Corn Meal and Lime Cookies

Since I was in the mood to bake, and with an audience of taste testers at a birthday party later that evening, I decided to add to a menu that already included Coconut Macaroons (in case they did not go over well) and also make the Cornmeal-Lime Cookies from Joann Chang's Flour cookbook.  Nick loves lime flavoring and had been wanting to try these for a while, so why not give it a go?  I was curious to see how the consistency with the cornmeal in cookie would taste, but the flavors sounded delicious.

The Ingredients

To begin, I creamed the butter and the sugar for about 5 minutes (which seemed like a long time!).  A couple of times, I went in and scraped down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything was fully combined.

creaming...

Next, I added the lime zest and continued to beat for another 5 minutes.  According to Joanne Change, by beating the lime zest, you are actually releasing its delicious citrus flavor.

Lime Zest always adds the BEST color

I added the eggs and vanilla and beat for another 2 or 3 minutes.  Again, I stopped the beating a couple times to scrap down the sides of the bowl.

Eggs and Vanilla

While the the dough was mixing away, I combined, the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.  I slowly added the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and continued to mix it until eveything was fully incorporated.

Yummy dough

Of course, wanting to be able to give my full opinion of all aspects of the cookie process, I tasted the dough and it was really tasty!  I loved the corn meal texture.  I scooped out a generous tablespoon, formed a ball and dropped it onto a baking sheet, flattening each ball a bit with my hand.  Once the cookie sheet was full, I placed it in a 350 degree oven for about 23 minutes. 

Baking away

You can tell when the cookies are done by touching the top to make sure it is nice and firm - the tops should not brown.  After the sheet sat on top of a cooling rack for about 20 minutes, then I took the cookies off the sheet to cool some more. 

Cooling cookies

While the cookies were cooling fully, I got started on the glaze.

The Ingredients

In a small bowl, I whisked together some confectioner's sugar, water, lime juice and lime zest until everything was nice and smooth.

Glaze Components...

...into a bowl of glaze!

Using my pastry brush, I painted a thin layer of the glaze over each of the cookies.  I had Nick taste a cookie after 1 glaze layer, but he thought another layer would take the flavor up a notch so I added another. 

Glazing the cookies

These cookies offered a great flavor and texture that was different than the norm.  The addition of the cornmeal really made for a surprising bite.  People really could not put their finger of the ingredient but really liked it.  The lime flavoring was really strong - crisp and clean.  If your audience is a strict chocolate chip-eating crowd, this cookie may not be for them.  If you have a group who are a bit more adventuresome, though, this is a perfect fit!