Black Sesame Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Stand mixer with paddle attachment
• •Rubber spatula
• •Cookie scoop or tablespoon measure
• •Rimmed baking sheets
• •Parchment paper
• •Wire cooling rack

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare dry ingredients

   Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Sift if your cocoa is lumpy. Dutch-process cocoa gives these cookies their ink-dark color and mellow chocolate flavor. Don't substitute natural cocoa here; the chemistry and color both depend on the Dutch process.

   Quality cocoa makes a noticeable difference. Valrhona, Guittard, or Droste are worth seeking out.
2. 2

   Cream butter and sugars

   Beat the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth and pale, about 2 minutes. Add both sugars and beat until light and fluffy, another 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl. The mixture should look almost white and hold soft peaks. This aeration creates the cookie's tender interior.

3. 3

   Add eggs and vanilla

   Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter may look curdled briefly. That's fine. Add the vanilla and beat until smooth. Scrape down the bowl again.

4. 4

   Combine wet and dry

   Add the dry ingredients all at once. Mix on low speed just until the flour disappears, no more than 30 seconds. Overmixing develops gluten and produces tough cookies. Stop while you can still see a few flour streaks. Fold in the chopped chocolate by hand with a rubber spatula.

5. 5

   Swirl in sesame paste

   Stir the black sesame paste to reincorporate any separated oil. Drop spoonfuls of the paste across the surface of the dough. Using the spatula, fold the dough over itself three or four times, turning the bowl as you go. You want dramatic swirls, not uniform color. The marbling should be visible, with distinct ribbons of gray-black sesame running through the chocolate dough. Resist the urge to keep mixing.

   Black sesame paste separates like natural peanut butter. Store it upside down and stir well before measuring.
6. 6

   Chill the dough

   Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap pressed directly against the dough surface. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 3 days. The dough needs to firm up or your cookies will spread into flat discs. Cold dough also develops better flavor as the flour hydrates and the sugars dissolve.

7. 7

   Portion and top

   Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop rounded tablespoons of dough (about 40g each) and roll into balls. Arrange 2 inches apart on the prepared sheets. Press a few black sesame seeds onto the top of each ball. They'll toast as the cookies bake, adding crunch and visual drama. Return the sheets to the refrigerator for 15 minutes while your oven preheats.

8. 8

   Bake

   Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of your oven. Heat to 350°F (175°C). Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through. The cookies are done when the edges are set but the centers still look slightly underdone and glossy. They'll firm up as they cool. Pull them at 10 minutes for fudgier cookies, 12 for a crisper edge.

9. 9

   Finish and cool

   The moment the cookies come out of the oven, sprinkle each with a few flakes of sea salt. The salt crystals will adhere to the warm surface and provide little bursts of salinity against the sweet. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. They're fragile when hot.

Chef Tips

• •Black sesame paste is sold in Asian grocery stores, often labeled 'kuro neri goma' in Japanese markets. Look for pure ground sesame without added sugar. Brands like Kuki or Wadaman are excellent. In a pinch, tahini mixed with a tablespoon of toasted sesame oil approximates the flavor, though not the color.
• •These cookies taste even better the next day. The sesame flavor deepens overnight as the oils permeate the chocolate dough. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
• •For an intensely nutty variation, toast an additional 2 tablespoons of black sesame seeds in a dry skillet until fragrant, then fold them into the dough along with the chocolate.
• •The dough freezes beautifully. Portion and freeze on a sheet pan, then transfer to a freezer bag. Bake from frozen, adding 2 to 3 minutes to the baking time. You'll have fresh cookies whenever the craving strikes.

Advance Preparation

• •Dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days before baking. The flavor improves with time.
• •Portioned dough balls freeze for up to 2 months. Bake directly from frozen, adding 2 to 3 minutes to baking time.
• •Baked cookies keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days, though they rarely last that long.
• •For gifting or dinner parties, portion and refrigerate the dough the day before, then bake fresh the day of serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 41g)