Chocolate and Cardamom Shortbread Biscuits
Crunchy chocolate and cardamom shortbread biscuits are delicious in their own right. But pile them high with clotted cream and strawberries and you have the perfect dessert for any garden party or summer gathering. The cardamom gives an intriguing, but not overpowering twist to the flavour and melds perfectly with the chocolate.
The wonderful weather we’ve been experiencing over the past few weeks (thirsty plants notwithstanding) has meant we’ve actually enjoyed a few meals outside this year. Eating food outside always seems to taste so much better somehow. I don’t know whether it’s all in the mind or if our senses are energised by the fresh air and sunshine.
Outdoor meals for us have mostly been with friends as our garden is a little on the small side and not really suitable for outdoor eating. I keep thinking I must plan a tea party down at our plot, but the best I have managed so far was to have a take away supper down there.
Chocolate and Cardamom Shortbread Biscuits
Our latest outdoor meal was a barbecue eaten out in a garden surrounded by flowers, fields and views. I’d just read about strawberry and clotted cream shortcakes at Clotted Cream Diaries, which I really liked the sound of. It reminded me of the delicious chocolate and cinnamon shortbread that I made back in May last year.
Marrying these two things together, I baked some chocolate cardamom shortbread biscuits. I took these along to our friend’s barbecue for pudding alongside strawberries in a little cardamom, rose and mint syrup and clotted cream to accompany them. I based this recipe on the cinnamon one, substituting the semolina for polenta and the cinnamon for cardamom.
Making biscuits rather than a more traditional shortbread round was a bit of a learning curve. I wasn’t expecting this dough to spread so I placed the rounds quite closely together on the baking sheet.
They spread and ran into each other, which was very annoying. And I didn’t get perfect rounds. I’ve subsequently learned that it’s a good idea to chill biscuits like these before you bake them. This helps to prevent them from spreading.
Although the recipe was virtually the same as the cinnamon squares I had previously made, these were completely different, but equally delicious.
Last year’s version was deep and soft in the centre. These ones are more like biscuits and have a lovely crunchy texture. The cardamom gives a really intriguing exotic twist which goes well with the strawberries. The clotted cream made it into a virtually unbeatable outdoor desert.
Update July 2011
I finally managed that tea party down at the plot and a very good one it turned out to be. I made apricot curd and white chocolate cupcakes amongst other things.
Other Shortbread Recipes You Might Like
- Grasmere ginger shortbread
- Hazelnut shortbread
- Lemon shortbread flower cookies
- Matcha shortbread with cacao nibs
- Pistachio & cacao nib shortbread biscuits
- White chocolate shortbread biscuits: 4 flavours
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Thank you for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make these chocolate and cardamom shortbread biscuits, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Do you have any recommendations or advice for making shortbread?
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Choclette x
Chocolate and Cardamom Shortbread Biscuits
Ingredients
- 175 g unsalted butter softened
- 75 g golden caster sugar
- 6 cardamom pods seeds ground and pods discarded
- 20 g cocoa powder
- 60 g polenta
- 170 g plain flour
- 1 pinch fine sea salt
Instructions
- Cream the butter with the sugar until it’s light in colour and fluffy in texture.175 g unsalted butter, 75 g golden caster sugar
- Split the cardamom pods and remove the seeds. Grind the seeds with a pestle and mortar and discard the pod husks. Add to the butter mix and cream some more.6 cardamom pods
- Sift in the dry ingredients.20 g cocoa powder, 60 g polenta, 170 g plain flour, 1 pinch fine sea salt
- Stir everything until it starts to come together.
- Set the oven to 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4).
- Form the mix into a ball of dough with your hands, then roll it out to about ½ cm (0.2 inch) thick. Stamp into rounds with a 6cm (2 ½”) cutter.
- Place well apart on a lined baking sheet or two, then chill in the fridge for fifteen minutes. The biscuits will spread if you don't chill them.
- Bake in the middle of the oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until the biscuits are just starting to brown.
- Leave to cool slightly then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Dust lightly with caster sugar whilst they’re still hot.
This looks like a great recipe! and possibly even one I might be able to make!
Ah, thank you Wendy.
Jac, yes not sure what I like best really – stawberries and cream with shortbread or with scones or with merangues or in cake or ….!
Oxslip – cardamom is a particular favourite. Like cinnamon, it goes so well with both sweet and savoury.
Thank you Curious Baker.
Chocolate and Cardamom, always a great combination!
