Turkish Sesame Cookies- From Betty Tellers Amuse Bouche article

One of my favorites from Judy's repertoire this weekend was these crunchy, airy cookies that are perfect with a cup of tea or coffee.

Judy couldn't recall where she got this recipe, so I must apologize to and thank the anonymous (to us) person who was kind enough to include it in his or her cookbook or blog. These bite-sized treats are a find, and too good not to share more widely. The use of tahini as well as sesame seeds gives them a lovely sesame flavor.

*1 1/4 cups flour *1/2 tsp. baking powder *1/4 tsp. salt *1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature *1/2 cup sugar *1/2 cup well-stirred tahini *1 tsp. vanilla *1/3 cup hulled sesame seeds

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.

With an electric mixer at medium-high speed, cream the butter and sugar and beat until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Then beat in tahini and vanilla.

Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 2 batches, mixing until a crumbly dough forms.

Transfer dough to a sheet of plastic wrap and press into a disk. Chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350 F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place sesame seeds in a small bowl. Roll dough into 1-inch balls (about the size of a small walnut), then roll each ball in the seeds to coat. Place them 2 inches apart on the baking sheets.

Bake, switching position of the baking sheets after about 7 minutes (turning them and moving them from top to bottom), until cookies are puffed and starting to crack, 12 to 15 minutes total.

Cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes (they will be very fragile when hot), then transfer to a rack to fully cool.

Makes about 2 dozen