Tahini roll

Tahini roll

Alternative names	Tahinopitta, Tahinli çörek
Type	Sweet roll
Place of origin	South Caucasus, Cyprus, Greece, Turkey
Main ingredients	Dough, tahini, sugar, cinnamon

A tahini roll or tahini bread roll is a sweet pastry found commonly in the cuisines of Arab countries, Armenia, Cyprus, Greece and Turkey.

They are a popular street food in Cyprus. In the Cypriot capital of Nicosia, street vendors with carts or bikes, as well as bakeries sell tahini rolls.

Its name varies by location. In Arab countries it is known as khubz tahini. The Armenian name is Թահինով Հաց. In the Greek language it is known as ταχινόπιττα (tahinopitta) or τασιηνόπιττα (tasinopitta); in Cypriot Greek the pronunciation is "tashinopita" with a "sh" sound as opposed to "h" in mainland Greek. In the Turkish language, the general term is tahinli çörek, although in Cypriot Turkish it is known simply as tahınlı or tahınnı.

The dough includes sugar and oil and has a texture between a bread and a cookie. It is leavened with yeast and can be baked after the first rise. Sometimes the pastry may be soaked in syrup of sugar or honey, and flavored with cinnamon.

Tahini rolls are made by rolling the dough flat, spreading it with the tahini mixture, sprinkling with sugar, and rolling into a log shape. The dough is then sliced into smaller pieces and flattened to form a circle.

According to Palestinian chef Sami Tamimi, the pastry originates in Armenia.

See also

• List of bread rolls
• Tahinopita
• Sweet roll
• Fig roll