Cardamom and ___________ shortbread?

December 6, 2024 10:09 AM

I'm into playing around with shortbread flavours. This year I'll have rosemary and lemon, as well as orange peel and dark chocolate. I really want to do a cardamom one too, but I can't figure out what one pairs with cardamom. I don't necessarily want a 'chai' shortbread although that's the obvious choice. Can you help with suggestions?
posted by kitcat to Food & Drink (23 answers total)

A quick search tells me that cardamon pairs well with orange, whether it be a glaze or including zest/juice in the actual cookie recipe itself.
posted by Torosaurus at 10:13 AM on December 6, 2024 [4 favorites]

Cranberry
Pistachio
Rose
Hazelnut
Almond
Black Tea
posted by deadcrow at 10:13 AM on December 6, 2024 [3 favorites]

Cardamom and coffee go well together!
posted by winterportage at 10:28 AM on December 6, 2024 [4 favorites]

Best answer: If you do cardamom and orange (a favorite!) you could easily switch the orange peel & dark chocolate one to dark chocolate + tart dried cherries.

Otherwise, cardamom plus ginger sounds really good.
posted by mochapickle at 10:36 AM on December 6, 2024 [15 favorites]

Just cardamon sounds great to me! I use lavender in the summer.
posted by RoadScholar at 10:40 AM on December 6, 2024 [2 favorites]

I've consulted my copy of The Flavor Bible for you! I'll leave out things it suggests like meats and beans and legumes. The bolded ones are flavors that go especially well with cardamom.

anise
apples
apricots
bananas
chocolate
cinnamon
citrus
cloves
coffee
cream
creme anglaise
dates
ginger
gingerbread
grapefruit
honey
lemon, juice and zest
lime
orange, juice and zest
pars
pistachios
sweet potatoes
tea
vanilla
walnuts
posted by cooker girl at 10:48 AM on December 6, 2024 [9 favorites]

I looked up historic recipes.
Things I see paired with it are:

Almonds
Ginger
Lemon

I see it added to red wine. Is red wine too weird?
posted by beccaj at 10:53 AM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]

Cardamom and lemon pair nicely, but you already have rosemary-lemon.

I do a cardamom-date oatmeal sometimes and it's good, so that's another vote for dates.
posted by madcaptenor at 11:06 AM on December 6, 2024

I suggest blueberry or black current.
posted by mezzanayne at 11:20 AM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]

We had someone bring cardamom and rosewater shortbread to a bake sale my garden held in October and they were wonderful.

(Why, yes, this IS a very bougie neighborhood.)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 11:30 AM on December 6, 2024 [5 favorites]

I agree with RoadScholar's suggestion of lavender.
posted by glorybe at 11:32 AM on December 6, 2024

It's pretty close to chai, but I made cardamom + earl grey cheesecake and it was a really nice combination.
posted by moonmilk at 11:41 AM on December 6, 2024 [2 favorites]

Cardamom / rosewater / rose petal / pistachio shortbread cookies are delicious and beautiful.

Cardamom saffron shortbread sandwich cookies are delicious and adventurous!

Cardamom / rose / pistachio / almond / candied ginger "Persian Love Cake" is SO good. I'm sure the flavor profile would work for shortbread too.
posted by erst at 11:44 AM on December 6, 2024 [3 favorites]

Pistachio was my 1st thought, candied ginger was my 2nd. These sound so good.
posted by theora55 at 11:51 AM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Really tough decision. I feel like very best answer is pistachio, but those started making my mouth and throat itchy in the last few years. Rose is intriguing, but I doubt my family will eat them.

Personally, I feel like orange is the right answer this year! And yes that means I have to replace the orange with cherry in the batch that is meant to have some dark chocolate. Merry Christmas to all and thank you!
posted by kitcat at 12:06 PM on December 6, 2024 [10 favorites]

This is a Canadian company that makes outrageously good shortbreads and they do a “sugared rose” one that might also be great with cardamom - guessing maybe it’s candied rose petals and rose water? (And if savoury is on your list, their Asiago garlic shortbread is just wildly good). Yummy question, good luck with your recipes!
posted by nouvelle-personne at 1:43 PM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]

As someone who just had an excellent cardamom and vanilla latte I have to put in a vote for vanilla! You could use actual vanilla beans or vanilla bean paste if you want it to be punchier than just extract.
posted by babelfish at 1:57 PM on December 6, 2024

Just a hint of saffron.
Otherwise cinnamon is a common pairing here, don't let it overpower the cardamom tho. Other thoughts, rhubarb or black pepper.
posted by Iteki at 2:04 PM on December 6, 2024

Peach! I did an amazing peach crisp with cardamom once.

Anything in the pumpkin spice family is good. Echoing vanilla, orange, and blueberry as well.
posted by wheatlets at 2:54 PM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]

Anything with green or bitter notes
Fennel
Molasses/Brown sugar/Burnt caramel
Brown butter
Almond
posted by VelveteenBabbitt at 3:00 PM on December 6, 2024 [3 favorites]

Fig!

Cardamom is probably the fragrance that makes me happiest in cold weather. I don't think I encountered it until I was well into my 20s, and it still strikes me as a kind of "adulthood" note. I know that this is in contrast to many peoples' experiences. I spend a fair amount of time in Denmark for work, and there cardamom in pastries seems to be strongly reminiscent of childhood. Nevertheless, I associate it with combinations of other "adulthood" flavors and scents, like coffee. It's so nice with coffee!
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 7:47 AM on December 7, 2024 [1 favorite]

I can confirm orange works really well, the specific mix I've used before was:
Dough: 350g flour / 215g butter/ 140g light brown sugar / one egg yolk
Mixed into the brown sugar: zest of two tangerines or one orange / the seeds from four cardamom pods and one clove finely ground, teaspoon of cinnamon.
Piped with a few thin lines of icing made using powdered sugar and the juice of the fruit.
posted by lucidium at 3:17 PM on December 7, 2024 [1 favorite]

Dried apricots! Apricot/cardamom is so nice. 😊
posted by exceptinsects at 11:24 PM on December 8, 2024 [2 favorites]