This wonderful cookie is inspired by the cornmeal butter cookies made by Italian bakers in Italy and America alike. I first sampled a cornmeal cookie many moons ago in a small Italian bakery in San Francisco.
As I recall, the bakery featured half a dozen or more varieties of cornmeal cookies. I was enthralled because the notion of adding cornmeal to cookie dough had never occurred to me. (This was before all the great Italian baking books that widened our horizons a few years later.)
I loved the corn flavor and the open, crunchy texture immediately. Since then, I’ve created many riffs on this traditional cookie, but this is my new favorite.
TECHNIQUE NOTETo make these cookies extra easy, I used my favorite, no hassle shaping technique, which does, however, require a #70 scoop (available in kitchenware stores). If you prefer to roll the dough out on a lightly floured pastry cloth using a cloth covered rolling pin, and then cut them out with cookie cutters, that is certainly an option.
BAKING NOTE For best results, cookies should be COLD when they go into the oven. Otherwise, they may spread too much. Always give cookies plenty of space to spread regardless, at least an inch between cookies. Baking times are APPROXIMATE. Correct baking times are critical to the success of your cookies.
Test your oven and pan setup with a few cookies to start with and watch the timing closely. Dark pans bake faster than light pans or air-sandwiched pans. Silicon mat-lined pans bake faster than parchment-lined pans. Cookies that are rolled to 1/8-inch thick bake faster than cookies rolled to ¼-inch thick. And your oven may be running hot or cold. There are so many variables. Do test a couple of cookies first. It may save an entire batch later.
2½ cups King Arthur unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 cup fine cornmeal
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
1½ cups fresh unsalted butter, at cool room temperature (3 cubes)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced
Finishing
coarsely ground black pepper
clear sugar sprinkles (I used Wilton’s Pearlized Sprinkles)
- In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour add the cornmeal and salt. Whisk the mixture well to evenly distribute. Reserve.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar.
- Add the almond extract, pepper, and rosemary, and incorporate.
- Add the flour mixture and mix very briefly on very slow speed, just until a dough forms.
- Using a #70 scoop (1 tablespoon) with a release mechanism, scoop balls of dough, leveling each ball with the edges of the scoop. (Thus each ball will have one flat surface.)
- You can arrange the dough balls closely together on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for as long as a couple of days, or proceed immediately to baking.
- Coat a baking sheet lightly with vegetable spray. Arrange 12 cookie balls, flat sides down, 2 inches apart, on the baking sheet.
- Lay a sheet of waxed paper over the cookies and using a meat pounder or other heavy, flat object, gently flatten each cookie ball to a ¼-inch thickness.
- Coarsely grind black pepper over each cookie and then sprinkle each cookie with clearsprinkles.
- Bake each sheet of cookies at 350° for about 15 minutes, rotating the pan at the halfway point to ensure even browning.
- Remove from the oven, loosen each cookie with a thin spatula and let cool for 3-4 minutes on the pan. Remove cookies from the cookie sheet and place on a wire rack and cool completely.
- Store airtight, in layers separated by wax paper rounds, in a cookie tin in a cool, dry place. These cookies improve with age. They keep for 3-4 weeks. Cookies may also be frozen.
Makes about 6 dozen, 2¼-inch diameter cookies.
Copyright 2009 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.
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About Susan S. Bradley
Intrepid cook, food writer, culinary instructor, creator of the LunaCafe blog, author of Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cooking, and former director of the Northwest Culinary Academy.
Reader Interactions
Comments
bethanyLoved these cookies the past couple of years but did not save the recipe, only the site. Now when I go to “jump to recipe” it comes up “Not Found”. Is there another way to access this recipe?
Bethany, thanks for the heads up! The link went wonky. I just corrected it, so please try again. Happy baking! 🙂
- FSC
Hi there, stumbled on to this via a Google search “weird cookies” or “unusual cookies”. I was searching for something really different to enter into my company’s annual cookie-off. It felt odd putting in freshly ground pepper into unsalted butter and sugar, but I did it. They came out great! And I won an Honorable Mention in our contest. Thanks!
Honorable mention? Are you kidding? These cookies are mind blowing. 🙂
- Mary Piccione
This is delicious, but was very unpopular with the 7 and 3 year old (despite putting all his food under a cloud of black pepper or bacon hotsauce, the 7yo declared them too spicy so the 3 yo wouldn’t try them).
So I did some minor modifications. Now we make half the recipe lemon poppyseed, half rosemary black pepper. delicious both ways and now everyone is happy!Mary, yes, these really aren’t kid cookies. Glad you were able to figure out a way to make everyone happy. 🙂
- Janet
I must admit I was skeptical about these. I made them this morning at a cookie baking party with some friends, and we were all amazed! So good! And very easy!
