Chocolate and sesame. They’re a match made in culinary heaven, which affirms that these vegan peanut butter sesame cookies taste just like heaven. Crumbly, light, decadent, and the perfect combination of savoury-sweet.
Two months of living la dolce vita every summer in Italy makes it easy to adapt the traditional Italian way of life. And no Italian life is complete without gelato.
A few years ago I discovered a new flavour called ‘apriti sesamo’ in a local gelateria. It literally translates to ‘open sesame’ and the name fits because the combination of decadent chocolate and savoury sesame seeds literally explodes in your mouth.
Sesame and chocolate is a culinary power couple to be reckoned with. Long story short, after my gelato experience on that hot sunny day, I was hooked. I have searched and searched for that gelato flavour here at come, but to no avail. The closest thing I’ve found is sesame-flavoured chocolate (which is delicious, by the way).
The second best thing next to gelato are sweets, so I have brought the flavours of my favourite gelato to my kitchen by incorporating them into a decadent, savoury-sweet, rich cookie.
These vegan peanut butter sesame cookies are exquisite. Delicate in flavour, even though they are packed with rich ingredients. In fact, everything about them is subtle-especially the sweetness and the sesame flavour.
If you like a super-sweet cookie these may not be for you however, I implore you to try these. If anything, you can substitute the brown rice syrup for regular sugar to kick the sweetness up a notch. But one cannot go on life without knowing how delicious the combination of these flavours are.
Come on, if the Italians can combine these two ingredients in a delicious traditional gelato, then it must be exceptional!
If you try this recipe (and love it!) be sure to snap a pic and tag me on Instagram with #bitesforfoodies so I can see your creation!
could I substitute brown rice flour instead of the white? Also, rather than using brown rice syrup could I use maple syrup? I’m not vegan but enjoy the healthier recipes.
I don’t see why not?! the consistency is the same, correct? If you want to substitute the brown syrup (and since you’re not vegan) I’d recommend honey over maple syrup, only because it has that same super thick consistency as brown rice syrup!
Side note: Please come back and let me know how they turn out for you with the substitutions 😉
Those cookies look absolutely delicious! I am a huge fan of peanut butter cookies so I will have to give these a try. Yum! I cannot wait.
Me too…but the sesame just takes them over the top!
Oh wow! Your Vegan Peanut Butter Sesame Cookies sound amazing and are the best looking vegan cookies I’ve ever seen. I want to make these right now!
Thanks…I hope you do!
These cookies look absolutely delicious! I love that they’re gluten free — yay, I can have them! What a great flavor combination — how can I turn down chocolate? I’ll be trying out your recipe this weekend.
It’s hard to find a good gluten-free cookie, don’t you agree?
I would have never thought to use sesame in a cookies like this! But, gosh, it sounds GENIUS! I bet these taste fantastic. What a fun and unexpected flavor combination!
Thanks Kristi!! They definitely are unique in flavour!
These look amazing! First of all I love that they are vegan. I also love the addition of the sesame! I definitely need to try these!
I have never tried pairing chocolate and sesame together before, but this recipe makes me want to. I like that they are sweet without being overpowering with the sweetness. Looks like I’ll be trying a batch soon!
Yes, they’re not definitely not super-sweet. I used to LOVE super sweet cookies, but my tastebuds have changed!
These look so scrumptious! I love the addition of the sesame! I am always looking for new vegan recipes for my friends! Thanks!
I love that these are vegan! I always feel good about making treats that I can share with my friends who are both vegans and non-vegan. I think this would be fun for a treat this Halloween! Loving this idea.
The hubby and the kids loved these…and they don’t ‘have’ to eat gluten-free.
That pairing is really a taste of heaven! Sesame is not something I often find in cookies. I would love to have one. It’s great for vegans and non-vegans alike.
Now this is something my vegan friends would love to know! How much more that it’s peanut butter — yum! Thank you for this 😀
AND chocolate!! The best trio E-VER! 😉
My BFF eats Vegan, I am going to make these for her birthday treat. She will love them. Thank you for this great recipe.
Awesome! Please let me know what you, or she, thinks! 😉
I just put my ingredients together as directed and my batter is kind of runny, more like a thick pancake batter verses a cookie dough. Is this right? If not, what can I do? I am excited to make these, the ingredients were so much easier to find where I live than most recipes. Thanks!
I wish I had seen this the moment you were making them!! The batter is not super dense like a regular cookie batter since there is no gluten in the flour. Did you allow the oats to soak up the liquid? That will help! I hope they turned out for you! What do you think??
After I refrigerated the dough it puffed up and thickened quite a bit but my cookies are very soft and crumbly after they are baked. What can I add to the dough so they hold up better? Thanks so much!
Exactly what they were supposed to do! They do tend to be on the crumbly side…it’s hard to get that chewy consistency without using gluten-based flours. If you prefer them less crumbly you could use more oats than rice flour…that should do the trick! What did you think of the peanut/sesame combo? Let me know if you try them again using more oats!