WW Recipe of the Day: Italian Sesame Seed Cookies
(73 calories | 3 3 3 myWW *SmartPoints value per serving)
I first made these little Italian sesame seed cookies back in 2006, while on a Vermont Culinary Vacation with my sister and had completely forgotten about them until recently.
Italian Sesame Seed Cookies – 3 WW Freestyle SmartPoints
The Skinny on Italian Sesame Seed Cookies
Easy to make cookies are one of my favorite skinny & delicious sweet treats. Because they’re naturally portion-controlled, they’re perfect when you’re trying to watch your weight.
These crisp, not-too-sweet Italian cookies have a rich and addictive nutty sesame flavor and delicate crunch. In Sicily, such Biscotti di Regina are made with butter and white flour, but this version, with olive oil and part whole-wheat pastry flour, is just as delicious.
Italian Sesame Seed Cookies
According to my calculations, each Italian cookie has 73 calories and:
3 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
3 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
3 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
2 *PointsPlus (Old plan)
They’re great as an afternoon treat with coffee, tea or espresso. Enjoy!
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Italian Sesame Seed Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup white, hulled sesame seeds
- 1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup mild extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Position an oven rack in the center and preheat oven to 350F degrees.
- On an ungreased cookie sheet, toast the sesame seeds for about 10 minutes, or until golden.
- Remove cookie sheet from the oven and immediately transfer the sesame seeds to a small plate.
- In a large bowl mix the flours, sugar, baking powder and salt together and then sift to make sure that everything is well blended.
- In another bowl, beat the egg and then add the olive oil and vanilla and beat until well blended.
- Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir and then knead by hand to make a smooth dough. (It will be slightly crumbly, but will hold together.)
- Pinch of pieces of dough that are about a tablespoon in volume, and then roll them between your hands into fat little logs that are about 1-1/2 inches long and 3/4-inch thick.
- Roll each log in the sesame seeds, tamping the ends in the seeds to finish them.
- Lay the cookie logs on the prepared baking sheet about inch apart.
- Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, until golden.
- Remove from the oven and place the baking sheet on a rack to cool.
- These cookies will keep well in a tightly closed tin.
Recipe Notes
*PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.
If you like Italian Sesame Seed Cookies, you might also like:
- Homemade Fig Newton Bars Recipe
So much better than store-bought with 3 WW Freestyle SmartPoints. - Wheaties Coconut Cookies Recipe
Sweet, crispy, chewy and delicious with 4 WW Freestyle SmartPoints. - Moist Chewy Low-Fat Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Bars Recipe
Easy & delicious with 7 WW Freestyle SmartPoints.
Martha is the founder and main content writer for Simple-Nourished-Living.
A longtime lifetime WW at goal, she is committed to balancing her love of food and desire to stay slim while savoring life and helping others do the same.
She is the author of the Smart Start 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.
A huge fan of the slow cooker and confessed cookbook addict, when she's not experimenting in the kitchen, you're likely to find Martha on her yoga mat.
This post contains affiliate links to products I like. When you buy something through one of my Amazon links or other (affiliate links), I receive a small commission that helps support this site. Thank you for your purchase!
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Hi, I'm Martha. Simple Nourished Living chronicles the easy and delicious Weight Watchers friendly recipes, tips & hints that help me balance my love of food and desire to be happy, healthy and slim. 
sangeeta khanna
Looking at the pictures, I thought they are similar to the roasted sesame brittle we make. The cookies look real good.
Julie
These cookies are beautiful! I love sesame, and have quite a large container in my pantry. These are on my list of things to try.
Culinary vacation sounds like a dream come true. Thanks for sharing.
– Julie