Janet, I know they sound weird but so glad you tried and liked them. They’re one of my favorite cookies. 🙂
Thanks for your fast reply!… But I couldn’t wait 🙂 so I made them with the almond extract I had at home (which is from bitter almonds) and they turned out delicious!! We don’t have (in Sweden) the kind of sugar sprinkles you used so I used what we have (if yours look like ice in the color, ours look like snow – does that explanation make sense?) but I will have to find something else to use since it looks kind of weird 🙂 I can send you a picture if you want to see the outcome.
However, Thank You So Much For The Recipe! I totally love it. I like the idea of combining the sweet with the not so sweet. Love it!Hi!
I have been thinking for a long time that one should be able to make cookies seasoned with black pepper (I love course black pepper!) and happily I found your recipe, so I thought I’d try this recipe but I have one question: is it almond extract from bitter almonds of from “regular” almonds that you use in the recipe? Since I am in Sweden I will do a version of this recipe (keeping it real as much as possible considering the difference in measurements and ingredients available).
Best, Nina- Susan S. Bradley
Nina, the almond extact is a bottled flavoring (like vanilla extract). I believe it’s made from regular almonds.
I love this! Such a good flavor combo, can’t wait to try these.
- Susan S. Bradley
Rachel, you will love these cookies. Let me know how they turn out for you.
- Dakotagal
Nice! I have a few rosemary plants and haven’t done much with them this year– what a nice alternative take! The pepper adds such a nice dimension! They baked up relatively easy also. Winner!
- Susan S. Bradley
Dakotagal, thank you! I adore these cookies. 🙂
- Renee
I made these and almost cried with joy. They are delicious. Thanks for sharing!
- sms bradley
Bless your heart, Renee! I felt that rush of joy too when I tasted that first pan of black pepper cookies from the oven. They really are that good. 🙂
Very nice! I like that combination of flavors, and the striking crystals of sugar.
.-= Nate´s last blog ..Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe =-.- sms bradley
Hi Patti! No, use regular black pepper. I found this smoked pepper at Whole Foods and have been experimenting with it. I like the flavor of regular pepper better for these cookies however. Happy baking! 🙂
- Patti
I remember the interesting combination of pepper in cookies from your classes at NWCA. These will be awesome and I can’t wait to try them. In the picture of the ingredients on the tray I noticed the pepper is “Smoked”? I’ve never seen smoked black peppercorns. Must I use this kind if I can’t find it?
- sms bradley
If you follow the step-by-step directions, your cookies will turn out exactly as mine did. 🙂
- sms bradley
Beth, thank you! It’s wonderful that you are so creative and free in your cooking. It is an art form, like any other, and once the basic techniques are mastered, creativity should be the goal. I am surprised, however, that the olive oil gave you a great texture. You must have hit upon the magic proportion with half butter and half oil. I have never made an all oil cookie that I liked. Bravo! 🙂
- Beth
This is a great recipe. I made them last night, though I made some changes, because I’m terrible at actually following a recipe:
whole wheat flour instead of all purpose
1.5 tsp dried rosemary instead of fresh
regular organic sugar for the sprinkles
no almond extract (I didn’t have any), instead I used an equivalent amount of water
half of the butter I substituted with oil olive- which deepened the rich savory flavor.
Two of my Italian colleagues at work oohed and awed when they tried them. They’re probably the best cookies I’ve ever made!Thanks so much for this recipe! What fun! What Flavor!
- sms bradley
Well of course you are correct. Good catch! I must WISH I had some tenants.:-)
- Joan
These look great. I’m definitely trying them.
For future reference, the word you want is “tenets,” not “tenants.”
- Sistah Sue
Dear Sistah,
Am LOVING your cookie collection this year!!! So far have baked 3 (more than I can remember baking for a long time) and have tried them out on my best-cook friend. She and I agree, so far, on the garam masala and candied ginger being THE best. But will give the Rosemary a shot.
Now here is my question:
When having a cookie-tasting party, what do you suggest as a palate cleanser between cookies? (We used Grey Goose and it worked pretty well even tho it was early afternoon.Anyhow am loving the website, MauiJim’s photos and the recipes; so nontraditional, so continental, so GOOD!
Christmas Blessings to you all!!!- sms bradley
Oh, Sistah Sue, you will corrupt all my innocent readers. I better come over and save you from yourself and the Grey Goose. I will brew a lovely pot of Darjeeling, and we will eat all of your cookies together. 🙂 I don’t think Ellen Helen is approving of any of this, however. We MUST bake Pepparkakor!
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