Olive Oil Sugar Cookies with Blood Orange Glaze

 

Another really nice cookie recipe from Sara Kieffer. I saw Raspberry oranges at the grocery store so decided to use those to make a Blood Orange glaze using the recipe in Sarah Kieffer’s “100 Cookies”. It made for a really pretty glaze. I only bakes 1/3 of the cookie batter and froze the rest. I also made only 1/3 of the blood orange glaze (1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar, zest of ½ blood orange, ~1-2 tablespoons of blood orange juice). Next time I want to try glazing with lemon and pistachios!  These cookies are great without the glaze too!  Baked these cookies for 10 min.

 

Olive Oil Sugar Cookies with Pistachio Sarah Kieffer (thevanillabeanblog.com) (~by Sarah Kieffer, on the Vanilla Bean Blog and in her cookbook “100 Cookies”)

·        Notes: This dough is very forgiving, so if it cracks at all while you are rolling it out, you can patch it up easily. I call for a 2 in [12 cm] biscuit cutter, but smaller sizes also work well, just take a few minutes off the baking time. You can leave out the pistachios if needed; replace it in the dough with equal parts flour.

Ingredients

Cookies

1/3 cup [43 g] shelled pistachios, plus 1/3 cup [43 g] chopped for sprinkling (omitted because used blood orange glaze)

2 cups [284 g] all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons [57 g] unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup [150 g] granulated sugar

1/4 cup [30 g] confectioners’ sugar

1/2 cup [112 g] olive oil

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

 

Lemon glaze

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

2 to 4 tablespoons lemon juice

Pinch salt

1 1/2 cup [180 g] confectioners’ sugar

Blood orange glaze

1 cup confectioner's sugar

zest of 1 blood orange

2-4 tablespoons blood orange juice

Directions

For the cookies

Adjust an oven rack to the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350F [180C]. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place the pistachios in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until finely ground. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Pulse to fully combine and set aside. (omitted step because used blood orange glaze)

 

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter on medium until creamy. Add the granulated and confectioners’ sugars and beat on medium until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the olive oil and mix on low until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg and vanilla, mixing on low until combined. Add the flour mixture and mix on low until combined.

 

Gather the dough, wrap with plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.

 

Lightly flour a work surface and roll the dough to 1/4 in [6 mm] thick. Using a 2 in [12 cm] biscuit or cookie cutter, cut out circles. (Any dough scraps can be rewrapped and chilled while the cookies are baking.) Gently slide a metal spatula underneath each round and transfer it to the prepared baking sheet. Place 12 cookies on each sheet. Put the first baking sheet in the freezer for 10 minutes. After the dough has chilled, put the first pan of cookies in the oven, and then put the second pan in the freezer. Repeat with the leftover dough.

 

Bake one sheet at a time, 10 to 12 minutes (baked 10 min), until the cookies are just beginning to brown on the edges.

 

Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool completely on the pan.

 

For the lemon glaze

In a small bowl, whisk together the melted butter, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and the salt. Add the confectioners’ sugar and mix together until smooth. Add more lemon juice, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the desired consistency is reached. Using an offset spatula or kitchen knife, spread a thin layer of the glaze on each cooled cookie. Sprinkle with the chopped pistachios and let the glaze set before serving.