Orange Almond Shortbread Cookies

A delicious citrusy twist on a traditional shortbread cookie, sure to be a hit at any cookie exchange or holiday gathering!

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 24 cookies

Equipment

Parchment paper

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
⅔ cup powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons orange zest (can use up to 3 Tablespoons, zest of 1 medium orange)
½ teaspoon almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup roasted salted almonds chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 °F.
Cut the butter into small cubes.
Using an electric mixer, cream together the cold butter and the powdered sugar.
Add in the almond extract and orange zest and mix until well combined.
Gently stir in the flour until just mixed (overmixing will cause tough cookies!)
Lay out a piece of parchment paper on your work surface, place the dough on top, and cover with another piece of parchment.
Roll dough between parchment layers until it is ½" thick (makes roughly an 8×8" square). Remove the top piece of parchment.
Sprinkle the chopped almonds evenly over the top of the cookies, and press them down to help them stick.
Transfer the bottom piece of parchment, with the dough, to a baking sheet and bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden around the edges.
Cut while warm (a pizza cutter is very handy for this) and allow to cool completely before eating.

Notes

I made these twice, once using roasted salted almonds and once using blanched almonds. I definitely prefer the roasted salted almonds as they add a bit of salty contrast.

Also, it sounds like a lot of orange zest, but trust me and use it all or you won’t be able to taste the orange in the finished cookie.

Keyword cookies, shortbread

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Real Talk

These Orange Almond Shortbread cookies are utterly delicious. I tried the recipe out for Thanksgiving and my sister-in-law just about disappeared with the container – I was able to stop her in time, thank God, because I wanted some too!!! (Love you Wendi)

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