Iced Orange Cookies
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Iced Orange Cookies feature a soft, puffy sugar cookie covered in a zesty orange glaze. With golden edges and buttery, melt in your mouth centers, these cookies are the perfect pick me up for dreary winter days and a lovely addition to holiday cookie trays!
If you love a soft and fluffy cookie, you’ve got to try the Autumn inspired version of these, our Frosted Pumpkin Cookies.
Table of Contents
Soft and Fluffy Iced Orange Cookies
When life hands you a global crisis, turn on the oven. Can someone cross stitch that on a pillow for me? It’s my new mantra.
Baking has always been an outlet for me, but never more so than in 2020, when we’re home bound with our kiddos for the foreseeable (uncertain) future.
My usual stress-busting recipes are the ones I know almost by heart–Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies, Sour Cream Banana Bread, and Crazy Cake, but there’s something about Orange Cookies that feels especially right for this time.
Orange Cookies are the kind of sunny, comforting recipe we could all use right now, and it’s another great easy baking recipe for kids. My four year old never turns down a chance to dig in the sugar canister or break out the citrus juicer! Our whole family devoured these in no time!
Why You’ll Love Them, Too!
- Ridiculously fluffy– My husband said these cookies reminded him of a muffin top–an irresistible combination of fluffy cake and sweet glaze!
- Big batch and freezer friendly– This makes 3 dozen cookies that freeze well, but you might be surprised how quickly they disappear.
- An instant pick me up– Making this old fashioned Orange Cookie recipe feels like crossing a bridge to another generation. They’re familiar and fresh at the same time, and their bright, zesty flavor is inherently cheerful. I love making these in the dreary winter months when oranges are in season.
Orange cookies are the perfect afternoon snack, but I also found myself reaching for one with my morning coffee. They’re the perfect any time of day treat, so let’s get to the kitchen for some baking therapy!
Key Ingredients
- Pantry staples, including flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Butter– I recommend unsalted butter for baking, so we can control the exact amount of salt. If using salted butter, remove all but a pinch of salt.
- Sugar– Granulated white sugar helps the orange flavor shine.
- Eggs- Eggs add lift, structure, and fluffiness to the cookies.
- Sour cream- Full fat sour cream adds tang and moisture to the cookies. Substitute whole milk plain Greek yogurt, if you prefer.
- Orange juice and zest– Fresh citrus is the star of the show! This recipe is perfect for the winter months, when oranges are in season. You can use regular oranges or blood oranges.
- Cream cheese– Just a touch of cream cheese makes the orange frosting a little more interesting.
- Powdered sugar– This will thicken and sweeten the icing so it hardens into a delicious, crackly glaze.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and their amounts!
How to Make Orange Cookies
Step 1: Whisk together dry ingredients– flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Step 2: Cream together butter and sugar until pale in color and light and fluffy.
Step 3: Add eggs, vanilla, yogurt and orange zest.
Step 4: Add the dry ingredients and beat on low until just combined.
Step 5: Refrigerate, then scoop onto a lined baking sheet.
Step 6: Bake in the preheated oven until tops spring back when pressed.
Icing for Orange Cookies
Of course, orange cookies wouldn’t be complete without a sweet, zesty glaze, and this one is the absolute BEST! When the cookies are first iced, they’ll be shiny and sticky, but the glaze sets up into a smooth finish that crackles apart with every bite.
Step 1: Whisk together orange juice, orange zest, softened cream cheese, and powdered sugar until smooth.
Step 2: Spread glaze over cooled cookies. If glaze hardens, just give it a good whisk or add a few drops of liquid before frosting.
Tips for Perfect Cookies
- The orange zest and juice is really essential here. I recommend using fresh squeezed orange juice, but quality store bought orange juice will also work. Don’t skip the zest! It’s the key to all that bright, zingy flavor.
- Take your time creaming the butter and sugar. For most drop cookie recipes, 2-3 minutes is enough to adequately mix the butter and sugar, since we don’t need a lot of extra lift. But for cakes (or cake-like cookies, like these!), we want A LOT of lift and fluffiness, which means working more air bubbles and volume into the butter. You’ll likely need 4-5 minutes to cream the butter and sugar. Look for the mixture to turn a very pale yellow color, the sugar to look mostly dissolved, and for it to increase slightly in volume.
- Refrigerate the dough. This dough needs to rest in the fridge for an hour before baking to avoid spreading. You want fluffy cookies, not pancakes!
- Use a cookie scoop for uniform size. I swear by this King Arthur Flour cookie scoop.
- Wait for them to cool before icing. Icing will run right off of a warm cookie. Make sure they’re completely cooled before frosting.
Storage and Make Ahead Instructions
- To make ahead of time: The dough for orange cookies can be made and refrigerated for up to 48 hours before baking. Be sure to remove the dough from the fridge 20 minutes before scooping to allow it to soften slightly.
