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Sesame Cookies 黒ゴマクッキー

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Sesame Cookies | JustOneCookbook.com

As everyone is busy planning holiday parties and baking Christmas cookies, I started to ponder what to bake for this holiday season.  I wanted to bake something Japanese and share it on the blog.

Then I remember that I used to bake these delicious Sesame Cookies before I started blogging.  I searched for my notebook page where I jot down the recipe a while back.

Sesame Cookies | JustOneCookbook.com

If you ask my children what kind of Japanese sweets they like, my son would immediately respond “Green Tea Ice Cream!” instead of more traditional wagashi (Japanese confectionery) like Mitarashi Dango.  Just like me, he’s into anything matcha (green tea) and he loves my Green Tea & White Chocolate Cookies.

My daughter on the other hand is a strange kid (of course in a good way).  When she first tasted my Black Sesame Ice Cream, she was crazily in love.  Which 4 year old would enjoy nutty, sort of savory, unique flavor of black sesame ice cream?

Sesame Cookies | JustOneCookbook.com

So I knew my daughter would adore these Black Sesame Cookies (黒ゴマクッキー), and she did!

If you wonder what is like to have black sesame seeds in cookies… Well, they are sweet, but the sesame seeds adds nutty savory flavor.  To me, it’s a perfect balance between the two, and the crisp texture is just too addictive!

Sesame Cookies | JustOneCookbook.com

These crisp cookies are called Icebox Cookies (Refrigerator Cookies) and they are made from cookie dough that has been formed into a roll and chilled in the refrigerator then sliced and baked.  This type of cookies are more popular and common in Japan than typical American cookies, such as Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Hope you enjoy these delicious {sweet + savory} Sesame Cookies.  You can use white, black, or both sesame seeds for these cookies.  My favorite are definitely the black ones!

Sesame Cookies | JustOneCookbook.com

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Sesame Cookies
Sesame Cookies | Easy Japanese Recipes at JustOneCookbook.com
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Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
1 hrs 35 mins
 
Course: Dessert
Servings: 40 Cookies
Ingredients
  • 1 stick unsalted butter (1 stick = 8 Tbsp or ½ cup or 4 oz or 117.4 g)
  • 5.6 oz all purpose flour (5.6 oz = 160 g)
  • 1.4 oz almond meal (1.4 oz = 40 g)
  • 2.8 oz granulated sugar (2.8 oz = 80 g)
  • Pinch Kosher salt
  • 1.4 oz white and black sesame seeds (roasted/toasted) (1.4 oz = 40 g)
  • 1 large egg yolk
Instructions

  1. Gather all the ingredients.

    Sesame Cookies Ingredients
  2. Cut the butter into small cubes and keep them refrigerated until ready to use (I cut on parchment paper and wrap up the butter for easy transfer.).
    Sesame Cookies 1
  3. In the food processor, combine the flour, almond meal, sugar, and salt. If you don’t have a food processor, you can simply use a bowl to mix all the ingredients.
    Sesame Cookies 2
  4. If you want your sesame seeds to be fine texture, add them now. If you prefer to keep the original shape of sesame seeds, add them with egg yolk later on.
    Sesame Cookies 3
  5. Take out the butter from the refrigerator and mix together. If you use a regular bowl to mix, use a dough/pastry blender to combine the butter into the dry ingredients.
    Sesame Cookies 4
  6. Lastly add egg yolk.
    Sesame Cookies 5
  7. If the food processor is small (like mine) and it doesn’t look like it’s mixed completely, take it out and mix well with a silicone spatula.
    Sesame Cookies 6
  8. Form the dough into a ball and cut in half.
    Sesame Cookies 7
  9. Roll it to a log approximately 2” across. For me it’s easier to work when the dough is wrapped in plastic wrap. While rolling, unwrap some parts of plastic wrap then roll again. Form a nice shape. I wasn't paying attention so my log is flat on one side (see step 11)!
    Sesame Cookies 8
  10. Wrap the logs tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
    Sesame Cookies 9
  11. Preheat the oven to 350° F (175° C). Remove the dough from plastic wrap and cut into discs about 1/4 inch thick (if you prefer thicker cookies, cut into discs about 1/2 inch and you get 20 cookies total).
    Sesame Cookies 10
  12. Place them on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges.
    Sesame Cookies 11
  13. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes. Then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container. Cookies will last for a day or two.
    Sesame Cookies 12
Recipe Notes

Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe in your own words and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.

