Kitchen tales: Cranberry orange cookies

When it comes to desserts, my husband and I are complete opposites: he likes to have fruit in his while I am of the opinion that it’s not worth the calories unless there’s chocolate in it. So when I came across a recipe for Cranberry Orange Cookies from Fake Ginger I knew I had to make them for him.

These Cranberry Orange Cookies are so easy to put together that they are perfect for making with kids or grandkids. They are a great combination of sweetness from the cranberries with a zingy undertone from the orange peel. They were a hit the first time I made them and had to make them twice after that. The great thing about them is that they keep for up to ten days (less if the weather is hot) and are perfect for Christmas (although it’s a bit too early to start thinking about that). In reality, they can be enjoyed at any time of the year. They are a softer type of cookie but since the cookie dough is rolled in a mixture of sugar and orange zest before baking, they have a slight crunch but are definitely not a hard type of cookie. I would define them as soft and crunchy.

Cranberry  Orange Cookie Recipe

Ingredients

For the cookies:

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup dried cranberries, finely chopped

1 tablespoon orange zest

For the rolling sugar:

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon orange zest

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Using an electric mixer, mix butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and combine.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add to butter mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in cranberries and 1 tablespoon orange zest. Chill dough while you make orange sugar. I chilled it for about 2 hours as this hardens the dough sufficiently to make it more manageable to roll into balls but if you’re in a hurry, chilling it for a lesser amount of time will still work. You’ll just get more cookie dough stuck to your hands.
4. To make the orange sugar, combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon orange zest. Use your fingers to rub the 2 together until everything is combined and mixture is fragrant.
5. Shape chilled dough into 1 inch balls and roll them in orange sugar. Place on a baking sheet and flatten slightly.
6. Bake 10 - 13 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool on wire racks.

If you try them, let me know how they turn out. I promise they will only take a few minutes to make – it’s the rolling in sugar that takes a bit longer but don’t skip this step because it really gives the cookies their very particular citrusy taste. If you have fruit fans in your house, these will definitely be a success and I have to admit that even this chocoholic was hooked on them after a couple of bites.