Tahini Baby!
I never thought I would say this but…I LOVE tahini. Raw, unadulterated sesame seeds morph into delicious tahini. Due to my transition to a more raw diet I decided one day to buy tahini but not the unmarked one at the local grocery store. I wanted the creme de la creme. So after perusing the shelves of my local organic grocery store I saw Artisana’s Raw Tahini. Honestly, I did not think it would taste that much different from the roasted tahini I normally buy BUT it did. Maybe I’ve turned into some kind of tahini snob but my taste buds have been transformed. I guess that is the beauty of raw food, it tastes so much better (well at least to me!).
My only complaint about my beloved tahini is that it costs an arm and a leg. My grocery bills have gone up in the last few months. I’m not complaining because I keep thinking “pay now or pay later with your health” but I can no longer buy $15 jars of tahini every week along with $10 jars of raw almond butter. So I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to buy a food processor to make my own.
Trial #1: Bullet Express Trial
So I’ve been antsy to make my own seed/nut butter since I saw, and actually absorbed the fact that I’ve been splurging in the name of raw deliciousness (not a bad splurge but I can control it). Note to others, greens are your best friends and everything else is icing. So I am trying to get my icing at a fraction of the cost 🙂 What can I say raw icing is just worth the effort 🙂
Last night my fiance (who by the way eats a whole jar of raw almond butter per week and some of my raw tahini) wanted to get his icing. So he suggested we use our bullet express and see what would happen. So I anxiously poured in a 200g of raw dehydrated Spanish almonds (unpasteurized unlike those ‘raw’ California ones they make you believe are raw!) and some walnuts. We blended and blended and at the end we were rewarded with an almond-walnut butter. It was smooth and buttery. SUCCESS well…our bullet is on it’s last leg and I am hoping to buy a food processor in the near near future (read: this weekend so I can make raw tahini:) I’ve been reading tons of blogs and a food processor seems more suitable to nut butters rather than a blender (but I am still eying a vitamix for Christmas)
Result: nut butter! YAY! but too noisy with our on it’s last-leg bullet, BOO!
Trial #2: Vitamix
We got a vitamix and making raw tahini and almond butter has never been easier. I load this baby up with 2 cups of seeds or nuts (sprouted and dehydrated is the best!) and crank the vitamix to 10 and high and use the plunger to get any creepy crawlies on the sides. After about a minute a paste should be forming. At this point I usually turn the vitamix off and start it from zero again. I let it blend for about 30 seconds at 5 and watch the pure magic.
Result: Yummy and easy.
More about Tahini:
- Very high in Calcium (YAY no dairy!) and Iron (YAY no meat!)
- So delicious http://www.artisanafoods.com/products/tahini
- Check this out for more info on that magical seed I love: http://www.naturalnews.com/026409_tahini_calcium_cancer.html
Hope you love tahini as much as I do. Your bones and more importantly your taste buds will thank you 🙂
Hi Michelle, thanks for the great info and write up. What is the shelf life of the tahini you make? I’d assume if the seeds are not dehydrated like yours, the shelf life would be less? Also do you add olive oil or any other additives? Salt?
Hi Raczyk, thanks for stopping by!
When I make tahini it is usually gone in a few days but from what I understand once the tahini starts to separate into a solid and oily compartment OR the oil smells off then it is not longer good. The time frame for this is usually after 6 months.
If you use soaked seeds that are still wet then the tahini would only last a few days to a week.
I don’t add any other ingredients because I use it as a base for other sauces or just plain on vegetables BUT I feel that adding salt, maple syrup or even chunks of dates would be yummy 🙂
Good luck and let me know how it turns out!
~Michelle
Hello Michelle!! Great Page!! Photos and sharing your Info and Work results!! I bought a 3 pound bag of Raw Hulled Sesame Seeds…..I didn’t know that they were “NOT” Toasted when I bought them. The whole reason that I bought them was to make my own Tahini in order to make my Own “Hummus”……but I realized at home that the Seeds are Raw. I didn’t really feel like Roasting them…I just wanted to make my Hummus, in which I need the Tahini first, since it’s one of the Main Ingredients. I found your page when I began searching for a Possible way to maybe make “RAW Tahini”……as I’ve never had it, and have the Raw Seeds. Could I just make the Tahini with the Raw Hulled Sesame Seeds as they are now?? Or do I have to “Soak” and then Roast or DeHydrate the Seeds?? Again, my main purpose is to make Hummus….so need to make this Tahini first. But also, since you mentioned RAW Almond Butter…..I also bought a 4 Pound Bag of “Raw Almonds” to begin making Almond Milk with my Vitamix……but would be willing to try Raw Almond Butter Also!! I already make Regular Homemade Almond Butter, with Roasted Almonds in my Vitamix, and it comes out “Perfectly” and Excellent!! Can Raw Almond Butter be made by just using the “Raw Almonds” in the same way as I do with Roasted Almonds in my Vitamix?? Or do you have to “Soak and then Roast” the Almonds first??? I really appreciate your Feedback, Response!! And again, Thank You for Sharing!!! The Vitamix is an Awesome Machine!!! I Love it!! Have been using mine since new in 1992……..Still was operating like new…..Got New Container-Blade…..I have Both, The “Wet” and the “Dry” Containers……Thx, Ray!!