Recipe first, blah, blah, blah later.

God I’m already so tired of sweets and it’s only December 11th. But we must persevere. There are so many cookies, candies and pies to eat before we’re done.

This recipe was part of a brilliant article by the brilliant Melissa Clark about how to assemble the perfect cookie gift box. And while many of us will likely not be making and delivering homemade treats, there is still much value in her advice. She tells us to consider many factors in curating a collection of sweets, including a diversity of texture, flavor and shapes (I mean, nobody wants a box full of circles for God’s sake). Crunchy vs. soft is important and while chocolate is de rigueur it benefits from the contrast with something tart and citrusy like this lovely shortbread.

I love the crunchy grittiness the cornmeal adds to recipe and even though I forgot to add the salt they were still good. You could vary the citrus with orange, lemon, or if you’re some kind of maniac, grapefruit. They keep for two weeks at room temp and freeze well.