Black sesame milk chocolate cookies

I have strong opinions about London bakeries. I’ll tell anyone who will listen that Dusty Knuckle’s potato sour, morning buns and feta sesame swirl are the G.O.A.T., closely followed by Pophams’ seasonal specials and E5 Bakehouse’s sandwiches. Essentially, well-made baked goods can quite easily send me into a recipe inspiration tailspin. My most recent sweet treat discovery comes in the form of a black sesame and milk chocolate cookie from Batch Baby. Cookies from cafe counters are so often disappointing - dry, heavy on the caster sugar and low on chew or squidgy-ness. This one, not so much. The black sesame paste added a deliciously savoury feel to the otherwise quite simple cookie, and the texture contained the perfect balance of softness and crisp edges. Alongside a cold brew and with the glamorous view of Saturday night’s parked up Lime bikes - wonderful vibes.

After this lovely little baked good kept slipping in and out of my mind all week long, I decided to give it a crack at home. There are a few elements here that make this cookie recipe special:

• The mix of flours - I’ve used part plain flour and part rye flour for a malty flavour and extra bite.

• The mix of sugars - good cookies should contain a mix of golden caster and light brown sugar for the right chew, crispness and squidge levels.

• The chilling - I’m sorry to say this but the best cookie recipes always involve an element of chilling. My baking trays never fit in the freezer so I’m an advocate of fridge-chill methods.

• The banging - To get the best crackly top, bang the pan part way through cooking before returning to the oven to watch the magic happen.

A note before starting: you’ll need to chill the dough for at least 3 hours before you bake the cookies, so make sure to factor that in!

Makes 12 cookies

120g salted butter
100g black sesame seeds
1 tsp honey
150g plain flour
50g rye flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
125g golden caster sugar
175g light brown soft sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 medium eggs
100g milk chocolate, chopped
1 tbsp white sesame seeds

1. Put the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Let it melt, foam and turn brown - the butter should smell nutty but not burnt. Set aside to cool.

2. Put the black sesame seeds in a small food processor with the honey, reserving 1 tbsp for garnish. Blitz until a rough paste forms - it’s ok if it’s not completely smooth. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, add the flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Mix well with a spatula or wooden spoon.

4. In a smaller bowl, add the sugars, melted butter, vanilla extract and eggs. Mix well with a spatula or wooden spoon, then pour into the dry ingredients bowl. Mix together until no streaks of flour remain.

5. Add the chocolate chunks and black sesame paste, stirring until just combined - you don’t want to over-mix. Put in the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours or overnight (you can chill the mixture for up to 24 hours, if needed).

6. Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan) gas mark 4. Line three large baking trays with baking parchment.

7. Spoon out 75g of the cookie dough and roll between your hands to make a smooth ball. Repeat with the rest of the dough until you have 12 cookies (4 per baking tray).

8. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and bang it on a heatproof countertop twice - this is what gives the cookies a crinkly texture. Return the trays to the oven for a further 6 minutes. Then, leave the cookies to cool on the tray for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire tray (or digging in…).

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