I love cardamom in all shapes and forms, these are now on my ToDo list. Yum (Still in denial of my tummy)
I instantly loved the shortbread, but when I saw you had topped it with clotted cream and strawberries, well I was very excited indeed.
Choclette… you have me drooling – I have just shared this on my Facebook so my friends can see what clever and inventive people I know…
Nic – are you off wheat and sugar for specific health reasons? There certainly isn’t a great deal of sugar in these and I guess you could substitute other flours for the wheat.
drool drool, I’ve been sticking cardamons in all sorts of savoury dishes lately so it’s about time I tried them in something sweet. Flour and sugar are contraband for me but these have less than most recipes and won’t be too naughty if shared out. I’ll be ever so popular if I turn up at friends with these beauties ;o)
Gillian – you don’t really you don’t – do you?
Thank you Judy – it certainly helps oil life’s wheels.
Chocolate makes everything better! Great combo of flavors there.
Choclette, I went to two supermarkets today and neither had cardamom. Ahhh I want to be back in the city!!!
FoodyCat – Photoshop sounds quite fancy enough, but thanks for info. Have been thinking I ought to watermark my photos, just not sure how.
Thanks KNK
Lucie – you do say such nice things – thank you.
CityHippy – I will give it a go and let you know (might take a while). Maybe it’s more a book to inspire food dreams rather than to actually use.
I’m not sure what was wrong with the teacake. It was tasty, just not delicious, will probably put a post up on it in a few days. If you feel inspired, I’d love to know what your take on it is.
This is a wonderful post – beautiful photos, lovely recipe – these look delicious!
yummy chocolates looks awesome
naveen
http://smsjar.blogspot.com/
Lovely looking shortbread! Further to your comment on my blog, I use photoshop for cropping, resizing and adding the watermark to my pictures. Nothing fancy!
Thanks Janice
CityHippy – thank you for reminding me of Paul’s book – it seems to have got buried under a pile of debris. I shall fish it out and get re-inspired. What was wrong with the tea cake?
They sound really lovely, and they look gorgeous too.
I love shortbread!
I love cardamom and chocolate together as well, but wasn’t so sure when I made one of the recipes out of the “Adventures in Chocolate” cookbook… have you had a look at the Choc Ginger Cardamom Tea Cake?
Sounds lovely.
Kate – I have made a courgette cake without the chocolate which was really good. Not so much for the flavour but for the moistness and texture. It’s another way to use up courgettes if your growing them yourself, but I don’t think I’d bother buying them specially for this. I was planning on making a chocolate version this year though, so thanks for the link.
Yum! Choclette – I wanted to ask if you’ve tried the Riverford Farm Recipe for Chocolate and Courgette Cake? I have loads of courgettes in the garden and want to try it, but don’t want to waste good chocolate on something that’s a gimmick – I thought you would be the person to ask, oh chocolate guru!
Chele – I’ve got to organise it first – that seems to be the biggest problem!
Emmalene – yes I’m a big fan too – you may have noticed 🙂
Made2Order – well it’s a bit difficult to describe. I’d say it was a type of biscuit, but Americans mean something different when they talk about biscuits. It’s not really a cookie exactly. It’s definitely not cake. It is very nice. Chocolate is an unusual addition. Normally it’s just butter, sugar and flour.
BVG – I’ve made a cake and cupcakes with chocolate and cardamom and both of those were really good.
Dominic – In cakes, it definitely makes a difference giving a slightly crunchy texture which I quite like. In this, I’m not sure. These were definitely crunchier than the batch I made with semolina, but they are a lot thinner.
Celia – definitely grown up – not recommended for those with a really sweet tooth.
Helen – I am a bit of a cardamom fan, but have only started using it with chocolate in the last year.
Kath – you can’t really beat strawberries and cream at this time of year can you?
Mmmm, they look delicious. My mouth is watering at the sight of that – chocolate, strawberries and clotted cream.
Oh yummy! I do like cardamon. apparently Nigella puts it in chilli. I imagine it works really well with the chocolate too.
Choclette, what a fascinating combination – cardamom and chocolate! They look wickedly good – like grown up strawberry shortcakes..
these look wonderful… always dubious about the addition of polenta… do you think it really makes a difference? I guess I must try them and then i’ll know..
x
That sounds like the perfect dessert to me – I haven’t ever tasted cardamom and chocolate together, but am really looking forward to doing so now!!!
Thanks.
how would you describe shortbread to someone who has no idea what it is?
They sound really innovative- I love spiced chocolate!
Yum – that sounds good! What do I need to do to wrangle myself an invite to the tea party at your allotment? lol