January 3, 2011

orange ricotta cookies

I made these to give away at Christmas, which means I'm a little late posting. I actually kept these cookies in the freezer until I could shoot the finished product... just keeping it real.



I saw them on a food blog I follow, Two Peas and Their Pod. These cookies are bright and fresh with orange zest and juice. The dark chocolate adds a nice, rich texture. They're lovely little cookies.

Also, please note this adorable white cookie/mini cake stand. My preggo sister Ashley gave this to me for Christmas from Crate and Barrel. I love it. Thanks, Ashley!



They are also easy to make. It's a classic wet/dry ingredient type of situation.

Start by whisking the dry ingredients in a bowl.



Beat the butter and sugar until creamy. Add both eggs and you get the above consistency.



Now you have wet, dry and an orange waiting to be zested.



Throw the orange zest into the wet ingredients, being careful to avoid the bitter white part on the orange. Cut the orange and half and get all it's wonderful juice.



Next comes 2 cups of wonderful, creamy ricotta cheese. Can you imagine the texture it adds to cookies? Please. Too much.



Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and combine. You will have the above cookie dough, which really looks (and tastes) like cake batter. See the flecks of orange?



I used a melon baller to put them on a lined cookie sheet.

One time, Ashley and I were in Target and she asked me, "Do you see one of those cookie scoop things?"

"Oh you mean an ice cream scoop?"

"No, it's for cookies."

"Oh, a melon baller?"

"No, Jenna. A COOKIE SCOOP. It's for cookies only!!"

"Well that doesn't make any sense!"

Use a "cookie scoop", melon baller, 1/4 cup measure, spoon, your hands, whatever.



Check out this super-pro picture I took with my phone like, minutes before we left for Christmas Eve dinner.

After they are baked and cooled, they get drizzled with an orange glaze and melted dark chocolate. I lined my counter top with parchment to do all the messy drizzling. Makes for an easier clean up.




Yum.



I hope you try these! Here's the recipe.



Orange Ricotta Cookies with Dark Chocolate

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 orange, zested

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons orange juice
1 cup chopped dark chocolate, melted

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside. In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk until ingredients are combined. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter and the sugar. Beat the until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, orange juice, and orange zest. Beat to combine.

Stir in the dry ingredients. Spoon the dough (about 1 tablespoon for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

To glaze the cookies: combine the powdered sugar and orange juice in a small bowl and whisk until smooth. Spoon about 1/2-teaspoon onto each cookie and use the back of the spoon to gently spread. Let glaze harden for about five minutes. Drizzle cookies with dark chocolate and let the cookies set up. Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

4 comments:

  1. I adore ricotta cookies and I think the orange must add such a nice fresh flavor! For phone pictures, these are awesome! I am seriously impressed. I'm also impressed that you managed to keep them in your freezer without eating them before photographing. You have self control. I'm jealous.

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  2. Haha Joanne!! Only the one picture was taken with my phone, the one with the drizzle madness. It was like 4:15 and we were supposed to leave my house at 4:00 to get to Christmas Eve dinner. My hands were literally shaking as I was drizzling. Rushed. Stressed. Etc. The rest of these pictures were taken with my sweet camera :)

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  3. These look so great! They remind me of a Jackson Pollock painting. Much tastier I am sure ;)

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