Chocolate Orange Cookies

Do you like chocolate? I know, who doesn't, right? Well, how about oranges? And, how about chocolate AND orange together? It's certainly one of my favorite combos. Alright, I have a lot of favorite flavor combos, but who said you could only have one favorite.


At any rate, the two come together harmoniously in these cookies. Eating them is pure bliss. You take a bite and the crisp orange-sugar crust shatters the moment it touches your lips. Then, your teeth sink into soft, chocolatey cakiness. One bite and you'll definitely be craving more.


Chocolate Orange Cookies (Dulce Dough)

2 Tbsp. orange zest
1 1/3 c. sugar, divided
2/3 c. butter, softened
1 egg
1 1/2 c. flour
1/3 c. cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda

Combine 2 tsp. orange zest with 1/3 c. sugar. Rub the zest into the sugar with your fingers until the sugar is orange and fragrant.

Rub the remaining orange zest into the 1 cup of sugar with your fingers until it is orange and fragrant. Cream with the butter. Add the egg and mix well.

Combine the flour, cocoa, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

Roll the dough into 1-inch balls and then roll each ball in the orange-sugar mixture.

Place balls of dough at least 2 inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 350F for 10-12 min. or until set. Cool slightly and remove from cooking sheet.

Notes:
1. The recipe doesn't say to do this, but I'd recommend chilling the dough for at least 1 hour before rolling. My dough was very sticky (like thick cake batter) before I chilled it, but was much more manageable once it was cold.

2. I ended up using 2 tsp. of zest for the rolling sugar (which was double the amount originally stated in the recipe) and then using the other 4 tsp. for the cookie dough. I couldn't really taste the orange in the cookie itself, so next time, I'd probably increase the total amount of zest to 2 Tbsp.

3. I found that the chilled dough made for thicker cookies, which I liked. The dough that got warm out of the fridge made for flatter cookies.