Recipe courtesy of Food Network Kitchen

Sesame-and-Jam Sandwich Cookies

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  • Level: Easy
  • Total: 1 hr 35 min (includes chilling and cooling times)
  • Active: 20 min
  • Yield: about 20 sandwich cookies
While Chinese sesame cookies are traditionally made with lard, this version uses butter instead. Adding tahini to bump up the sesame flavor and serving them as sandwich cookies also deviates from tradition. The cookies come out of the oven crisp-tender, but the jam filling softens them up overnight, making them more like jam-filled cakes the next day.

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Position oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.
  3. Beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium, beat in the egg and vanilla until well combined, then beat in the tahini until smooth. Reduce the speed to low, then beat in the flour mixture until the dough comes together (it will be quite soft). Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes (the dough will be soft but rollable).
  4. Put the sesame seeds in a small bowl. Roll teaspoonfuls of dough into 1-inch balls, roll them in the sesame seeds and space them about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
  5. Bake the cookies until just puffed, lightly golden brown and just firm, about 12 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. Let the cookies cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer them to the rack to cool completely.
  6. To assemble: Spread 1/2 teaspoon jam on a cookie, then top with another cookie, pressing gently. Keep in an airtight container for 2 days; they will soften overnight.

Cook’s Note

When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off the excess. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.)