Sun Moon Cookies
We found this recipe and tried it one Christmas. The orange and chocolate combination is especially yummy.
They were back this year, by popular demand. We learned that they work well in the cookie gun. We had a sun-like mold that looked great when half dipped in chocolate. If you decide to use a cookie gun, delete the paragraph about making balls, powdered sugar and the bottom of a glass. Also, don’t chill the dough until after you have made the shapes on the cookie sheet. A 10 minute chill, on the baking sheet, will help them hold their shape.
Yield: Approximately 10 dozen (depending on cookie size)
DO NOT preheat oven. Dough must chill before baking.
Ingredients:
2 cups melted butter (4 sticks, one pound)
2 cups powdered sugar (not sifted)
1 cup white (granulated) sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp orange extract
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar (critical!)
1 tsp salt
4¼ cps flour
½ cp white sugar in a small bowl (for later)
Instructions:
Melt the butter in the microwave. Add the sugars to the melted butter and mix. Let the mixture cool to room temperature on the counter.
When cool, mix in the eggs one at a time, stirring well after each addition. Add the orange extract, orange zest, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Mix well.
Add the flour in half-cup increments, mixing after each addition.
Chill the dough for at least one hour. (Overnight is fine.)
Preheat your oven to 325° F and place the rack in the middle of the oven.
Use your hands to form the dough in one-inch balls. Roll the dough balls in a bowl containing the last half-cup of white sugar. Place the dough balls on a lined cookie sheet. Flatten the dough balls with the bottom of a glass.
Bake at 325 degrees F. for 10 to 15 minutes. (They should have a tinge of gold on the top.) Cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove them to a rack to finish cooling.
When the cookies are completely cool, prepare for dipping them by laying them out on sheets of parchment paper on your counter. Make enough space to hold all the cookies you baked. Make the Chocolate Dip.
Chocolate Dip Ingredients:
12 oz chocolate chips
1 stick butter
Chocolate Dip Instructions:
Melt the chips and the butter in the microwave. Stir to make sure the chips are melted. If they’re not, heat in 20-second increments until you can stir them smooth.
Dip the cookies, one by one, so that half of the cookie is chocolate coated. (The half you hold will not be chocolate coated, naturally!) Place them back on the parchment paper to dry.