These Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies are one of the absolute best Christmas cookie recipes I’ve ever tasted. Easy, fun, and they remind me of a cookie my grandma used to make.
I have to make another batch, though, because these were swiped right off the counter in no time by the kiddos. I swear–if I could find a cookie that they hated…well, that would be horrible. Never mind that.
Let’s just get on with it and make an awesome orange chocolate cookie for Christmas, because that’s where it’s at!
What You Need to Make Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies
- 1 cup of butter, softened
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 2 cups of flour
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla
- 1 Tablespoon of orange zest
FOR THE CHOCOLATE:
- 4 squares of Chocolate bark
- 1 Tablespoon of heavy cream
- Orange zest to sprinkle on chocolate
How to Make CHOCOLATE ORANGE SHORTBREAD COOKIES
Cream the butter and sugar, until light and fluffy.
Mix in the vanilla, and orange zest.
Add the flour in 1/3 increments, stirring between each increment.
Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl and blend until its fully incorporated.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
Turn out the cookie dough onto a piece of parchment paper, forming it into a log.
Roll the log of cookie dough in the parchment paper, and place in the fridge for about an hour.
Slice the cookies into 1/8 inch segments, and place 2-inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 20 -25 minutes.
Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and microwave it in 30-second increments, stirring between each increment, until the chocolate is fully melted.
Add in the heavy cream and stir until the chocolate is well blended.
Dip one end of each cookie in the chocolate, and place them on a wire rack to allow the chocolate to set.
Immediately sprinkle the chocolate with orange zest before it hardens.
Allow chocolate to set fully (about 1 hour).
Enjoy!
HOW LONG DO CHOCOLATE ORANGE SHORTBREAD COOKIES Last
On the counter, because these are the best Christmas cookies, they just don’t last long at my house. They’re the perfect little drive-by bite of yummy for everyone in the house. So, if that’s the case at your house too, then you need to keep them away from the kids if you want these cookies to last at all.
But in all seriousness, if you want to keep the cookies around, I recommend putting the cookies in a single layer in an airtight container. They’ll last 3-5 days on the counter that way without any problem.
I wouldn’t recommend putting them in the fridge because the chocolate will get that weird haze. It’s not as bad since this is chocolate ganache, so if you’re in a bind, it’ll be fine and if they’re in the fridge they should last 12-15 days no problem. But, you might get a weird film…so I personally wouldn’t chance it. I hate the film.
CAN YOU FREEZE CHOCOLATE ORANGE SHORTBREAD COOKIES?
Oh, wow, you’re planning to make a million of these chocolate orange shortbread cookies and you want to store them for longer than 15 days? Well, have I got a plan for you! The dough for these traditional Christmas cookies will freeze really well.
You can either freeze the log or go ahead and cut them, then just put them in a single-layer in the airtight container and you’re welcome to pop them in the freezer. That way they’ll last 3-5 months.
When you’re ready to have a chocolate orange shortbread cookie, you’ll just pull them out, bake, dip and enjoy!
TIPS FOR BAKING TRADITIONAL CHOCOLATE ORANGE SHORTBREAD COOKIES
Oh, your Christmas cookies came out flat? That’s too bad. Good news, though? I have a handful of tips to troubleshoot your flat cookies:
- The oven was too hot. If you didn’t set the oven to a higher temperature than the recipe called for, your oven might need to be calibrated.
- The oven was cold. Yeah, if your oven wasn’t fully preheated or never reached the required temperature, the cookies might not have risen. So, again, if you didn’t pop your cookies in the oven too early, then you might need to calibrate it.
Do You Burn Your Cookies on the Second or Third Batches? Try this tip!
OTHER CHRISTMAS COOKIE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies
- Cream Cheese Chocolate Cookies
- Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Smores Cookies
- Grinch Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Chip and Candy Cookies
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Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies
These Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies are one of the absolute best Christmas cookie recipes I've ever tasted. Easy, fun, and they remind me of a cookie my grandma used to make.
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
- 1 cup of butter - softened
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 2 cups of flour
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla
- 1 Tablespoon of orange zest
Chocolate Ganache
- 4 squares of Chocolate bark - to melt
- 1 Tablespoon of heavy cream
- Orange zest to sprinkle on chocolate
Instructions
- Cream the butter and sugar, until light and fluffy.
- Mix in the vanilla, and orange zest.
- Add the flour in 1/3 increments, stirring between each increment.
- Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl and blend until its fully incorporated.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Turn out the cookie dough onto a piece of parchment paper, forming it into a log.
- Roll the log of cookie dough in the parchment paper, and place in the fridge for about an hour.
- Slice the cookies into 1/8 inch segments, and place 2-inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 20 -25 minutes.
- Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and microwave it in 30-second increments, stirring between each increment, until the chocolate is fully melted.
- Add in the heavy cream and stir until the chocolate is well blended.
- Dip one end of each cookie in the chocolate, and place them on a wire rack to allow the chocolate to set.
- Immediately sprinkle the chocolate with orange zest before it hardens.
- Allow chocolate to set fully (about 1 hour).
- Enjoy!
Recommended Products
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Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Baker's Half Sheet (2 Pack), Silver -
Wilton 3-Tier Collapsible Cooling Rack -
Lemon Zester, Cheese Grater, Parmesan Cheese, Ginger, Garlic, Chocolate, With Razor-Sharp Stainless Steel Blade, Protective Cover and Cleaning brush, Dishwasher Safe, by NSpring (narrowzester)
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 18 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 178Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 83mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 1gSugar: 7gProtein: 2g
Yum! Yum! Yum! these look amazing! Thanks for sharing your recipe!