You know how we can get stuck in what we think is “right” or “necessary?” Moving to a new culture (either internationally or domestically) can plant those ideas front and center in front of you. I am living in a small apartment in Costa Rica and continuing to cook most of my own meals. I was unaware of how often I use lemons (the yellow kind!) in my cooking: as salad dressing, in tahini, in Moroccan tagine, in my water. I have yet to fine standard, yellow lemons in the markets here. (I did find “Persian lemons” which are a whole other kind of lemon that I didn’t know existed – the skin was more like that of a lime and the fruit was more floral than I expected; they definitely did not make good preserved lemons — super bitter.) I have been puzzling over how to use the ubiquitous green limes that are widely available in place of lemons — but the flavor profile is different. Yummy on avocado, but doesn’t really work for me in hummus.

So I have been challenged to broaden my thinking about what is “right” about lemons and to play with other flavors and fruits instead. One lovely option I have found so far is limon mandarina. Originally from Rangpur, Bangladesh, this citrus fruit is a cross of citron and mandarines. It is kind of plain when you look at it from the outside – like an unripe mandarin. When you open it, it is this lovely, juicy orange, only it is quite sour. But also with a touch of orange flowers. Lovely! Squeezed over grilled fish with my casado at lunch. Used in place of lemon on my French carrot rapé salad. Used to make cookies.

I decided to try these when I found the recipe for the Brown Butter spice cookies on my blog. But with a tropical twist. They are quite lovely.

Tropical Linzer Spiced Brown Butter Cookies

• 1/2 cups (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom (mine wasn’t super fresh so I rounded up)
• 6 cloves, smashed (I put mine through my coffee grinder because I brought my hand coffee grinder to Costa Rica, but not my mortar and pestle)
• 10 turns of pepper in a pepper mill
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cups granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoons finely grated zest from limon mandarina
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 large egg yolks, room temperature

Cook butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until butter foams, then browns. Scrape into a large bowl; let cool.

Whisk salt, baking powder, spices and flour in a medium bowl.

Add granulated sugar and limon mandarina zest to butter; add vanilla. Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in egg yolks. Reduce speed to low and add dry ingredients in 3 batches, incorporating after each addition.

Turn out dough onto a surface and knead until no dry spots remain. Form into a ¾”-thick disk. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat to 350°. Let dough sit at room temperature until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Roll out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, shifting often on sheet and dusting with more flour as needed to keep from sticking, until about ⅛” thick. Cut into desired shapes with cutters; transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing ½” apart. Gather scraps, re-roll, and cut out more shapes. For Linzer cookies, cut a circle (or shape of your choice — I used a bottle cap that I had handy) out of 1/2 the cookies.

Bake for 8-10 minutes when cookies just start turning golden. Let cool on a rack.

To make the Linzer cookies, dust powdered sugar over the cookie halves with the opening. Spread the bottom cookie with a small amount of mango-passionate fruit jam that you bought at the feria from a local small business. Top with the sugar dusted top.