Have you come across teff flour? It’s a gluten-free flour made from teff grain. It’s slightly nutty flavour works really well in these teff cookies, studded with chunks of dark chocolate and dried figs.
I developed the recipe a while back for Teff Tribe after experimenting with their teff products. Teff is traditionally used in Ethiopian cuisine. When ground into flour form, it’s used to make injera, which is a fermented flat bread. I also use teff flour to make my Savoury Teff Crepes.

Ivory teff flour works best in these cookies because it’s more subtle in flavour than brown teff flour. However, if you can’t get teff flour you could try using brown rice flour instead. I love the combination of dark chocolate and dried figs, but feel free to substitute your favourite chocolate and/or dried fruit.
Serves
12 cookies
Prep time
5 mins + chilling
Cook time
10 mins
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup ivory teff flour (I used Teff Tribe Ivory Teff Flour)
- Pinch of sea salt
- 1 free-range egg
- 1/3 cup extra virgin coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup rice malt syrup (or pure maple syrup)
- 2 x 20ml tablespoons tahini
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate
- 1/4 cup chopped dried figs
Method
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1Preheat your oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
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2Combine the teff flour and sea salt in a mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Crack the egg into the well and lightly whisk it with a spoon. Add the melted coconut oil, rice malt syrup, tahini and vanilla and mix everything together until well combined. Stir through the chopped dark chocolate and figs. Chill the mixture in the freezer for 20 minutes.
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3Once the mixture has firmed up, divide the mixture into 12 balls and lightly press each ball onto the lined baking tray.
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4Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Allow the cookies to cool before removing from the tray.
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5Store in an airtight container.
Notes
I recommend using ivory teff flour in this recipe as it has a slightly milder flavour than brown teff flour.
I use an Australian 20ml tablespoon. 1 x 20ml tablespoon = 4 teaspoons.