Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Lemony Cornmeal Shortbread


One thing I've learned as a member of Tuesdays with Dorie is to expect the unexpected. Even if I think I know how a recipe will taste, this isn't always the case. Take this week's pick, cornmeal shortbread cookies, picked by Valerie of Une Gamine dans la Cuisine. My last experience with cornmeal in cookies was with these biscotti, which I made when I first joined the group. I was still pretty clueless, I just didn't know it.

The crunchiness of the cornmeal in the biscotti was texturally challenging for me, and this time I wanted to overcome that issue. So I made the dough two days ago and let it rest - and hydrate - in the fridge. I rolled it a little too thin, and baked the cookies a little too long, but they were delicious. The lemon zest lent a lovely floral back note. The cornmeal added a pleasant crunch without being distractingly hard, a real win-win.

If you'd like to make these unusual cookies, Valerie has the recipe (and cookies look the way Dorie intended!) for you here. And you can see what the other TWD bakers thought by checking them out here.

12 comments:

Jessica of My Baking Heart said...

Love the cookies and love the plate! Beautiful!! :)

Tia said...

they look delicate and i bet the lemon was fantasitc!

Buttercreambarbie

Mary said...

I think expect the unexpected is a good life motto as well as baking motto.

Unknown said...

I love your plate Leslie - where did you get it? Thanks for the tip on the cornmeal, I will absolutely try that next time because I wasn't a huge fan of the texture of the cornmeal either.

Bella Baker said...

The cookies look beautiful!!! Glad you enjoyed them! I thought they were great!

margot said...

Win-win, indeed! I also thought these were really good. Yours look lovely, that is a great plate. It's really easy to roll shortbread a little too thin, isn't it? I've had some not-so-great experiences doing that.

Di said...

Good idea to let the dough rest like that. I also found that the texture of the cookies was better on the 2nd day, for the same reason. =)

Anonymous said...

Great idea to leave the dough in the fridge for a couple of days. I liked these more than I thought I would - it's hard not to like shortbread!

Katrina said...

I love the Lenox almond biscotti and I love these cornmeal shortbread cookies--enough to get rid of them asap! ;)

Mary said...

Great tips for hydrating the cornmeal--I was definitely intrigued by the taste of these cookies, so I'll make the dough in advance next time. And use fine cornmeal! Your cookies look perfect to me--I love the squares--they have a modern but homey look.
:)

Chats the Comfy Cook said...

What a delicate and welcoming cookie. I have to make this one up.

Nancy/n.o.e said...

I'm so glad that this time around you liked your corn meal experience! We enjoyed the shortbread more than the biscotti also.