this post was sponsored by sprouts. thank you for supporting the partnerships that allow brewing happiness to grow and exist. xoxo.
It’s DECEMBER, people, and the festivities are on in full force around here. Among all the IRL potlucks and gatherings, I was lucky enough to be invited to participate in Sprouts Cookie Exchange! Sprouts Cookie Exchange is a program to bring people together in the digital space; myself, two other bloggers, and the team at Sprouts are all exchanging cookie recipes and thank GOODNESS because without it, this Vegan Tahini Thumbprint Cookie recipe with Pear-Ginger Jam may never have been born. Talk about good news.
These Tahini Thumbprint Cookies are totally vegan, super delicious, and—gotta love it—a little unconventional. No hate for a good ol’ fashioned chocolate chip or holiday peppermint cookie, but when’s the last time you had a thumbprint cookie made with tahini? Never? Thought so. They’re earthy, not too sweet, and to top it all off (literally), these Vegan Tahini Thumbprint cookies are finished with a delightful pear-ginger jam that is TOTALLY my jam right now. (Get it? Of course you do.) The Pear-Ginger Jam is easy to make and brightens up the earthy tahini flavor with its fruity punch.
Another reason you’ll love this recipe is that it’s made with a TON of bulk bin items because Sprouts and I are all about reducing food waste! I got my rolled oats, cane sugar, all purpose flour, and candied ginger garnish ALL through the bulk bins at Sprouts so I had the perfect amount of everything and nothing left over.
Are you ready for your first taste of the Sprouts Cookie Exchange? Of course you are.
More holiday cookie recipes: No-Bake Chocolate Love Crunch Cookies + Mint Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies + Coconut Sugar Molasses Cookies
Tahini Thumbprint Cookies
These Tahini Thumbprint Cookies with Pear-Ginger Jam are your new favorite not-too-sweet, perfectly earthy and bright holiday cookies. Plus, they're vegan!
Ingredients
Pear-Ginger Jam Ingredients
- 3 bosc pears, peeled and chopped (about 520 grams)
- 2" ginger knob, peeled and chopped (about 25 grams)
- 1/3 cup cane sugar (108 grams)
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/8 tsp ground cardamom
Tahini Thumbprint Cookie Ingredients
- 3/4 cup rolled oats (3 oz)
- 1 cup all purpose flour (6 oz)
- 1/4 cup cane sugar (2 oz)
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar (2 oz)
- 2/3 cup tahini (5 oz)
- 1 tbsp flaxseed meal
- 7 tbsp oat milk, divided (sub other non dairy milk)
- 1 tsp sea salt
- candied ginger, sliced, for garnish
Instructions
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Peel and dice pears into small chunks, mix in a small wide sauce pan with peeled and sliced ginger, cane sugar, lemon juice, and ground cardamom. Cook on medium high, stirring occasionally until you reach a temperature of 215-220°F, or until it reaches your desired consistency on a chilled spoon. (This will take 15-20 minutes and the pears will cook down significantly).
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Use a spoon to push the pear mixture through a fine mesh strainer, until all of the pear and ginger has broken down. Place jam in the refrigerator or freezer to cool while you prepare the cookies.
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Preheat oven to 325.
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While the jam is cooling, combine flaxseed meal and oat milk in a small bowl and let stand for 10 mins.
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Meanwhile, combine rolled oats, all purpose flour, cane sugar, light brown sugar, tahini and sea salt in a bowl. Add flaxseed-oat milk mixture. Stir to combine.
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Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.
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Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon of cookie batter, and roll into a ball. Place on baking tray and use thumb to press a crater in the center of the cookie. Repeat for all of the cookies.
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Dollop jam in the middle of the cookie to fill the crater. Repeat for all cookies.
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Bake for 18-20 mins, or until the bottom is browned. Remove from oven and let on the baking sheet.
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Garnish with candied ginger slices on top!
tahini in a cookie?!
If you’re familiar with tahini, you know it’s typically used in more savory recipes or on its own as a dip, so you may be asking yourself how it’s gonna turn out in a cookie. If you’re not familiar with tahini, you may be asking yourself what the hell it is. Don’t worry, I’m gonna answer both questions right now.
Tahini is a paste made from ground up and toasted sesame seeds. You can eat it on its own as a dip and it oftentimes serves as the base of other dips like hummus, but you can also put it in a thumbprint cookie recipe. What a world, y’all.
Now guys, I’m gonna keep it absolutely 100 with you right now: Sprouts tahini is my downright FAVORITE grocery store tahini. If you’re not making your tahini from scratch (and let’s be honest, who is?), you need to be buying it at Sprouts. Trust me, the texture is amazing and the flavor is the best you can find. It’s nutty, earthy, and toasty, just like I like my holiday home.
More uses of tahini: Salted Tahini Chocolate Pudding + Summer French Toast with Lemon-Tahini Syrup + Spicy Carrot Fries with Honey-Tahini Aioli
food waste is straight trash
Food waste is a huge problem in our world and it’s especially rampant during the holiday season, so it’s important to be conscious of it and to explore ways to do our part in reducing it. Mama Earth is the BEST and we should be kind to her by using what she gives us as effectively as possible.
One of the easiest ways to reduce food waste is by buying in bulk. Sprouts has an incredible bulk bin section that you MUST begin to explore if you haven’t before. Buying in bulk not only cuts down on packaging but also helps you keep your pantry free of miscellaneous ingredients—we’ve all had our precious pantry space absorbed by an eighth a cup of some special flour/spice/syrup we needed ONE specific time and will never use again. Enough of that. Buy in bulk and you’ll have only what you need.
Offering vegan and plant-based options at your holiday get-togethers is another awesome way to reduce food waste. Animal products are hard on the earth so anytime you can cut them out, you’re also cutting out a ton of waste. If you want to bookend your meal with vegan and bulk-bin friendly recipes, start with this Vegan Holiday Cheese Ball Platter as an appetizer and finish out with the Vegan Tahini Thumbprint Cookies as dessert. Your guests (and the planet) will thank you.
