Orange Poppy Seed Cookies

Before you start comparing my cookies to the perfect looking ones on the Fine Cooking website, have some mercy. I forgot to set the timer when I put them in the oven, forgot about them altogether, and only realized they were still baking when the house smelled like (slightly overdone) cookies. I had to throw half of them away and the rest were really tasty, but extra crispy. Oven failure aside, these cookies are great! They're really easy to make, the dough freezes well if you want to prepare it ahead of time, and the flavor is just right. The citrus and poppy seed combination is always one of my favorites, so these cookies quickly made it into my baking repertoire.

I was going to serve these as part of a holiday cookie platter, where they would have been a nice change from the usual ginger and chocolate and sugar cookies that seem to be popular this time or year. From my small sampling, these were nice to have with tea and coffee (probably because of the added crunch). Don't get me wrong, the cookie is meant to be crispy, but mine just took it to the next level. Give these cookies a try for a refreshing flavor this holiday season.

Recipe from Fine Cooking

1 1/4 cup (5 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoons poppy seeds
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces/ half a cup/ 113 grams butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest (from about 1 1/2 oranges)
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Preheat your oven to 350ºF/175ºC. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, poppy seeds, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Mix in the egg, orange juice, orange zest, and lemon zest. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure everything mixes evenly. With the mixer running on low, add the flour to the butter mixture and mix until just combined. Lay out a piece of plastic wrap. Place the dough on the plastic, wrap it, and freeze it for 30 minutes.

Remove dough from freezer and knead it on a lightly floured surface a few times. Gently wrap the dough in plastic again. Roll out the dough and gently pull opposite sides of the dough so it forms a log shape (it should be 9" long). Place dough back in the freezer for an hour, or place it in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

Unwrap the dough and gently roll it on a lightly floured surface (this removes any marks the plastic may have made on the sides. Slice the dough into 3/16" rounds and place them 1" apart on the cookie sheets. Bake until the edges are lightly browned, about 12 to 15 minutes. Remove cookies and allow them to cool before serving. Pin It Now!