Recipe Corner: Italian Orange Cookies

We have gone through our recipe book and that one looked particularly good at this time of the year.

Give it a try and let us know how it turns out or how long the cookies last on the dessert plates! 

 Photo by Taste of Home Recipe

This recipe yields about 24 dozen cookies and will take about 6 hours if rolling/twisting the cookies, or about 4 hours if cookies are made into balls. 

Ingredients:

½ lb. vegetable shortening (such as Crisco)

1 c. granulated sugar

6 large eggs

2 oranges (for zest)

2/3 c. orange juice

1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract

½ c. vegetable oil

½ tsp. salt

2 ½ lbs. flour (approx. 9 cups)

½ c. baking powder

Topping:

1 lb. confectioner’s sugar

½ stick butter, softened

Milk, room temperature

¼ tsp. vanilla extract

Multi colored decors (round shaped sprinkles)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   

Beat together shortening and sugar; 

Add eggs one at a time while beating. 

Grate orange rinds fine and add to mixture. 

Add orange juice, oil, and salt and mix well

Alternate between additions of flour and baking powder, and mix well.

Scoop a teaspoon of dough and roll into a ball or roll long and then twist upwards.   

Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes (don’t let them get brown, only a touch on the bottom). 

Cool completely.

Topping: a loose icing

Mix all ingredients together slowly.  

Dip cookies into topping 

Sprinkle the decors on top while still wet.   

Allow cookies to dry well.

And Enjoy!