One Tablespoon In, Twenty-Three to Go

For those who may have missed my blog post Meal Plan Mayhem: Recipes, Reminders, and a Big Jar of Tahini , let me catch you up.

It started with a meal plan. A well-meaning, overly ambitious, totally Pinterest-board-worthy meal plan that promised five nights of dinner magic. One of those meals called for a tablespoon of tahini. And because I was riding high on optimism and possibly a little hungry while grocery shopping, I ended up with a 24 oz jar of it.

For those doing the math at home:
1 tablespoon = 0.5 oz
Which means I had 23.5 ounces of sesame paste staring at me every time I opened the fridge, mocking me with its smug, oily grin.

Clearly, I had two choices:

1. Accept that this would now be my emotional support condiment.
2. Figure out how to use it in literally anything other than hummus (or, let’s be honest, in addition to hummus).

When Life Hands You Lemons… and a Bucket of Tahini

First up, I asked AI for a lemon-tahini chicken marinade. Because that sounded like something a person with a vat of tahini might do. I had chicken, I had lemons, I had a dream. The first version came back thick enough to spackle drywall — delicious, but not exactly marinade material. I had to thin it out with water or oil. Also? Salty. Like, why is this so salty? salty.

I went back to the drawing board — or rather, back to the chat — and said, “Hey AI, this is way too thick, what gives?” AI, bless its helpful little code-heart (if you’re from the South, you’ll understand my meaning), suggested thinning with water or lemon juice and balancing the salt with a little maple syrup. It worked. I had a marinade. And it was actually good.

Now, have I used this marinade on every piece of protein in my fridge? Yes.
Had I still only used maybe two more tablespoons of tahini? Also yes.

Beyond Basic Hummus

Next idea: hummus. I know, I know. It’s the obvious tahini solution. But I wasn’t about to go basic on this one. If I was going to dip into this jar again (literally and emotionally), it had to feel fun. So I asked AI for some variations: it gave me roasted red pepper, spicy jalapeño, lemon garlic, herb… even beet hummus, which I politely declined because it sounds like something a woodland fairy eats.

I landed on roasted red pepper hummus and — spoiler alert — it was delicious. Smooth, rich, and just enough bite to make it feel like an upgrade from the store-bought stuff. Even better, I used it in a Mediterranean-themed dinner that included:

• Grilled lemon-herb chicken thighs
• Quinoa with roasted veggies
• And yes, another two tablespoons of tahini

We were making progress. Slowly. Like, teaspoon-at-a-time kind of progress.

A New Culinary Era (or: How Tahini Took Over Our Life)

We’ve officially entered the “put tahini in everything” phase of our lives. Not because we’re trying to be trendy, but because the jar expires in 2 months. And, surprisingly, it’s working. The more we cook this way, the more we’re falling in love with the Mediterranean food vibe — so much so that we’ve begun casually daydreaming about running off to a remote Greek island, eating hummus and olives on a breezy veranda, and living the feta-fueled fantasy.

Realistically, we’re still here, still in the kitchen, still trying to use up the jar. But at least now there’s a theme.

I’ve added tahini to:

• Salad dressings (good!)
• Veggie dips (fine!)
• A chicken marinade that’s really good( when it’s not pasty and salty)

The takeaway? Tahini is shockingly versatile… when you’re desperate.
And AI? Surprisingly helpful — once you figure out how to ask the right questions like:

• “How do I thin this before I glue my chicken to the pan?”
• “Is this supposed to taste like sesame salt paste or am I doing it wrong?”
• “What can I make with tahini that won’t make my family mutiny?”

Final Thoughts: Is There a Support Group for This?

I’m not mad about the tahini anymore. I’ve embraced it. I’ve bonded with it. It’s a character in my kitchen now — just me, my cutting board, and a jar that refuses to empty.

And thanks to AI, what started as a condiment crisis has turned into an adventure in flavor, creativity, and asking a lot of follow-up questions. If you’ve ever found yourself holding an ingredient and thinking, what in the world do I do with this now, just know: you’re not alone. And with the right prompt, dinner might just surprise you.

Unless it’s beet hummus. You’re on your own with that one.

If you’ve got a great recipe that uses Tahini, I’m all ears, please leave it in the comments or send me an email!