Monday, February 20, 2006

Bringing some spice to the cookies...

When I'm searching for or coming up with a recipe, especially sweets, I love to seek out unusual spices or ingredients we don't often use. Today's cookie is pretty different than what we have made in the past by the combination of ingredients and the method used.

Cardamom-Lemon Polenta Cookies are firm, dense and have a toothsome texture from cornmeal. I only had white cornmeal on had, but you could certainly use yellow. The cardamom flavor is very upfront in these wedges with a subtle nuttiness coming from ground toasted almonds. I couldn't so much taste the lemon zest, but felt it just enhanced the rest of the flavors coming through. Cardamom is a pretty strong flavor and could easily become overpowering so measure carefully here. The cookies come together easily in the food processor which make these quite fast to prepare. As the cornmeal brings a bit of crunch and makes them on the drier side, I think some macerated berries would be perfect to serve on top.

We have made a couple broccoli filled pies before, but the one we made tonight moved right past them to become a favorite. Broccoli-Cheese Pie differs from the others as it has a crunchy panko coating on the outside and the egg mixture soaks with cubed whole wheat bread to add a heartier texture. Lean Canadian bacon lends a smoky flavor that goes well with just enough spice from Frank's Red Hot sauce. Pancetta or ham would be a good substitute if you want to use something else.


8 comments:

  1. Everything looks so beautiful.

    Thanks for sharing

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  2. I really like cornmeal in cookies...it lends some nice texture to the finished product. Your cookies look fantastic!

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  3. Excellent recipe for the broccoli. We love broccoli!

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  4. Yum! I've been experimenting with cardamom in desserts lately, too. I've had the best success with it in creamy things - caradmom creme brulee and cardamom whipped cream, which I served with - you guessed it - pie.

    Great post. I so enjoy your blog. Thanks!

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  5. Ruth - Thanks!

    Canadian Baker - I started using it in baked good a few months ago and love it!

    Michele - Thanks! Big broccoli fans here too!

    Kate - Yum! That sounds soo good!

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  6. i am a huge cardamom fan. these sound delish. keep up the great work (as usual)!

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  7. i made a batch of your cardamom-lemon polenta cookies but tweaked the recipe a bit - i used pistachios instead of almonds and canola oil instead of butter, but they managed to come out spectacularly well! thanks for the yummy recipe. :)

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  8. EP - Thanks!

    aayesha - Your changes sound like a great combination! Thanks for letting me know!

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