Cornmeal Thumbprints

I found this recipe in a magazine and loved the idea of cornmeal in a cookie, and the lemon zest makes the dough smell fantastic!

Adapted from: More Magazine November 2009

Ingredients

2 c. flour
1/2 c. cornmeal
1/2 t. coarse salt
10 T. butter, softened
2/3 c. sugar
2 t. lemon zest
3 egg yolks
1/2 t. vanilla
4 T. black currant jam (I used huckleberry preserves) 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.  Whisk together flour, cornmeal, and salt.  In another bowl, cream butter, sugar, and lemon zest until fluffy.  Beat in yolks, add vanilla.  Add flour mixture.  Mix until no flour pockets remain.  (I had trouble incorporating all of the dry ingredients and had to sprinkle a small amount of water on the dough to work it all in.)

Shape rounded tablespoonfuls of dough into balls.  Place 1 inch apart on a parchment covered baking sheet.  Bake 5 minutes.  Use a thumb or the end of a wooden spoon to make an indentation in each cookie.  (I used a Pampered Chef tool.)  The edges will crack when the indentations are made.  Bake 5 more minutes.

While the cookies are still warm, fill the centers with jam.  Transfer to a rack to finish cooling.  Makes 28 cookies.