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  12. Dumpling Love

    I’m just like your daughter – I love black sesame! these cookies sound really good. What do you think of using walnut meal instead of almond? I think it’ll be similar to the sesame-walnut sweet soup. hehe.

    12
    Reply to Dumpling Love'> Reply

  18. donna mikasa

    Icebox cookies are so nostalgic for me! I remember my mom making pinwheel cookies and she would refrigerate them in logs and bake them later. These sesame cookies look divine! So glad you found the recipe and sharing it with us!

    18
    Reply to donna mikasa'> Reply

  25. Looks so yummy!! I am going to copy this recipe down and make it when i’m back next year. Thank you for sharing. I love anything green tea and sesame!! 😀 I’m going to Hokkaido..and let’s hope I don’t get freezed over. LOL!

    25
    Reply to faithy'> Reply

  28. I can’t wait to bake these lovely cookies, Nami! I’ve had some different kinds of sesame cookies but never ones with black sesame seeds – sounds wonderful! Your daughter has good taste. I like the addition of almond flour, too. Thanks for sharing!

    28
    Reply to Hannah'> Reply

    • Hi Vivi! If you like black sesame seeds, watch out…. these cookies won’t last long! 🙂

      I’m not sure if I’m ready… way too busy everyday to think about it. Hope you are enjoying this holiday season! 🙂

      67
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  32. Candice

    Hi Nami,

    These Black Sesame cookies look amazing! I can’t wait to make this for my mom as she loves sesame. =) Your kids are so lucky!

    Are you able to convert the recipe into cups, tbsp, etc?

    Thanks.

    32
    Reply to Candice'> Reply

    • Hi Candice,

      I didn’t measure in cups this time. Since I didn’t bake these cookies using cups, please understand that the following recipe may not turn out as well as the recipe I came up with.

      Here’s the conversion.

      1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
      1/3 cup almond meal
      1/3 cup sugar
      1/4 cup sesame seeds

      Let me know how it goes (maybe others are curious too) 🙂

      66
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  38. Michelle

    I think i might be a strange kid too…´cause i did also fell i love with the delicious taste of black sesame ice cream:-)

    Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe, can´t wait to try it!

    38
    Reply to Michelle'> Reply

  41. These cookies are fabulous and bet the nutty flavor the sesame gave was fantastic. You know I’m not a great baker… still baking my cake box cookies. 🙂 Your directions and step by step pictures make me think I can do these. I should give these a try. 🙂

    41
    Reply to Ramona'> Reply

  42. Nami,
    I’m already going nuts over the look and sound of these. Black sesame seeds and the ice cream too? Your daughter (and son!) have really sophisticated tastes. Love how this is so different and so, well, Nami! Fabulous. Ah, makes me giggle when you say, “I used to make these before blogging…” My kids tell me, before you started blogging, you used to bake much more. Hm. Need to use black sesame seeds like this. Have wonderful, relaxing holidays, Nami.

    42
    Reply to Jill @ MadAboutMacarons'> Reply

      • Almond flour and meal are both just ground up almonds. Almond flour is most often made with blanched almonds (no skin), whereas almond meal can be made either with whole or blanched almonds.

        They are used in pastry like cake pie filling, etc.

        If you google almond meal/flour, you can find some links on how to make fresh almond meal/flour.

        Mine is from Trader Joe’s, but you can find it in baking section in supermarkets.

        Hope this helps. 🙂

        65
        Reply to Nami'> Reply

  45. Kimmi

    Those cookies look amazing!! My family enjoys a lot of black sesame seed-based goodies over the holidays and New Year’s, so this recipe would fit right in. I actually really like the “icebox cookies” process because it helps ensure that the cookies turn out with the right shape! Thanks very much for sharing this recipe~~

