Chocolate Date Filling

1/2 cup (80g) coarsely chopped soft dates

1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey

3 tablespoons (45ml) fresh orange juice

1/8 teaspoon orange zest (optional)

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

50g chopped dark chocolate (70% or more)

Almost 1 tablespoon (10g) unsalted butter or coconut oil

Cookie Dough

1/2 cup (110g) unsalted butter (for coconut oil see notes above)

1 cup (120g) whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup (60g) whole rye flour (or more whole wheat flour)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup (150g) coconut sugar or brown sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

Coating

30-40 g raw sesame seeds

1. Start by making the filling as it needs at least an hour to become firm enough to roll into balls.  Place the dates in a small saucepan with the maple syrup/honey, orange juice, zest, and cardamom. Warm up over medium heat and let simmer for a few minutes until the dates soften. Remove from the heat and add the butter/coconut oil and chopped chocolate and stir until both are melted, mashing the dates as well, until you get a thick paste. Cover and place in the fridge until ready to roll into balls, 1-2 hours. Pinch off around 15-18g ( about 1 tablespoon) of the filling and roll into a ball, you should have 10 in total. If it’s soft, spoon onto a tray and place in the freezer to firm up then roll again. Place back in the freezer or fridge while you make the cookie dough.
2. To make the dough, brown the butter. Place the butter in a small saucepan and heat over low to medium heat until the butter melts and starts to bubble. Leave it to simmer for several minutes swirling the pan a few times until it starts to brown. Remove it from the heat and transfer to a medium bowl to cool for 15 minutes.
3. If you are planning to bake the cookies straight away, pre-heat the oven to 375F or 190C and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. Meanwhile, in a large bowl sift together both types of flour, baking powder, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Mix and set aside.
5. To the now-cooled butter, add the sugar, egg and vanilla and whisk to combine, then pour over the dry ingredients and fold until no flour remains.
6. Divide the cookie dough into 10 equal portions. Make a well in the centre of each cookie dough portion and insert one of the date chocolate balls, then pinch to close the now stuffed cookie, rolling it to form a ball. Straight away roll into the sesame seeds and set aside. Continue with the remaining dough. If you are not planning to bake straight away, at this stage place the rolled cookies into a sealed container in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for a month.
7. To bake, place the cookies on the baking sheet, spacing them 2 inches apart, and bake for 10 minutes. At this stage the middle of the cookie will be rounded, just press down on it gently with a flat metal spatula, then continue to bake for 4-6 minutes more, until the edges have browned. Cool for 5 minutes to firm and serve warm or at room temperature.