Tag: citrus sweet treats

Citrus Swirl Cookies

These colorful and fragrant Citrus Swirl Cookies taste as great as they look. They’re buttery and tender, yet firm, and so flavorful too. Their scent is illuminating. They are an epic icebox cookie. They are the bomb. That’s our take and we’re sticking to it. And seriously, just wait until you catch their lovely aroma!

Citrus Swirl Cookie Recipe - Close Up

Recipe credit goes to Karen Cope, a long-time blue ribbon winning baker at the Minnesota State Fair, which is where she won “best cookie” with this recipe in 2016.

Creator, Citrus Swirl Cookie Recipe

The kaleidoscope-like look of these Citrus Swirl Cookies is eye-catching. The technique of twisting colorful dough together may remind you of tie dye clothing. That method makes the recipe more involved than your average cookie, but it’s worth  the effort. And once you have that part down though, you’re golden. Bake like a blue ribbon winner and make these!

Citrus Swirl Cookie Recipe - Stack

Secret Ingredient?

Ask any blue ribbon baker their tips for baking winning entries in competitions and most often you’ll hear “great ingredients.” That applies to this winning cookie as well. Karen speculates that using Fiori Di Sicilia made her cookie stand out for its distinct and delicious aroma. Fiori Di Sicilia (flower of Sicily) is a combo of vanilla and citrus. Our friends at King Arthur Baking Company sell a delightful version, plus they give great tips about using and storing it here.

Baking Tips

Some helpful points about Karen’s recipe:

  • If using Fiori di Sicilia is not an option for you, Karen suggests replacing it with a teaspoon of vanilla and a half teaspoon each of lemon and orange extracts
  • This recipe makes about 6 dozen cookies. If you don’t want to bake them right away or all at once, freeze the dough or portions of it (prior to slicing).
  • If you freeze any portion, simply thaw in the refrigerator the night before you what to bake them.
  • Be careful not to overbake these cookies. You want them tender and not dry.

By the way, we had a fun time brainstorming alternative names for this cookie, just for fun. A couple favorites were: Karen Cope’s Kaleidoscope Cookies and Tie-Dye-For Sweet Treats. Ultimately we stayed with the original/best title.

Enjoy-

Cyndi

p.s. If you’re into cookies that are awesome and artistic (aka “require a bit more work”), be sure to also try the copycat Girl Scout cookies we previously shared.

 

Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies

Made with Meyer lemons in three parts—lemon curd, cookie, and icing—these Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies are immensely bright and flavorful! You will delight in their fresh and rich taste.

Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies-Close Up

Bursting with Lemony Flavor

Fresh lemon juice and zest go into each part of these Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies. The cookie portion itself is super simple to make. It bursts with lemony goodness, even before you add the lemon icing and lemon curd on top.

The dough ingredients include both butter and coconut oil, which together, give the cookie a light but not overly delicate texture. You use vanilla bean paste and a tish of salt in the dough also, so the cookie’s lemon essence blooms with every bite. If you do not have access to vanilla bean paste or whole vanilla beans to scrape out the paste, use a pure extract instead. Chilling the dough a short time makes it easier to roll out.

Lovely Limoncello Liqueur

Limoncello goes into the curd. If you’re like me and don’t normally have that lovely Italian liqueur around, buy the tiny sized bottles (like those served on airplanes). I try to keep some on hand for recipes like this, or for when a craving comes on. on. Any time I smell or taste limoncello, I daydream of sitting in a flower garden in Italy, sipping a glass of it while sunbeams and the liqueur warm me inside and out. In fact, the scent of lemon itself is enough to fill me with sunshine.

Make Ahead, Make Extra

Last tips: I like to make the lemon curd ahead of time…and usually in a double batch. As a result, I have extra to use in other ways and I don’t feel rushed waiting for the mixture to cook and thicken. If you don’t want to take on homemade from scratch lemon curd at this time, there are jar/pre-made options like Dickenson’s and other, available in most grocery stores.

Recipe credit goes to Rozanne Gooding who won with them at the San Diego County Fair (2013).

I hope you make these citrus sweet treats soon…and enjoy them as much as I do.

-Cyndi