Cumin-Cinnamon Shortbread
These melt-in-your-mouth cookies are the perfect little treat to enjoy with a cup of tea. They have the buttery, crumbly texture of shortbread, and are immensely improved with the addition of warming cinnamon and musky cumin. Do yourself a favour, double the recipe and put half the dough in the freezer for future use. You may never be able to eat plain shortbread again!
Yield: 30 cookies
Time: 25 min
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
6 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsps grated lemon zest
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cumin seeds, whole + 1Tbsp cracked cumin seeds
1/8 tsp cayenne
1 cup unsalted butter, softened slightly and cut into pieces
1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Add the flour, sugar, salt, lemon zest, cinnamon, 1 tsp cumin seeds and cayenne in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and vanilla and pulse until mixture just forms a dough.
- Place the dough on a work surface and shape into 1-inch balls. Place them 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets and flatten each cookie with the palm of your hand. Sprinkle a few of the cracked cumin seeds on top of each ball pressing them lightly into the dough.
- Bake until lightly browned, about 15 to 20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. Remove from the tray and place them on a rack to cool.