    46
    Reply to Kimmi'> Reply

  49. Nami, I am sure these out-of-space looking biscuits are French pastry-inspired! I posted a long long time ago French classic butter biscuits (Brittany Pucks or Palets Bretons) and they are made in the same way! It’s one of these French and Japanese fusions that prove that everything tweaked by the Japanese becomes sophisticated and flavoursome. I think I will try this Japanese version very soon.
    I think your children grow to become big gourmets! Your daughter’s preference for black sesame ice-cream reminds me of the fact that as a child I loved pickled herring, fish roe paste and chili! (And also tripe soup, but only with lots of chili!)
    I must tell you I tasted several different dangos when I was in Japan but only one kind (tasted in a department store undergroung) was extraordinary! It was as soft as marshmallow and coated in powdered sesame seeds… It was like tasting a piece of art. Unforgettable experience. I am pretty sure I would never manage to make it so soft…

    50
    Reply to Sissi'> Reply

  55. This is why I always look forward visiting your blog. You bring unique and inspiring ideas. I use sesame in my cooking and also make sweet sesame balls every winter. This year I was thinking to try them in cookies. Now I have to try this. They look so crunchy!

    56
    Reply to Balvinder'> Reply

  57. Hi Nami, Wow…this recipe is looking Wonderful and I’m loving it so much. t is looking so good with all the lovely pictures and write up as well. I have been here after a while but enjoyed scrolling through your rest of the wonderful recipes.Today only I was wandering what to make, Got it now! I can’t wait to try it on my island. Thanks for sharing awesome recipes.
    Have a wonderful week ahead and happy holidays !!!
    Thanks & Regards, Sonia !!!

    58
    Reply to sonia'> Reply

  66. Orchidea

    Hi. I love these cookies and I will definitely try them. I like making cookies for Christmas and give them away as present. I am going to bake this weekend and make a lot of cookies give-away… To family, friends and neighbors! I will soon post them on my blog.
    Ciao.

    73
    Reply to Orchidea'> Reply

    • Hi Armie! Thank you for your feedback! I’m glad to hear my step-by-step is useful. It takes a lot of time but readers like you seem to enjoy seeing step-by-step photos so I think I’ll continue to do so…. 🙂

      88
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  82. I’m with you kids – Green Tea Ice Cream! It’s one of my favorite ice creams of all time! This coming summer I’m going to try your black sesame ice cream. It’s on my bucket list. 🙂 These black sesame seed cookie do look wonderful and I love recipes that peak my interest because I just can’t taste them in my head. I love sesame seeds, but I can’t place them as the main ingredient in a cookie. Guess I’m going to have to make them to find out. Hope you’re having a wonderful weekend!

    92
    Reply to mjskit'> Reply

  85. Nami, that is so cute your daughter went crazy for these. I see why though, I’ve never had a cookie with black sesame seeds, I’m thinking I will have to get me some and try them. Hope you had a great weekend.
    -Gina-

    95
    Reply to Gina'> Reply

  86. Nami, you certainly have my greatest attention there with this cookie recipe and of course I will try it out and let you know – you already know how much we enjoyed your Green Tea Cookies with White Chocolate, I cannot wait to see how much we all will enjoy this recpie as well!

    96
    Reply to Andrea'> Reply

  88. Ira Rodrigues

    These black sesame cookies are very new to me and I never Herd before. Imagine the earthy flavor from sesame and surely melting in the mouth, what a great recipe!
    btw, I love the pictures, the style and the tonal

    98
    Reply to Ira Rodrigues'> Reply

    • Hi June! Thank you, and I hope you will enjoy this recipe!

      I’d highly recommend roasting it (if you are not using roasted black sesame seeds like I used). More nutty flavor will be absorbed into the dough. 🙂

      109
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  94. These cookies sound absolutely scrumptious! I love black sesame in desserts, as you probably know by now, since I really enjoyed trying out your black sesame ice cream recipe! I’d love to try making these too… (I also think it’s very cool-looking how dark the cookie dough is from the crushed black sesame seeds before you bake it, and how it seems to change color a little while crisping up.) Yum!

    104
    Reply to Allison (Spontaneous Tomato)'> Reply

  95. Nami! I’m so glad that you decided to do something Japanese. I love sesame cookies but haven’t made them myself. This is perfect for Chinese New Year as we usually serve similar types of sesame cookies. I know I’m talking ahead, but it’s kind of exciting to think about my first Chinese New Year so far away from home. I’d definitely going to try this one out.

