Description
These Orange Crinkle Cookies are an absolute delight, bursting with bright citrus flavor and covered in a beautiful, crackly powdered sugar crust! They have a wonderfully tender, buttery crumb that’s infused with fresh orange zest and juice. The signature “crinkle” comes from rolling the soft dough in powdered sugar, creating a stunning contrast. These citrus cookies are easy to make and perfect for any time you need a sweet, sunny treat!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 1/2 cup All-Purpose Flour, spooned and leveled
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
- 1 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1 Large Egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Fresh Orange Zest
- 1 tablespoon Fresh Orange Juice
- 1/2 cup Powdered Sugar (for rolling)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Pans: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed for 4-5 minutes, until very light, pale, and fluffy.
- Add Wet Ingredients: On low speed, mix in the vanilla extract, egg, fresh orange zest, and fresh orange juice until combined. Increase speed to medium-high for one minute to fully incorporate.
- Combine Wet and Dry: On the lowest speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix only until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Roll in Powdered Sugar: Place the powdered sugar in a small, shallow bowl. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls, then roll each ball generously in the powdered sugar until completely coated.
- Bake: Place the sugar-coated dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of space between them. Bake for 10-14 minutes, until the bottoms are just beginning to turn light golden and the tops look dry and crackled.
- Cool: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 3-5 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Don’t Rush Creaming: Properly creaming the butter and sugar for a full 4-5 minutes is essential for creating the light, slightly cakey texture of these cookies.
- Fresh is Best: Using fresh orange zest and juice provides the brightest, most authentic citrus flavor. Zest the orange before you juice it!
- Do Not Overmix: As soon as the last streaks of flour disappear, stop the mixer. Overmixing will result in tough, dense cookies instead of soft, tender ones.
- Generous Sugar Coat: A thick, even coat of powdered sugar is what creates the beautiful white, crackled “crinkle” effect as the cookie bakes.
- Don’t Overbake: For soft and chewy cookies, be careful not to overbake. The cookies should look set, but not browned, on top. They will firm up as they cool.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 75 kcal
- Sugar: 9 g
- Sodium: 35 mg
- Fat: 2.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1 g
- Trans Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 12.1 g
- Fiber: 0.2 g
- Protein: 0.8 g
- Cholesterol: 10 mg
