Chewy Olive Oil, Anise, and Orange Sugar Cookies
By Andrea GearyPublished on December 7, 2020
Time
1 hour, plus 20 minutes cooling
Yield
Makes 24 cookies
Ingredients
Before You Begin
The final dough will be slightly softer than most cookie doughs. For the best results, handle the dough as briefly and gently as possible when shaping the cookies. Overworking the dough will result in flatter cookies.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, anise, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl. Set aside.
- Place 1½ cups sugar in large bowl. Add orange zest and rub into sugar until fragrant. Add cream cheese. Place remaining ⅓ cup sugar in shallow dish and set aside. Pour melted butter over cream cheese mixture and whisk to combine (some small lumps of cream cheese will remain but will smooth out later). Whisk in oil until incorporated. Add egg and milk; continue to whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture and mix with rubber spatula until soft, homogeneous dough forms.
- Divide dough into 24 equal pieces, about 2 tablespoons each. Using your hands, roll dough into balls. Working in batches, roll dough balls in sugar in dish to coat, then set on prepared sheets, 12 dough balls per sheet. Using bottom of drinking glass, flatten dough balls until 2 inches in diameter. Sprinkle tops of cookies evenly with 4 teaspoons remaining sugar in dish (2 teaspoons per sheet); discard any remaining sugar.
- Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are set and just beginning to brown, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating sheet after 7 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheet for 5 minutes; using wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and let cool completely. Serve.
Time
1 hour, plus 20 minutes coolingYield
Makes 24 cookiesIngredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
For optimal chewiness, we adjusted the fat in our sugar cookie recipe until it hit a ratio of approximately 1 part saturated fat (butter) to 3 parts unsaturated fat (olive oil). Instead of creaming the fat and sugar, we whisked them together. We used extra flour and baking powder for structure and lift, and extra sugar kept the cookies from being too dry. Cream cheese enriched the dough's flavor without adding too much liquid, and baking soda kept our sugar cookies flat and crackly. Ground anise and a bit of orange zest, along with the olive oil, gave these cookies a hint of Spanish flair.
Before You Begin
The final dough will be slightly softer than most cookie doughs. For the best results, handle the dough as briefly and gently as possible when shaping the cookies. Overworking the dough will result in flatter cookies.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, anise, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl. Set aside.
- Place 1½ cups sugar in large bowl. Add orange zest and rub into sugar until fragrant. Add cream cheese. Place remaining ⅓ cup sugar in shallow dish and set aside. Pour melted butter over cream cheese mixture and whisk to combine (some small lumps of cream cheese will remain but will smooth out later). Whisk in oil until incorporated. Add egg and milk; continue to whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture and mix with rubber spatula until soft, homogeneous dough forms.
- Divide dough into 24 equal pieces, about 2 tablespoons each. Using your hands, roll dough into balls. Working in batches, roll dough balls in sugar in dish to coat, then set on prepared sheets, 12 dough balls per sheet. Using bottom of drinking glass, flatten dough balls until 2 inches in diameter. Sprinkle tops of cookies evenly with 4 teaspoons remaining sugar in dish (2 teaspoons per sheet); discard any remaining sugar.
- Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are set and just beginning to brown, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating sheet after 7 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheet for 5 minutes; using wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and let cool completely. Serve.
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