Monday, October 20, 2008

Cardamom Dark Chocolate Cookies

cardamom cookies chocolate plate

It's hard to believe that cardamom is from the ginger and turmeric family. In addition to its incredible ability to take over the flavor of a dish, it has, in my opinion, very little in common with the flavor of its cousins. It is widely used in the cuisine of India, where it grows wild and is now cultivated. Indian cooks flavor savory dishes and desserts with this fragrant seed. The Arab world adds it to coffee to create an aromatic warm beverage. The Scandinavians bake it into delicious loaves of bread.

Its flavor reminds me of Persian dried limes: citrusey and earthy at the same time. I have been pairing it with dark chocolate for awhile. The cardamom complements the rich taste of dark cocoa perfectly.

cardamom cookies with dark chocolate

Cardamom Dark Chocolate Cookies (makes 12)
If you are not concerned about gluten or wheat, you can substitute the 1/2 cup of millet flour, 1/2 cup of tapioca starch for 1 cup of all-purpose flour instead and omit 1/4 teaspoon of xantham gum. However, use the almond meal according to the recipe, it adds a nice texture to the cookies.

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, or granulated
1/2 cup of powdered sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 cup almond meal
1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
1/4 teaspoon xantham gum
1/8 teaspoon salt

Dark chocolate chunks or chips


Preheat oven 375F
Oil a cookie sheet

In a mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugars together until well combined and fluffy, scraping the sides if necessary (about 3 minutes). Add the egg and cardamom. Mix some more. Then add the almond meal, millet flour, tapioca starch, xantham gum and salt. Mix well.

Put a well rounded tablespoon of the mixture onto the cookie sheet to form each cookie. With the help of spatula, flatten slightly and decorate the top of each cookie with the dark chocolate chunks. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until bottom of cookies are slightly golden.

cardamom cookies dark chocolate  bite



Hungry for more scrumptious cookies?
Cranberry Pistachio Wedding Cookies
Lebanese Walnut Cookies

24 comments:

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

Can you believe that I've NEVER baked/cooked with cardamom before??? Your cookies make me REALLY want to use it now...

maybelle's mom said...

I had a friend you was Swedish who always used cardamom in her baking. it really works. And, I think your comparison to the dried limes is very true. never thought of it but I see what you mean.

Stacey Snacks said...

Alexa,
Cardamom is such a beautiful spice isn't it? I love it baked in a cake too!
Stacey

Robin said...

What really pretty cookies Alexa. Dark chocolate is a fvorite of mine. I bought some cardamon from Market Spice while I was in Seattle and now I know what to do with it! Your pictures make me want to curl up with a cup of tea and a good book and these cookies!

vb said...

Yes, cardamom is wonderful in basked goods. What a great recipe!

RecipeGirl said...

I absolutely love cardamom, but I tried some cardamom spice cookies recently that had waaaaaaay too much cardamom in them. They went in the trash!

Yours look infinitely better, and I love the pairing of chocolate.

Patricia Scarpin said...

I adore cardamom but haven't made anything with it in ages, Alexa. These look scrumptious - I love the dark chocolate bits on top!

Clumbsy Cookie said...

I also love cardamom and these cookies not only must taste divine but are bautiful too. Great idea of putting the chocolate chunks on top, makes them really attractive!

Leonor de Sousa Bastos said...

I love the cardamom flavor and I believe it came up fantastic with dark chocolate!

Beautiful cookies!!

Jeanine - The Baking Beauties said...

oh wow, those look great!! I'll have to keep those in mind the next time I need cookies. :)

Marysol said...

Another Cardamom fan.
Alexa, the cookies look fantastic, but I'm a bit disappointed at the dainty little bite you took out of it [G]

Dewi said...

Alexa,
what a scrumptious looking cookies! Yes, cardamom is one of my favorite ingredients....
Cheers,
Elra

Alexa said...

Veggiegirl,
I think cardamom falls under the radar in most people's pantry. I often forget I have it in mine.

Maybelle's mom,
I would love to explore more cardamom recipe in the future. It's a fun spice.

Stacey,
I agree with you... such a pretty color.

Robin Sue,
That's exactly the mood I was in when I created this recipe. It goes so well with a rainy day, a blanket, a book, and the fireplace.

VB,
I am so glad you liked it. It's the perfect thing to cheer up a gloomy Seattle day like today. Don't you think?

Recipegirl,
It's a potent spice, a little goes a long way.

Patricia,
I tend to forget about it and until something brings it to my attention. I am always happy when that happens because the results are so wonderful.

Clumbsy Cookie,
Thanks for your nice comment!

Leonor,
Chocolate benefits from the cardamom and vice-versa. I love when that happens.

Jeanine,
In the Fall or Winter, I always need a treat. :-)

Marysol,
Ha! Ha! I had taken a picture of the crumb that was left when I ate the rest in one more bite... But it didn't make for a good composition. My artistic vision came before the real story.(lol) :-)

Mary Ann said...

Cardamom is my absolute favorite spice. I sometimes just take the lid off and inhale. I think it is magical! These cookies look great. I am always searching for ways to use cardamom. Thanks for a great cookie, Alexa!

rachel said...

they look perfectly delectable, Alexa.

Mike of Mike's Table said...

Cardamom is one of my absolute favorite spices to work with and I'm always eager to see it in new places. These cookies look delicious (I really like the bite photo--looks perfect inside!) and the inclusion of cardamom sounds like it would really be packed with flavor

Jacqueline Meldrum said...

Those look so good Alexa. I bet the smell was heavenly! I cannot believe the chocolate chunks on top stayed so perfect :)

Apples and Butter said...

I'm not worried about Gluten, but your recipes always make me want to give some of the gluten-free products a try!

Anonymous said...

What a great idea. I love cardamom and have been wanting to include it my sweet recipes for some time. Thanks for the inspiration!

Usha said...

Mmmm Yumm...

Anonymous said...

Yum.. So neatly decorated with chocolate pieces. I'd probably picke them out first.

Anonymous said...

I love using cardamom in baked goods. These look so good! Beautiful photography.

Anonymous said...

I love using cardamom in baked goods. These look so good. Beautiful photography.

Maris said...

These look so interesting and delicious!

I love your food-photos. What kind of camera do you use?

Love your blog! I'll definitely be stopping back to steal some of your awesome recipes.

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