Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

I don’t know about where you live, but it is freaking HOT over here. For the past couple of days it’s been in the high 90s and for the next week it’s supposed to reach 100+ degrees. It’s been awful. So what does my smart brain decide to do? That’s right, I turn the oven on.

I was in the serious baking mood and realized I haven’t put up a cookie recipe in a while. The last one being these cookie dough balls, something that I should be making instead of turning on the oven. (Sticking your head inside the freezer feels marvelous after just being outside for just moments) And as good as they are, thoughs dough bites just aren't gooey cookies.

You all know Foodgawker, right? If you don’t, then don’t go over there unless you want to spend hours upon hours of drooling over and scrolling through delicious looking food. I have accumulated a lot of favorites on that site as a way of keeping track of all the marvelous treats I want to someday make. As I was looking through my favorites, I came across these chocolate chip orange cookies from CookingClassy.

I was intrigued by the use of orange in a chocolate chip cookie and thought that if the combination of chocolate and orange (Chocolate Orange- found during Christmas time) is such a success, why can’t it work in a cookie? Because come on, get real, everything tastes better in a cookie!

These are really delicious. The original recipe calls for orange extract, but I didn’t have it on hand and didn’t feel like buying a bottle for just one use, so I used the juice of the orange that I zested. The end result gave me a beautifully puffy and soft cookie with little flecks of orange. The orange flavor was there in the background, not being overly dominant. I found that the longer you regrigerate or freeze the dough, the more prominant the orange flavor becomes, which is something to keep in mind if you really like the chocolate-orange combo.

These were a delight to make, bake, and eat. So if you’re looking for something a little more special than your average chocolate chip, try these; you won’t regret it.

Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Cooking Classy
Makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients
1 ½ cups + 2 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. cornstarch
½ tsp. baking power
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
½ cup sugar
½ cup dark brown sugar
1 egg, room temperature
½ tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 ½ tsp. fresh orange juice
½ tbsp. orange zest
90g semi-sweet chocolate chips *

*this is the perfect amount for me, however some people like loads of chocolate chips in their cookies, so add accordingly to your taste

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set Bowl aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together on medium/medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in the egg and beat until fully incorporated.  Beat in the vanilla extract, orange juice, and orange zest.

Turn the speed down to low and slowly add in the flour mixture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Using a cookie scoop (I now have a slightly larger one now- a 1 tbsp. scoop) portion out the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 1-2 inches between each portion. Bake on the middle rack for about 7-9 minutes. Leave on the cookie sheet to cool for a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.