Vegan Tahini Date Cookies
These much-loved, vegan tahini date cookies are easy to make with just 3 ingredients: oats, dates and tahini!
You will love these popular, healthy and delicious tahini date cookies! There’s not much to them but the combination of tahini, dates and oats is to-die-for. They’re soft, buttery and just so yummy.
These cookies are great for households with allergies too as they’re naturally gluten-free, nut-free and dairy-free. They’re also naturally sweetened by the dates so have no added sugar.
The cookies are just perfect as is, made simply with oats, dates and tahini, or you add extras like chocolate chips and walnuts.
For a similar cookie made with maple syrup instead of dates, check out my 3-ingredient oatmeal cookies or try these flourless oatmeal cookies made with nut butter, oats and banana.
For a real treat, dunk the top of each cookie in melted chocolate and firm in the fridge. It’s amazing. Either way, they’re perfect anytime of day for a wholesome and satisfying snack or dessert.
Why You’ll Love Them
- Quick and easy to make.
- You’ll need just 3 simple ingredients, a few minutes of prep time and 10 minutes to bake.
- Vegan, gluten-free, oil-free and no added sugar.
- Taste like caramel!
- Make the perfect healthier dessert or snack.
- You can leave them raw or bake them.
- Enjoy as is or customize with add-ins like cacao nibs, chocolate chips or walnuts.
Ingredient Notes
A complete list of ingredients with amounts and full instructions is located in the printable recipe card below. This section covers ingredient and substitution considerations.
- Oats: You can use rolled oats, large flake oats or quick oats. Even minute oats would work since we’re just blending them up anyways.
- Dates: Any variety works as long as they’re soft and not overly dry. I like medjool dates, sayer dates or deglect noor. If your dates are very dry, you can soak them in hot water for 10 minutes and drain well before using.
- Tahini: Use creamy, drippy tahini for best results. Good tahini should be completely smooth and not overly bitter. I like Arz Fine Foods or Soom tahini. You can also use almond butter, peanut butter, cashew butter or sunflower seed butter in this recipe.
How to Make these Cookies
Before You Start: Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Add all the ingredients to a large food processor and mix into a thick, crumbly dough. You should easily be able to press the dough together between your fingers.
Quick Note: If the dough is too crumbly to press together, which can happen if your dates and/or tahini is too dry, add 1-2 tbsp warm water and process again.
Shape the dough into 12 cookies and place on a parchment or silicon mat-lined baking tray.
Quick Note: The cookies will not change shape at all during baking so be sure to shape them into the cookie shape you want before hand. You can make them thin or leave them on the thicker side, up to you!
Bake for 10 minutes then let cool on the pan for 15 minutes and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Dates: This recipe works best with soft, moist dates. If your dates are overly dry, soak them in hot water for 15 minutes then drain well before using in the recipe.
- For best results, use an inexpensive kitchen scale to measure the ingredients. This is not totally necessary but I always recommend following my exact measurements if you can! Plus it makes baking super easy because you can just add the ingredients straight into the bowl to the specified weight.
- For an extra treat, try melted some dairy-free chocolate and dipping the top or half of each cookie into the chocolate then firming on a pan in the fridge. So good!
FAQs
These cookies have a soft, dense texture and are not like a traditional cookie. They get a bit browned and crisp on the outside but the inside will be dense and soft.
No. You can substitute the tahini with any other nut or seed butter such as almond butter, peanut butter, or for another nut-free option, sunflower seed butter.
The dough makes a great base for chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans, sesame seeds, coconut, pumpkin seeds, cranberries or chocolate chips. Add up to 1/2 cup of your choice of add-in.
For flavour enhancement, you can add a pinch of salt and up to 1 tsp of vanilla and/or cinnamon. 1-2 tsp of espresso powder is also yummy to make them coffee-flavoured!
Other flavours that are nice in these cookies are orange, cardamom, ginger and nutmeg.
Storing
- Let cool completely before storing.
- Room Temperature: In an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Fridge: In an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: In an airtight container or freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months.
Did you try this recipe?
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I’d love to hear about it! Click here to leave a review and be sure to tag me @runningonrealfood if you post it on social media.
