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These delicious orange cookies are a melt in your mouth sugar cookie glazed in orange glaze and full of orange goodness.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
Amazing Flavor. If you are a citrus fan, you are going to love these orange cookies. As a child, one of my favorite summertime treats was a orange dreamsicle and these cookies will take you back to that summertime treat.
Perfect Texture. These orange cookies are slightly crisp on the edges and nice and soft in the middle – just what a cookie should be. This cookie is perfect for spring and summer but also makes a great addition to a holiday cookie plate and is the perfect addition to a cup of tea!
Ingredients Needed
- Flour. I use unbleached all purpose flour
- Butter. I use salted butter at room temperature.
- Sugar
- Egg
- Oranges. You will use the juice and the zest.
- Orange Extract. This gives the cookies even more great orange flavor.
- Baking Soda
How to Make Orange Cookies
- Beat your butter, sugar, orange peel together in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy. It will smell wonderful.
- Add in the flour, baking soda, eggs and extract.
- Form the cookie dough into balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and bake cookies for 15-17 minutes. Cool on rack.
- Combine powdered sugar, fresh orange juice and orange zest and mix until a good glaze consistency. You want a nice consistency that will gently spread over the top of the cookies.
- Frost cookies with glaze.
Tips For Orange Cookies from Leigh Anne
- Be sure and use fresh oranges, not the frozen orange juice that comes in a can.
- To make zesting easier, use a microplanner. It’s one of my favorite kitchen tools.
- To juice the oranges I love using my hand juicer. I also have a smaller one I use for lemons and limes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use lemon juice instead?
These cookies would be delicious with lemon or lime juice or even a combination of juices.
Can I freeze orange cookies?
You can freeze them in an airtight container. I prefer to put them in the freezer before glazing them but if you freeze them after glazing put layers of parchment paper or wax paper between the cookies to prevent them from sticking together. Follow all my tips here for freezing cookies.
If you love orange cookies try these recipes:
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Orange Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 tsp soda
- 3/4 cups butter salted
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 2 Tbsp grated orange zest divided
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp orange extract
- 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2 -3 Tbsp orange juice
Instructions
- Beat butter in a bowl with sugar and 1 Tbsp zest until nice and fluffy. Add in eggs and extract.
- Add in the flour and baking soda and beat until just combined.
- Line cookie sheet with parchment paper and scoop cookies onto baking sheet.
- Preheat oven to 350 and bake cookies for 15-17 minutes. Cool on rack
- Mix together powdered sugar, 1 Tbsp zest and enough juice to make glaze the right consistency to spread.
- Spread on cookies. Allow cookies to set up
Tips & Notes:
- Be sure and use fresh oranges, not the frozen orange juice that comes in a can.
- To make zesting easier, use a microplanner. It’s one of my favorite kitchen tools.
- To juice the oranges I love using my hand juicer.  I also have a smaller one I use for lemons and limes.
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Nutrition Facts:
capturing joy with kristen duke says
I could eat that dough right out of the bowl!
Leigh Anne says
Just make sure you have some of the glaze to dip it in because I think that’s the best part!!
emily says
oh, that looks really yummy! What delicious photos too!
Leigh Anne says
Thanks Emily! They are as delicious as they look.
camille c says
I am absolutely making these after work tonight! Except, if my butter is unsalted, how much salt should I add? Or should I just stop and get salted butter? Can I use cutie zest instead of orange zest? Just curious because I have lots of cuties and lots of unsalted butter. If I can’t substitute then that’s ok, just thought I would ask before stopping to get the other ingredients!
Leigh Anne says
Use 1/4 tsp of salt if the butter is unsalted. I think cutie zest would work fine but you need some orange juice too and not sure how easy those are to juice?
nancy says
Happy Holidays! I was wondering what size “scoop” you used for the cookies and, can they be made ahead and frozen, with or without the glaze? Thanks. They look delicious.
Leigh Anne says
My scoop measures 1 1/2 inches across. I would make the dough ahead of time and freeze it and then bake and glaze before using.
Kay Coger says
These sound delicious! I can’t wait to try them. We have a “cookie exchange” party at work each year and I usually make Wedding Balls (also known as pecan balls). My recipe is like this one with the exception of the orange. I am sure I will love this one! Thank you and Merry Christmas!
Leigh Anne says
Wedding Bells sound yummy with the pecans. I bet you could add pecans to the Orange version and they would be delicious.