I'd never used wheat germ before until last week when I bought a bag to make those tasty (and healthy) blueberry-banana muffins. I still have quite a bit left and as luck would have it, I was indulging in one of my favorite pastimes - reading a cookbook - when I found another recipe to deploy the wheat germ for. I was reading through Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan and making a growing list of things I might like to make when I saw this recipe for honey-wheat cookies, which calls for lemon zest, honey, and wheat germ. It sounded like something worth trying during this post-holiday January when you (by that, I mean me or I) still want a sweet treat but prefer to stay on the lighter, healthier side.
Like its name suggests, the flavor and texture of these cookies come from the combination of lemon zest, honey, and wheat germ. To up the health factor a bit further, I substituted some of the all-purpose flour used in this recipe with white whole wheat flour. There's wheat germ in the cookies themselves and they also get a coating of it on the outside before baking. I really liked that, as it gave the cookies a bit more texture on the outside, similar to what you'd get if you rolled them in sugar and this is certainly a far healthier option. These cookies just cry out for a cup of tea to go alongside.
When the cookies first came out of the oven, they were pretty nondescript and I worried about what the combination of wheat germ, honey, and lemon zest would taste like. It was better than I thought it would be. It's like biting into a soft cake - sweet, moist, and with a nice lemon perfume and flavor to it.
This cookie might lend more towards adult palates though. Our six-year old was not into it. Obviously, this is no chocolate cookie but it is a nice change up in the cookie rotation right now.
