite indulgences. This recipe is too good pass up, I must try it.
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog to visit. I’ve enjoyed coming to visit. I’ll be back.
On March 7, 2010 at 8:22 am
KennyT says:
I like tahini and I am sure this brownie is heavenly, looks moist and delicious
On March 7, 2010 at 8:44 am
Nadjibella says:
J’ai du tahiné dans mon frigo.
A tester rapidement.
La prochaine fois que tu passeras par Paris, tu goûteras à la pâte de spéculoos.
Ce n’est pas mauvais du tout.
A bientôt.
On March 7, 2010 at 9:16 am
doggybloggy says:
I love this idea – desserts with actual “food” always seem like a nice fortified meal to me.
On March 7, 2010 at 9:56 am
♥¸¸.•*¨Skip to Malou¨¨*•.¸¸♥¸ says:
i had to google what a tahini is but I would imagine that this brownie is gooey, chewy, and i-will-have-another-piece kind of brownie.
i want to try to use tahini… i saw a bottle online and I am intrigued with the taste and texture of it… this is what I love about foodblogs, we learn new ingredients everyday! thanks for taking me to another culinary adventure!
On March 7, 2010 at 12:31 pm
Velva says:
How interesting. I love brownies, all kinds. What a creative way to enhance the health benefits by adding tahini. I like it!
On March 7, 2010 at 12:37 pm
maninas says:
Just made it, with blood oranges. It’s AMAZING! We love it!
On March 7, 2010 at 3:00 pm
Faith says:
This looks so moist and fudgy — my favorite type of brownie! 🙂 I’ll have to give this a try!
On March 7, 2010 at 5:32 pm
Muskaan says:
Thanks for visiting our blog, you have a wonderful & innovative recipes here..and look at these Brownie’s with tahini,..they look so delectable…
On March 7, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Rachana Kothari says:
I loved your tahini brownies recipe…. will try it out soon:)
On March 7, 2010 at 6:59 pm
Miriam says:
It looks so moist and fudgey!!
On March 8, 2010 at 6:32 am
Chef E says:
Now these are a food with protein I could eat!
On March 9, 2010 at 4:21 am
The London Foodie says:
OMG I can’t believe I missed this recipe, sensational, bookmarked!
Luiz @ The London Foodie
On March 9, 2010 at 5:14 am
M. A. Salha says:
I’m going to make these on the weekend. It sounds really good.
On March 9, 2010 at 9:29 am
Dajana says:
This recipe sounds wonderful, chocolate and no eggs or butter, my husband will love it
On March 10, 2010 at 5:37 am
tom tall clover farm says:
What an ingenious recipe; I looking forward to trying it. I was particularly excited to see your recipe for green beans and tomatoes, a dish my grandmother and mother made often and now I make about every other week when my green beans are in season.
On March 11, 2010 at 11:44 pm
joudie kalla says:
Wow, this looks divine. I love Tahini and use it all the time for sauces in salads and obviously all the arabic food i make but never though of using it in sweets. Definitely goingt o make this. My husband is Greek and the comment on tasting like Halva and a brownie is something he would adore.
On April 11, 2010 at 6:04 am
Charline says:
Hummmm this must be delicious ! Thank you for the recipe. Good continuance
On April 11, 2010 at 5:31 pm
joudie kalla says:
So i made these and they are wonderful. Do you mind if i post them on my blog? Of course credits to you and a link to your website…. Just divine!
On April 22, 2010 at 6:21 am
Maija Haavisto says:
Sounds very good! It’s too bad my husband doesn’t care about tahini at all, so if I make them I will risk having to eat them all by myself (what a horrible fate).
On December 20, 2010 at 12:46 pm
Kathy says:
Love the taste of tahini…can’t wait to try these. They look so wonderful!
On March 29, 2011 at 7:42 am
Lynn says:
Thank you so much for such lovely recipe! I made these this past Sunday and my husband and I ate them all up within two days!
I love tahini and love to incorporate it into different dishes. I wanted to make the Lebanese caramel recipe to drizzle on top, but only had pomegranate molasses and was not sure if that would go well? Would another option be putting melted chocolate and mixing it with the tahini?