Vegan Tahini Date Cookies
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 12
- Category: Snack, Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Vegan, Gluten-Free
Description
These vegan tahini date cookies are perfectly sweet with hints of caramel thanks to naturally sweet dates. If you love tahini or even if you’ve never tried it, you’ll love these simple, healthy cookies!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup (150 g) oats
- 1/2 cup (140 g) tahini
- 1 1/2 cup lightly packed (260 g) soft pitted dates
- optional: 1/4 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Add all ingredients to a food processor and process until it forms a thick dough you can easily press together between your fingers.
- Shape into 12 cookies and place on a parchment paper or silicone mat-lined baking sheet. The cookies will not change shape during baking so be sure to shape them into cookies beforehand.
- Bake for 10 minutes and let cool on the pan for 15 minutes before handling.
Notes
These cookies have a soft, dense texture kind of like baked oatmeal. They get a bit brown and crisped on the outside but the inside will stay dense and soft. For a somewhat crisper outside, shape them on the thinner side.
For best results, use a kitchen scale to weigh ingredients.
Tahini can be substituted with any other nut or seed butter as long as it’s not too dry.
Additions: Try up to 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans, chocolate chips or cacao nibs and/or up to 1 tsp of cinnamon.
Dates: It’s important to use soft, moist dates in this recipe. If your dates are overly dry, soak in hot water for 15 minutes then drain well before using in the recipe.
Storing: Let cool completely then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, fridge for up to 1 week or freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 224
- Sugar: 13 g
- Sodium: 5 mg
- Fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 36 g
- Fiber: 5 g
- Protein: 6 g
Keywords: easy, 3-ingredient, simple, healthy
Originally published on October 25, 2017.
Truly awful cookies. Dry and bland, they really miss the other ingredients. Maybe a banana or some vanilla.
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How do I triple the recipe?
★★★★★
I would make the dough in 3 batches because it tripling it will be too big for a food processor. You can bake each batch separately or all together.
These were good. Mine were a bit crumbly and will add some water next time. The ones that I made thinner came crispier and a bit more like a cookie.
They remind me of a sesame cookie which I love.
Honestly the cookies were sweet enough and I will make them again as they were so easy to whip up.
I expected these cookies to fall apart, based on how dry the dough was, but they were great! I used almond butter and added sugar free chocolate chips. Delicious!
★★★★★
Yum! Glad you liked them!
AMAZING! So easy, simple, healthy and absolutely delicious. I added 1 tsp. vanilla extract and dipped half the cookies in dark chocolate. These cookies are just the right amount of sweet. They are dense and chewy. It’s a must try and keep recipe.
★★★★★
Thank you, Suz! I appreciate the review and I’m so glad you liked them.
Super easy and quick to make!
Standard food processor – blitzed my oats first – then added the wet stuff and a splash of water.
Add a dash of almond extract (as I used almond butter) and some dried cherries!
10 mins later yummy cookies – sweet enough and enough of a hint of almond! A great alternative to sugar filled treats!
Thank you!
I have to say, this recipe followed by your instructions doesn’t work with the average food processor. Totally frustrated. You might want to add into the recipe that the dates should be pre-soaked regardless. I did read your whole blurb.
Thanks for the feedback. I have an average-sized Ninja food processor and I make this recipe often with no issues, without soaking the dates. Maybe yours is on the smaller side? I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you!
Appreciate the recipe but with all due respect these were a huge disappointment. Not a cookie not a biscuit. Just a dense unsweet wannabe that was a waste of good ingredients. Sorry but thats how I feel. Had to smother them in chocolate to be somewhat edible and even that was a struggle.
Merci pour cette recette toute simple de délicieux biscuits.
Recette facile à faire, pas trop sucrée et à laquelle j’ai ajouté 1/4 tasse de graines de citrouille.
Just a translation for any non French-speaking bakers…
Thank you for this very easy delicious cookie recipe. The recipe is easy to make and not too sweet and to which I added 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds.
Thanks, Tamara!
I made these and added cinnamon and vanilla, and they were so delicious! I love having them for a little tasty, yet healthy, treat after a meal. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
★★★★★