Orange-Vanilla Shortbread Cookies
Serves: 24
 
Ingredients
  • 10 tablespoons salted butter, room temperature
  • ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest
  • 1 vanilla bean pod, split and beans scraped
  • ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • Garnish: cane sugar
Instructions
  1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter, sugar, orange zest, vanilla beans, and salt at medium-high speed with a mixer until light and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in flour until incorporated. Gather dough into a ball.
  2. Sprinkle a large piece of plastic wrap with cane sugar, if desired. Place dough ball onto prepared piece of plastic wrap. With hands, roll dough into an 11-inch-long log, coating log with cane sugar. Wrap dough log securely in plastic wrap and refrigerate until dough is very firm, at least 4 hours or overnight.
  3. Preheat oven to 350°. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
  4. Unwrap dough log, discarding plastic wrap. Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 24 (½-inch) slices. Dip edges of cookies into more cane sugar to garnish edges, if desired. Place cookies, evenly spaced, on prepared baking sheet.
  5. Bake until cookies are firm and bottoms are golden brown, 11 to 12 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely.
Notes
Make-Ahead Tip: Cookies can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container with layers separated by wax paper.
Recipe by TeaTime Magazine at https://teatimemagazine.com/orange-vanilla-shortbread-cookies/