On August 2, 2011 at 5:59 pm
Joumana says:
@Lynn: pomegranate molasses will not do as it is sour; carob molasses from a good source, is the authentic way; however, I think that melting chocolate and mixing it with the tahini is a great alternative. I tried it once with a spread that I posted about, sort of like a middle-eastern Nutella, and it was fantastic.
https://www.tasteofbeirut.com/2010/05/tanella/
On August 2, 2011 at 6:21 pm
something missing says:
Hi, a friend pointed me in the direction of this recipe and I thought they looked great, especially because they are vegan. Due to a lack of tahini I made them with almond butter instead but they turned out great (there are some photos on my blog http://sthingmissing.blogspot.com/2011/11/amaretto-almond-brownies.html) Thanks!!
On November 13, 2011 at 3:17 pm
sp says:
I’m not a big brownie fan but I do like chocolate and tahini (or sesame anything, really). I made this two days ago and it has been a smash hit! It’s so moist, and the taste of the tahini really comes through. I didn’t have OJ so I used some pomegranate-plum juice. Delicious!
On January 28, 2012 at 10:53 pm
Joumana says:
@sp: So glad you liked them! I will try it with pom juice next time! Great idea!
On January 28, 2012 at 11:42 pm
Shoshana says:
The recipe mentions rum, but there is no amount in the ingredients. Please let me know how much, would love to make these!
On August 29, 2012 at 11:12 am
Joumana says:
@Shoshana: The rum is in lieu of the orange juice; so if you use rum, skip on the orange juice and vice-versa! 🙂
On August 29, 2012 at 2:11 pm
Yosh says:
Thanks – this was great. I doubled the recipe and used a 9×13 pan. I found the quantities and directions a little confusing (e.g., I’m not used to weighing flour) and the ingredient order didn’t correspond to the order in the directions. I rewrote the recipe after making my conversions and slight adaptations and also incorporated the information and corrections from the comments (to date) – here it is to save future readers the trouble. BTW, I didn’t use the sifter & it still came out great.
Tahini Brownies
INGREDIENTS:
• 250g (10 oz) Bittersweet baking chocolate, e.g. 60 or 70% (can use chocolate chips)
• 300g (10 2/3 oz = 1 ¼ cup) tahini (don’t forget to stir before pouring)
• 300g orange juice (preferably freshly squeezed) or rum or other liqueur
• 300g (3 cups) powdered sugar
• 2 ½ cups (10 2/3 oz = 300g) flour
• 1 heaping teaspoon of Baking Powder
• 2 Tablespoons vanilla (optional)
METHOD:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C)
2. Melt the chocolate in the microwave (Don’t overheat in microwave or the chocolate will seize up) or double boiler. Shortcut: melt in a stainless steel bowl placed on top of a pot of boiling water – use that bowl in step 4 so you don’t have to transfer the melted chocolate)
3. Mix the tahini, orange juice (or rum or other liqueur) in a large bowl.
4. Add the melted chocolate and the powdered sugar. Mix well.
5. Add the flour and baking powder through a sifter into the mixture. Mix well.
6. Grease a 9” x 13” baking pan or line with baking parchment. Pour the batter and spread it as evenly as possible.
7. Bake the brownies about 20-25 minutes until top is crispy (middle may be left slightly gooey, depending on taste).
8. Serve.
For half quantities – use one 8” square baking pan and reduce baking time to 15-20 minutes
Substitutions:
• Almond butter instead of Tahini and Amaretto for 1/3 of the orange juice
• In place of powdered sugar use caster or regular or demarra sugar, but dissolve thoroughly, stirring in warmed liquid (e.g., orange juice), then cool
On September 19, 2012 at 1:41 am
Yosh says:
Sorry – forgot to make the cups conversion for the orange juice in the edited version of the recipe that I just posted – it should be:
• 2 ¼ cups (300g) orange juice (preferably freshly squeezed) or rum or other liqueur
On September 19, 2012 at 1:49 am