Lapsang Souchong tea imparts a fantastic smokiness to everything it touches. I love it in this savory take on shortbread, matched with fruity, subtly spicy pink peppercorn. Note that each tea bag of the brand of Lapsang Souchong tea I use contains 1½ teaspoons (3 g) of tea.
YIELD: 10 individual shortbreads
1 cup (120 g) whole-wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour
¼ cup (30 g) raw cashew pieces
1 tbsp (5 g) nutritional yeast
Slightly heaping ½ tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp (10 ml) pure maple syrup
3½ tbsp (53 ml) melted coconut oil
3 tbsp (45 ml) water, divided, more if needed
1 tsp (2 g) coarsely ground pink peppercorn
1 tsp (2 g) Lapsang Souchong tea leaves
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Place the flour, cashews, nutritional yeast and salt in a food processor. Pulse until the cashews are finely ground. Add the maple syrup, oil and 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of water. Pulse to combine. The dough should be moist enough to hold together when pinched. If it isn’t, add the remaining tablespoon (15 ml) of water and pulse until the dough reaches the proper moistness. Add extra water if needed, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) at a time after that.
Pulse the ground peppercorn and tea into the dough just twice to combine. Don’t overdo it or the tea will turn the shortbreads a grayish hue.
Transfer the dough onto the parchment paper. Shape it into a log. Roll out the log into a 7½ x 4-inch (19 x 10-cm) rectangle. Cut lengthwise into ten ¾-inch (2-cm) pieces. Use your hands to reshape each piece slightly. This will also help make for smoother edges once baked.
Prick the top of each piece using the tines of a fork.
Arrange on the same parchment paper. Bake 18 to 20 minutes, until fragrant and light golden brown on the bottom and edges. Gently transfer to a cooling rack before having a taste. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.