    105
    Reply to Reese@SeasonwithSpice'> Reply

  101. Hi, Nami! This is new for me. I have never tasted sesame cookies. I’ll have to try it. I bet that it does have a nutty taste but without the high caloric content of a cookie made with nuts e.g. pecans. I also love the new look of you blog and logo. Congrats again! You did a great job!!! Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!! xx

    112
    Reply to Denise Browning'> Reply

    • Thanks for your feedback. I didn’t have that issue, and I remember the dough was still somewhat soft (not rock hard) after 1 hr in fridge. How was yours? Did you try cutting a bit thicker too? Hmmm…. hard to know what caused it, even considering you use the same ingredients. Maybe the dough wasn’t mixed thoroughly (so some parts were dry and enough butter etc)…. I’m sorry I can’t really know for sure….

      125
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

      • because i do not have food processor, thus i mix all the ingredient by hand. i think you are right, the butter might not mixed evenly in the dough. maybe i melted the butter before mix into the dry ingredients, what do you think?
        i do not dare to cut it thicker as after baked the cookies will become bigger.

        126
        Reply to MK Moon'> Reply

        • I checked online and learned that there are recipes that use melted butter while other recipes are like this one which requires cold butter. I am not an expert in baking but I read somewhere to use cold butter for crispy texture…I might be wrong though. Do you have a pastry/dough blender? That might be helpful. I recently bought one and it works great to mix equally. Thank you so much for your feedback!

          127
          Reply to Nami'> Reply

          • Liliana Tan

            Hi, would like to share my experience. I do not have food processor so I used my hands too to blend all ingredients. I cut the butter to quite small pieces first. I baked half recipe but I used one full egg yolk.

            If I want my cookies bit softer, I normally add one more egg yolk from the original recipe. Or, if I want crispier, then, less egg yolk used.

            I really love Nami’s sesame cookies. My colleagues did not stop eating slice per slice. The taste is just perfect.

            I hope it helps. Hopefully too your next trial is successful, just don’t give up..

            Liliana Tan

            128
            Reply to Liliana Tan'> Reply

    • Hi Christopher! It’s a little bit hard to tell you what went wrong without being there, but it seems/sounds like the mixture doesn’t have enough butter or egg yolk, if the mixture is very loose. At Step 6 you see my mixture is kind of like paste, and not loose at all. You need that consistency. Hope that helps…

      133
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  110. Maya

    Ms Nami, I made them yesterday. I burnt the Hato Sabule but Sesame cookies were so nice. Mine were kind of rectangles shape and I used only white sesame seeds and added like 1 teaspoon more. Thank you so so so so much for such a delightful easy to follow recipe. You are the best. Kindest regards Maya

    134
    Reply to Maya'> Reply

  111. Maria

    Hi Nami, thank you for your lovely blog, and very informative recipes. Is there any way I can adapt this recipe for people who cannot have almonds? Have you tried it without almond meal and, if so, what other adjustments did you make?

    136
    Reply to Maria'> Reply

    • Hi Maria! Thank you for following my blog! No, I haven’t tried replacing almond meal, but you should be able to make it with just flour. I am not sure if the amount needs to be changed though.. I’m sorry I cannot help much. 🙁

      137
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

      • Maria

        Thank you for your reply! I will try making them with just flour, then, and will let you know what happens. I have made some of your recipes, and I was very proud the first time I managed to make a tamagoyaki with your recipe and the tamago pan I inherited from my (non-Japanese) grandmother: whether she ever made tamagoyaki with it remains, to this day, a mystery.

        138
        Reply to Maria'> Reply

        • Hi Maria! I hope they will come out nicely. Either way let us know if you don’t mind… maybe some readers may be interested in doing the same. 🙂

          I’m so glad you tried my tamagoyaki recipe! How interesting that your grandmother had tamagoyaki pan, and you could use her pan! 😀

          139
          Reply to Nami'> Reply

  112. Emily

    Hi Nami!
    I’ve been following your blog for the past few months and have tried some of your recipes. They’ve all turned out amazing so far!

    A question about these cookies- If I were to use black sesame paste instead of ground black sesame, what kind of adjustments would I need to make when making the cookie? Thnks!

    140
    Reply to Emily'> Reply

    • Hi Emily! I’m glad my recipes turn out well, and thank you so much for trying my recipes!

