Turkish Molasses Tahini Dip

A couple days ago, my friend Olga shared a link on Facebook to a post about everyday life in Istanbul. The article was part of a series from the blog A Cup of Jo, where she interviews mothers who are raising their children outside of the US. In it, the mother described a typical Turkish breakfast, which consists of a variety of items including warm breads, cheeses, clotted cream with honey, cucumbers, olives, and (most notably) a spread made from molasses and tahini.

I had both tahini and molasses in my pantry, so I popped into my kitchen and combined a few teaspoons of each to test it out.

I was blown away!

The creamy nuttiness of the tahini (a sesame spread similar to a nut butter that's often used in hummus) went beautifully with the dark, rich sweetness of the molasses. I seasoned it with a bit of sea salt and added a dash of cayenne for heat, then served it with salty crackers.

I absolutely love this new spread and am excited to use it in new ways. Thinned with a bit of warm water, I bet it would be beautiful drizzled over strawberries. It would also be incredible on warm toast or an english muffin as a pre-workout snack.

I can even see it as a thin layer in a cake!

Seriously so many possibilities here!

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Turkish Molasses Tahini Dip
Makes 1 cup

Ingredients
1 cup Tahini
2 tablespoons molasses (if you don't have or like molasses, a dark honey or maple syrup would work well, too)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne (optional)

Directions
Combine all ingredients and whisk until smooth. If too thick, try warming it up slightly on the stove or a microwave until it stirs easily.

Feel free to adjust with a bit more molasses for a sweeter, richer flavor.