Cornmeal Cookies (Zaletti)

A few months ago, I bought a large bag of cornmeal to make a deconstructed mango cheesecake. Afterwards, I promptly lost the bag in the overflowing labyrinths of my cupboard. 

I knew it was somewhere amid my collection of jars and the bits and ends of leftover ingredients from other baking projects, but I couldn't get more specific than that. A few days ago, I was digging through my cupboard looking for a bag of azuki beans when I unearthed my lost bag of cornmeal.  

Photo by J

Where I come from, polenta is a pretty exotic ingredient which can only be found in specialty baking supply stores. Most of my recipes (savoury or sweet) doesn't call for polenta, which is probably why it dropped to the bottom of my cupboard. Still, no time like the present, and since I have a big honking bag of polenta to use up, I dug deep into my list of recipes and came up with these Zaletti cookies from David Lebovitz. 

Other than the polenta, the recipe calls for ingredients that most people already have on hand. I was craving cranberries, so I made a run to Dandenong Market to get some. But you can use raisins or any dried currant you fancy. 

Photo by J

Polenta lends a sunny yellow colour to any mixture it is added to, and gives a nice tell-tale crunch when you bite into the finished product. I have no idea why, but when I revisited David's blog, I realised how much brighter in colour my cookies are compared to his. I promised I didn't saturate the colours!

Photo by J

One good thing about making cookie logs is that they practically demand to be made in excess because they can keep for ages in the freezer. You can bake them all at once and distribute freshly-baked cookies around en-masse, or keep some in the freezer and lop off a few slices whenever you're in the mood for cookies.

Your choice.

Zaletti
Recipe taken from David Lebovitz's site. Original recipe is from The Italian Baker by Carol Field
Makes about 50 cookies

You can use any dried fruit you like, or follow the suggestions here. It’s a good idea to chop the fruit into small pieces, which makes neatly slicing the cookie dough easier.

Ingredients
3/4 cup (90g) dried currants, or finely chopped sour cherries or raisins
2 tablespoons (20g) flour

5 1/2 ounces (155g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons (120g) sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (210g) flour
1 cup (140g) polenta, regular or coarse
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt

Steps
1. Toss the dried fruit and the 2 tablespoons (20g) of flour together in a small bowl and set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, or by hand, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and creamy, about one minute. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla, beating until incorporated.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the 1 1/2 cups (210g) flour, polenta, baking powder, and salt.

4. Mix the dry ingredients into the beaten butter mixture until incorporated, than stir in the dried fruit.
5. Form the dough into a rectangle 4- by 7-inches (10 by 18 cm), wrap in plastic, and chill the dough for about an hour, or until it’s firm enough to handle. (I skipped this step)

6. Divide the dough in two, lengthwise, and roll each piece of dough on a lightly floured surface into a smooth cylinder 7-inches (18cm) long. (Instead of rolling the dough on a table, I wrapped the dough lengthwise in a large piece of baking paper, then worked the dough into a cylinder shape using the baking paper.)

7. Wrap the cylinders and freeze until ready to bake. (If you prefer to bake the cookies right away, pinch of pieces of dough about the size of a small unshelled walnut, and roll into balls. Place them evenly spaced on the prepared baking sheet and press them down gently with your hands to flatten them partially.) 

8. To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 325ºF. (170 ºC). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

9. Slice the cookies into 1/4-inch (.75cm) slices and place them evenly spaced on the prepared baking sheets. (The dough is easier to slice when frozen, but if it’s too firm or crumbles when you cut it, let it sit out on the counter until it reaches a good consistency.) (Leave a gap between each cookie, as they expand slightly as they bake.)

10. Bake the cookies for about 13-20 minutes, rotating the baking sheets midway during baking, until the cookies are a deep golden brown around the edges (darker than shown on these pictures). Remove the oven and let cool completely.

Serve the cookies by themselves, alongside a fruit compote, or with a scoop of your favorite ice cream or sorbet.

Storage: The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to four days. The dough can be refrigerated for up to one week, or frozen for one or two months.

On an open plate with company over? Half an hour.