- Storing: Orange cookies can be stored frosted or unfrosted. Store cookies in a tightly sealed airtight container. The cookies will stay softer for longer (at least 4 days) if they’re already frosted. Be sure to let the glaze harden completely before storing, and place sheets of wax paper or parchment paper between any layers.
- Freezing: I prefer to freeze these cookies baked, either frosted or unfrosted, in an airtight freezer bag or container. Defrost at room temperature. You can learn more about freezing cookies here.
FAQs
Unlike many other cookies, we don’t want to underbake these. The cookies are done when they’re set, and the top bounces back when pressed gently with a finger.
I recommend using full fat, unsweetened Greek yogurt as a substitute for sour cream.
More Great Citrus Recipes to Try:
- Orange Bundt Cake
- Orange French Toast Casserole
- Lemon Rosemary Butter Cookies
- Orange Julius Recipe
- Vanilla Orange Buttermilk Biscuits
- Orange Poppyseed Muffins
Iced Orange Cookies
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup sour cream or full fat Greek yogurt
- 1 Tablespoon grated orange zest
For the glaze:
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1 ounce cream cheese (softened)
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on medium high speed until pale and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
- Reduce speed to low, and beat in yogurt and orange zest until just combined.
- Add the flour mixture, beating on low speed until just incorporated. Cover the bowl tightly with saran wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 2 days. If refrigerating overnight, remove the bowl from the fridge 20 minutes before scooping.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper or silicone mats. Scoop heaping Tablespoons of dough onto the sheets, leaving 2 inches between each one.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. Cookies are done when the tops are puffed and bounce back when lightly pressed with a finger. Allow the cookies to cool 10 minutes on the pan, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the glaze, whisk together the cream cheese, zest, and orange juice. Sift the powdered sugar into the orange mixture and whisk until smooth. If you'd like it to be a bit thicker, add up to another 1/2 cup of powdered sugar. Glaze the cooled cookies. Allow the glaze set before storing the cookies.
Notes
- The dough for orange cookies can be made and refrigerated for up to 48 hours before baking. Be sure to remove the dough from the fridge 20 minutes before scooping to allow it to soften slightly.
- These cookies stay soft for up to 5 days. Store in an airtight container at room temperature, with parchment between the layers.
- Baked, unglazed cookies can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature, then glaze.
Just getting ready to try these cookies. Can you add orange juice to the cookie dough to give it a little more orange flavor or will it make the dough too runny?Looking forward to making these. Thank you for sharing the recipe
Tasty. I brought a batch to my bookclub and the plate was finished, that doesn’t often happen. Cookies were full of flavor and not too sweet. My only difficulty was getting the cream cheese to incorporate into the orange juice for the glaze. I had little white specks and the cream cheese was room temp. I wonder if sour cream would have worked?
My daughter made these as she was entering a cookie competing..there were 12 bakers in total..
Low & behold she won the bake off..She thanked me for the recepie and has been baking them at least every few weeks..totally delicious..thank you for sharing..!!!@
I added some extra orange juice to the batter and they tasted amazing!!
Can I use nonfat Greek yogurt or does it need to be full fat?
Non fat should work ok, but I haven’t tested it myself.
These cookies are just what the Dr ordered! My husband loved orange cookies that his mom use to make every year around Xmas. Well, his mom passed and left no recipe for me to make for her son..but you have! They are the cookies! And they are delicious so thank you and Happy Holidays.
Reggie
I’m so excited to make these with my mom. You see, these are a family favorite to bake during the holidays. My grandfather, (my mom’s dad), would make them every Christmas. He was a chef. I unfortunately never met him but my mom does a great job keeping his memory alive. All that to say, just the other day we were dreaming about Christmas & she exclaimed how she was looking forward to baking our traditional orange cookies. When I asked if she had the recipe she said she’d have to track it down after having recently moved. Now thanks to you…I have the recipe at the ready. Grandpa’s recipe had sour cream. I think I’ll try with the Greek yogurt considering I just bought a large container. Thank you again!
My cookies spread flat and looked terrible. I made the dough the night before. I double checked the ingredients and didn’t miss anything.
I’m so sorry to hear that! Is there any chance you are baking in a country besides the US? Sometimes ingredients can vary widely internationally.
Amazing!! I’m going to refer to these as “Wife Points Cookies” from now on!
Haha YES! I’m so glad you liked the orange cookies!
I used to never bake until a few years ago. Since this quarantine thing started, though, I’ve been baking up a storm. I’m a huge fan of the orange zest in the glaze of these cookies: so yummy!
I am 100% going to make these! I’m not even great in the kitchen but these look like something I can handle. (I love orange-flavored desserts!) Thanks for this!
I don’t have either … Greek yogurt or sour cream .. Could I just use milk?
I’ve never tried it with milk, but it might work. Buttermilk would be a better substitute, or add a Tablespoon of lemon juice to your milk.
Which is it Yogurt or sour cream. In the ingredients it says yogurt in the directions it says sour cream
Either full fat Greek yogurt or sour cream works great! Thanks for the catch though–I’m going to clarify in the recipe.