Last night I went to see a performance of The Crucible, which by the way was terrific and if you’re in Pittsburgh, do check it out - this is the last week. The play is being performed in a park, so I wanted to bring a little treat to snack on during intermission. Of course, I never consider desserts to be sinful, so bringing something sweet was only natural. No goody-two-shoes Puritanical treat would do, either; rather more fitting would be something that might look plain but is a bit more interesting once you sink your teeth in.

It also follows that I am helpless to fight the baking urge, despite the temperature in my apartment climbing gleefully past the 90° mark. Besides, stovetop treats such as candy would probably not set up in the humidity, and utensil foods (e.g. rice pudding) would be too awkward to eat. So you see, it was quite logical to make cookies. Cornmeal seemed like the right choice, as always feels summery to me. However, most cornmeal cookies I’ve had are plain and crisp, while I prefer a chewier cookie…so the goal was to make something that would both have a pleasant texture and also be welcoming to some other flavours as supporting cast members. A bit of fiddling with an existing recipe produced an excellent result - the chew is just right and the apricot-ginger combination is lovely with tea. It’s probably best to use finely ground cornmeal for this recipe, as coarse or stone-ground will leave tiny nuggets of corniness in the cookies, which is charmingly rustic but perhaps not desirable for a tea cookie. Be mindful to remove the cookies from the oven when they are just lightly golden.

Apricot Ginger Cornmeal Cookies

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cornmeal (preferably not coarse or stone-ground)
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/4 cup minced crystallized ginger

Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C

In a bowl, mix softened butter, sugar, and egg until light and smooth. Stir flour, salt and baking soda in a separate bowl, then add to butter mixture until moistened. Stir in cornmeal, then fold apricots and ginger in until combined.

Drop dough by the tablespoon about 1 inch apart on baking sheet and bake 8-10 minutes, or until lightly golden. Cool cookies on the sheet for a couple of minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.