Almond Orange Snow Angel Sugar Cookies
Same But Different
Cookies are not my strong suit to be honest but different from other years during Christmas time, it's the only thing I want to bake these days. And since so many of you have been asking about my method of rolling, cutting and freezing the dough before baking to prevent cookies from breaking and spreading after my Chocolate Peppermint Sugar Cookie Sandwiches, I had no other choice but to make another batch to share the process on my Instagram stories. Not gonna lie that it’s a very tough job but that’s my commitment to my work : )
So this time I made these Orange Almond Snow Angel Cookies. Not only to show you how easy is my method of rolling, cutting and freezing the dough before baking but also to show you that you can make simple and beautiful Christmas cookies just with a good sugar cookie recipe and lots of powdered sugar.
By freezing the rolled and cut dough, you just peel the hard frozen scraps around the shaped cookies. It’s way much easier this way, with no stress of hurting your pretty shapes.
I’m just pasting the notes from the Chocolate Peppermint Sugar Cookie Sandwiches post because they are basics to make sugar cookies. I think it would be easier for you to follow instead of going back and forth for reference.
But these are nothing but basic. The dough is made with orange zest and some almond flour for flavor and texture, plus orange and almond extract to enhance these flavors. Plus lots of powdered sugar on top that goes perfectly with that buttery flavor. They are as easy as Christmas could get!
How to make this Snow Angel Cookies
For this recipe it’s important that your butter is soft just enough that it yields if you poke it but is still slightly cool.
The dough should be a bit grainy to the touch but hold together when you press it with your fingers after beating. If you feel it’s not coming together, beat a minute more.
The technique of rolling the dough between two parchment papers and transferring to a baking tray is ideal to keep the dough from breaking. I recommend using a straight rolling pin to ensure the surface of the cookies is completely flat.
Technically you can roll your dough at this point. I just appreciate what 5 to 10 minutes of chilling does to the dough. It becomes more homogeneous and has more structure and for me it’s easier to work with it.
Freezing the rolled dough is KEY to separate the cookies without hurting their shape. Freezing is also KEY in preventing the cookies from spreading when they are in the oven. We want our cookies to look like snowflakes and not like a strange thing that Mother Nature hasn't yet created! Make sure you free some space on your freezer to place your baking tray or to place your parchment paper flat.
Put together all the scrapes that you can because you can either make more cookies or use it later to make another batch with a different shape. They will be good to use for about a week if stored in the fridge. I leave my first scrapes outside and, as soon as the frozen scrapes become soft, I incorporate them with the warm ones and start the process all over again.
After the cookies are baked and outside the oven, it’s SUPER IMPORTANT to leave them in the tray 3 to 5 minutes. If you try to move them before, there is a big chance they will crumble in front of your very eyes with nothing much that you can do about it. It’s ALSO IMPORTANT to let them cool down completely after you transfer them to the cooling rack for the same reason. To give you an example, I made these during the night and decorated them the next morning.
Have fun with fillings and decorations, even mix and match as desired. It’s Christmas after all!!!
Suggested Baking Times
Thinner cookies (⅛”) + chewier consistency = 8 minutes
Thinner cookies + harder consistency = 10 minutes
Thicker cookies (¼”) + chewier consistency = 10 minutes
Thicker cookies + harder consistency = up to 12 minut
Almond Orange Snow Angel Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
◯ Unbleached all-purpose flour – 2 ½ cups
◯ Almond flour or almond meal – ½ cup
◯ Finely grind orange zest – 1 TBSP, about the zest of one orange
◯ Baking powder – 1 Tsp
◯ Fine sea salt – ½ Tsp
◯ Butter, at room temperature but not too soft – 2 sticks, (16 TBSP)
◯ Raw sugar – 1 ¼ cup
◯ Egg – 1
◯ Pure almond extract – 2 Tsp
◯ Orange extract – 1 Tsp
◯ Powdered sugar for decorating
Details
Yield:
about 24 large cookies plus some little ones
Total time:
1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, including freezing and cool down time
Active time:
10 minutes making the dough + 5 minutes decorating the cookies
Equipment:
stand mixer or electric hand mixer, parchment paper, baking trays, cooling rack
Steps
(If not using pre-cut parchment paper, cut 4 pieces the size of your baking tray, which must fit in one of your freezer racks)
In a medium bowl mix flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt with a hand whisk to break any large lumps.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment put the butter, sugar and orange zest and beat in medium speed (level 4 on the Kitchen Aid) until the mixture looks fluffy and pale, about 5 minutes. Add the egg, almond and orange extract.
Scrap the butter-sugar mixture down the bowl and beat again for 2 minutes. Scrap down again if needed. Decrease to low speed (level #1 on the Kitchen Aid), start incorporating the flour mixture, about half cup at a time (I like to use a small measuring cup and sprinkle flour through the opening of the mixer’s pouring shield.) Continue beating for 3 minutes. Stop the mixer and check your dough texture. It should be a bit grainy to the touch but hold together when you press it with your fingers (see notes). Press the whole dough with your hands and divide it into two balls.
Place one ball on a piece of plastic paper and flatten it out as much as you can. Wrap the dough and press it down again to push it as flat as possible. Do the same with the other ball of dough. Chill for about 10 minutes, just to give the dough some structure but that it’s malleable.
Place one disk of dough over a piece of parchment paper. Place another parchment paper on top and roll until the dough is between ⅛” to ¼” thick, depending on your thickness preference. Peel the top parchment paper and, if there’s any dough beyond your bottom parchment paper, cut it using a pizza cutter or sharp knife. Reserve the scraps. Using your selected cookie cutters to cut the dough, leaving as little space as possible between shapes. Cut small shapes on any small dough spots if desired. Transfer your parchment paper to a baking tray and place it in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes.
You may repeat the process with the second disk, waiting a minute or so if it’s not soft enough to roll. Combine its scrapes with the scrapes of the first disk (see notes). If you don't have enough space in your freezer for a second batch, just set it aside until you take out the previous tray.
Place the baking tray in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes.
In the meantime, preheat oven to 350°.
Take out your frozen tray and start peeling the excess dough around your shapes. For borders that are too thin or in the middle, just separate the shaped dough and arrange in the tray to have access to those areas. Reserve all excess of dough.
Quickly arrange cookies. Since they are not going to spread you can place them pretty near to each other but make sure they are not touching. (If you feel they are becoming soft, place them in the freezer again for 3 to 5 minutes.) Bake cookies for about 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the cookie and your consistency preference (see notes). Mine were baked for 10 minutes.
Take them out of the oven and let them in the baking tray, about 3 minutes. Using a thin spatula, carefully transfer each cookie to a cooling rack. Let them cool down completely before handling to prevent breakage.
After cooled, sprinkle powdered sugar on top. Be an angel and try not to eat them all!
