Cheesecake Cookies with Black Sesame

1. Make the cheesecake filling: In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, miso or salt, lemon or yuzu juice, confectioners’ sugar, and Japanese whisky, if using, until smooth.
2. Spray or grease a standard 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or neutral oil. Drop a heaping tablespoonful of the cheesecake filling mixture into each cup of the muffin tin to make 12 portions of Freeze, uncovered, until frozen solid, at least 45 minutes.
3. Make the cookie dough: Whisk the flour, black sesame powder, baking soda, and baking powder together in a medium Set aside. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, whisk, or spatula), cream the butter, sugars, and miso together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the yogurt, egg, and black sesame paste and mix until well incorporated. Again, scrape the bowl as needed. Add the flour mixture and mix until a dough forms. Fold in the black sesame seeds.
4. Form the cookies: Use a tablespoon to scoop two 1 1/2-tablespoon dough portions onto a work surface. Lightly flour your clean hands and flatten the dough with your hands to approximately 2 1/2-inch rounds. Add a frozen piece of cheesecake filling to the center of one, and top with the second portion of dough. Roll and shape the dough into a ball, making sure it covers all the filling. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling to make twelve cookies in total. If the dough feels unmanageable, refrigerate it so it’s easier to shape and work with.
5. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place six filled dough balls evenly on each baking sheet. Sprinkle sesame seeds on the tops of each ball and slightly flatten with the bottom of a glass or measuring cup coated in sugar. Chill the assembled cookies in the refrigerator, uncovered, for
   30 minutes.
6. About 30 minutes before baking, adjust two racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
7. Bake all the cookies, switching the sheets between top and bottom racks and rotating front to back once halfway through, until the cookie edges are set and begin to brown lightly, about 16 minutes.
8. Let the cookies set and cool on the baking sheets. If you like, garnish with sea salt It’s best to enjoy these cookies warm, so the cheesecake filling is still melty.

– Excerpted from 108 Asian Cookies by Kat Lieu. Copyright © 2025 by Kathleen Lieu. Photographs by Charity Burggraaf. Used with permission from Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company.