Cornmeal Shortbread Cookies
Ever since I was a child, I’ve had a love for shortbread cookies. I basically grew up on Walker’s Scottish shortbread. Fast-forward decades, I had a craving for shortbread, but I couldn't find one that satisfied my craving. So, I tore apart my kitchen, trying to craft the perfect shortbread recipe. After trying a batch with almond flour and another with heavy whipping cream, I was about to throw in the towel. But then, I struck on the perfect balance of butter, sugar, and flour, with the key ingredients being the high-quality butter, pasture-raised eggs, and cornmeal. It’s not a traditional shortbread cookie, but I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Ingredients
- 7 T. cold butter, I prefer Kerrygold unsalted, see note.
- 6 T. white granulated sugar for dough (¼ cup and 2 T)
- 1-2 T. sugar to sprinkle on top
- 2 egg yolks, I prefer pasture-raised
- 1 t. real vanilla extract (not imitation)
- 1 t. lemon zest
- 2/3 cup cornmeal
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ t. baking powder
- ¼ t. sea salt
- Note: this recipe turns out best with high-quality butter, like Kerrygold's, and pasture-raised eggs since they're the star ingredients.
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat the oven to 350° F.
- Step 2 In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and 6 T. sugar with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes or until creamy. Next, add the egg yolks, vanilla, and lemon zest and beat until fluffy.
- Step 3 In a separate mixing bowl, measure out the cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until well combined.
- Step 4 Combine the ingredients. Fold the ingredients from step 1 (the butter, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla, and lemon zest) into the ingredients from step 2 (the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt). Mix until blended. The dough should be moist and sticky, not dry and flaky. See photo below for the dough at its optimum consistency.
- Step 5 Bake the cookies. Grease a baking sheet with butter and form the dough to any shape of your liking. I form ten 2” wide by ½” thick flattened disks. Sprinkle with a little sugar on top. Bake for approximately 14-15 minutes or until edges have turned golden brown. Cookies are best the day of but can be enjoyed up to one week if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
This sweet delight is a treat with your morning coffee or a goodie to top off your evening dinner. The rich taste of the butter, combined with the egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest, and cornmeal, make this a mouth-watering morsel to have in your repertoire.
Nutritional Information: serving size: 1 cookie, servings per recipe: 9, calories: 204, total fat: 10.39 g., saturated fat: 6.1 g., cholesterol: g., sodium: mg., total carbohydrate: 25.72 g., dietary fiber: 1 g., total sugars: 10.59 g., protein: 2.51 g., calcium: 22 mg., iron: 0.93 mg., potassium: 74 mg., magnesium: 14 mg., vitamin D: 15 IU, vitamin C: 0.2 mg., vitamin B-1: 0.1 mg., folate: 27 µg.