Chess Pie – delicious. We have traveled down the chess pie lane with you before, in fact, it was this time last year we posted our Chess Pie Bars. Chess Pie is southern in nature, something found at many a barbecue or family picnic. The name Chess Pie itself is a bit of a mystery. There appears to be no definitive explanation. Some say that the word “chess” is really the Americaization of the English word for cheese. It is believed, by some, that English lemon curd pie filling is relatively close to chess pie. The word cheese is turned to chess. Chess pie becomes, due to the curd or custard, a cheese-less cheesecake. It this the true story for the naming of this decadent dessert? I don’t know. I do know that this explanation and many others out there just add to the alluring folklore that is Chess Pie.
The Chocolate Tahini Chess Bar recipe is a take on our Chess Pie Bars – the delicious dessert that resembles a shortbread and gooey butter cake mashup (drool….). This new version of the chess pie bars came about as Kyle was flipping through the cookbook Sweet, the dessert-centric recipe collection from famed Chef Yotam Ottolenghi (who brought us the delicious Beet Puree with Za’atar and Fresh Corn Polenta with Eggplant Sauce).
Just a quick sidebar – we cannot say enough about the recipes and this book in general. Once you browse the pages on your own you will see a book filled with drool-inducing photographs and recipes that boast unique and intriguing favor combinations. Sweet is a page-turner of a cookbook where each recipe looks more enticing than the next.
The Chocolate Tahini Chess Bars recipe came about when Kyle got to the page with the Tahini and Halva Brownies. While tahini and chocolate may seem like an unorthodox pairing, the nuttiness of tahini pairs with chocolate in a way that resembles a striking riff on the classic chocolate-peanut butter combination. When setting out to gluten-free-ify the Tahini Brownies, Kyle did a quick Google search – it yielded so many of recipes for Tahini Swirl Brownies (many of which were also gluten free), that his excitement was somewhat quelled.
Of course Kyle still had the tahini-chocolate combination on his brain. He wasn’t giving up, he just really wanted to take the recipe in a different direction. Then, his old friend, the Chess Pie Bars, sprang to mind. Since he felt he had abandoned his old friend for far too long, he knew it was time to start testing out amazing ways to amp up the fabulousness of the chess!
To make the chocolate rendition of the Chess Bars, Kyle added some melted chocolate and cocoa powder to the cream cheese base. Normally he utilizes semi-sweet or dark chocolate varieties, but for these bars he decided on milk chocolate. He felt like the milk chocolate would best compliment the sweet-richness of the bars and the savory, nutty flavor of the tahini.
While Kyle reduced the sugar from the original Chess Bar recipe, in the future, he may even further reduce the sugar by 1/4 cup. These bars weren’t overly sweet, but they definitely are unapologetically rich, and the chocolate version would not suffer by dialing back the sugar a tad further.
After taking the photos for the blog, he cut all the squares in half on the diagonal to form smaller triangles. Now Kyle has created an even more snack-able portion – so let the binging begin!
Whether you are snack binging these treats or making them for your next gathering of family and friends, the Chocolate Tahini Chess Bars are going to more than satisfy everyone’s sweet tooth. For a night at home they can be paired with coffee, tea, a glass of milk, or even an Expresso Rumchata Martini (why not?). Sweet dreams and cravings to you!
Inspired by Sweet and Food & Wine.
- 10 ounces (about 2 cups) gluten-free all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 10 ½ ounces (1½ cups) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- One 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
- 4 ounces milk chocolate, (I used about ½ cup chocolate chips) melted
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 10 ounces (about 1 ½ cups) confectioners’ sugar, sifted and divided, plus more for garnish
- Pinch sea salt
- For the tahini swirl
- ½ cup tahini paste
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- Reserved confectioners sugar
- 1 tablespoon milk
- pinch sea salt
- Heat the oven to 350°. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with parchment paper and spray evenly with baking spray.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt. Put the granulated sugar, butter, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy.
- Add 1 of the eggs and beat until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until the dough just comes together and is smooth. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking dish and use your fingers to press it evenly into the bottom.
- In a bowl, beat the cream cheese with a handheld mixer on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy; add the melted chocolate and cocoa powder and mix to combine; add the remaining 3 eggs one at a time, beating well after each, until the mixture is smooth. Add the confectioners’ sugar (reserving ¼ cup for the tahini swirl) and sea salt and beat on low speed until smooth (don’t worry if a few lumps remain.)
- Pour the mixture over the dough in the baking dish and spread out evenly with a rubber spatula.
- For the tahini swirl, mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Dollop over the chocolate layer. Using a small offset spatula or butter knife, swirl the tahini into the chocolate layer. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the top is lightly browned, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely, then cut into about 32 small squares. Sprinkle with extra confectioner’s sugar.
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