In this paper, we define a new class of finite elements for the discretization of problems with Dirichlet boundary conditions. In contrast to standard finite elements, the minimal dimension of the approximation space is independent of the domain geometry and this is especially advantageous for problems on domains with complicated micro-structures. For the proposed finite element method we prove the optimal-order approximation (up to logarithmic terms) and convergence estimates valid also in the cases when the exact solution has a reduced regularity due to re-entering corners of the domain boundary. Numerical experiments confirm the theoretical results and show the potential of our proposed metho