      Ohhh I wish I can answer that… but I’ve never tried it without the paste. Usually store bought black sesame paste is smooth and has liquid, so I certainly assume adjustment is necessary but cannot have good advice for that. I’m sorry Emily! These shortbread style cookies need to be more dried, so I’m not sure if that will work (I’m sure it will, but you have to adjust quite a bit I think?).

      141
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  113. Ana

    Hello!

    I need to make a better use of those sesame seeds I have because these cookies look amazing. Do you think that using yellow sugar would make them even tastier?

    142
    Reply to Ana'> Reply

  116. Would I be able to substitute the sugar for icing/powdered sugar? I quite enjoy the powdery, melt in the mouth texture it gives! Not sure how it’ll be like with these sesame cookies. Tried your green tea cookies recipe and absolutely love it!

    149
    Reply to Joy'> Reply

    • Hi Joy! I’m glad to hear the green tea cookies came out well. Thank you for trying that recipe! I think you can, but I’m not sure the amount for powder sugar as I’ve never tried before. The texture should be like green tea cookies, I think. 🙂

      150
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  117. Ivy

    I tried baking it today!! It was easy and fuss free! But it was too sweet. I will make another batch with less sugar!

    Why did i found out ur website so late >.< Hahahs!

    Thanks!

    151
    Reply to Ivy'> Reply

  118. YJ

    Can I substitute butter for something else, like macadamia butter? Macadamia butter will be more liquid and won’t be in cubes. Will that affect the texture of the cookie?

    153
    Reply to YJ'> Reply

    • Hi YJ! I’ve never used macadamia butter before and it’s hard to advice without trying it myself. Let me know if it came out successfully. I’m sure there are other people who would be interested in replacing butter with other healthier alternatives. 🙂

      154
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

    • Hi Amy! So glad to hear you liked this recipe and thanks so much for the kind feedback. 🙂

      By the way I read your recent post on your blog and really love your birthday party ideas! So pretty!

      160
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  121. Jenny

    Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! :D. I’m using a bow to mix all ingredients. I’m wondering if I melt the butter and add it directly to the mix, would it still work?

    161
    Reply to Jenny'> Reply

    • Hi Jenny! There is difference between cold cut butter and melted butter in the dough (so my answer is no). Cold butter mixes with flour and creates pockest of fat that melt and make for a lighter more airy pastry while melted butter acts more like oil. 🙂

      162
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

    • Hi Aimee! I have never tried this recipe with different flour, so I can’t tell how it will work out. Sorry Aimee! Since sesame tastes is subtle, try with GF flour first? Maybe other nut flour might be overwhelming to sesame flavors.

      169
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

  125. Susan

    Nami- I just made the cookie dough but it seems too dry. Is it supposed to be like that? It was difficult to roll it into the shape- it wasn’t sticking together…I followed the recipe exactly… 🙁

    170
    Reply to Susan'> Reply

    • Hi Susan! The texture is like butter cookies/shortbread/icebox cookies. I wouldn’t say the texture of the cookies is “dry” but it’s rather crispy cookies and not “moist and chewy” type. Maybe your dry ingredients were more than mine? I know the environment/weather affects to the dough, but shouldn’t be a drastic change I think….

      171
      Reply to Nami'> Reply

      • Susan

        They came out well, in the end, I think maybe the butter just didn’t disperse to all the dry ingredients because even after an hour in the fridge, the ends of the logs were just dry ingredients. They were good, though!

        172
        Reply to Susan'> Reply

        • Hi Susan! I see. I used to have a smaller food processor (like one in this picture) so the mixing part was tricky. Now with a big one, I have more room to spin around. 🙂 Glad to hear you enjoyed the cookies. Thank you for your kind feedback! 🙂

          173
          Reply to Nami'> Reply

  126. These are excellent, and got approval from a bunch of Japanese housewives. I’m trying out adjusting the recipe to replace the almond meal with ground black sesame to intensify the color.

    174
    Reply to Josh'> Reply

  127. Van

    I made these today. This recipe is a winner! My family’s sweet tolerance is a bit low so I might reduce the sugar level next time but these were really good when paired with tea.

    176
    Reply to Van'> Reply

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