Outstanding! Before I go too far into this, I just need to say: omagursh these are awesome. Be warned though, they are pop-able and dangerous! When you combine the two delicious flavors of chocolate and orange… it’s like tranquility for a food addict. Chocolate dipped orange cookies equal mmmmm and yes please.
In addition to these amazing cookies, we had a really great week. The weather is perfect here in the Northwest. The sun is out, and it’s the perfect temperature outside. It’s not common for us to have so much sun and so little rain this time of year, so we are enjoying it as much as possible. This is why I decided to take art class outside.
I know I talk about my art students a lot, but I’m just so darn proud of them! They are picking up some pretty challenging topics, and it’s exciting to watch them grow. It’s such a blessing to hear them talk about color theory with such ease. It makes me glow.
This week we focused on an artist in Olympia Washington, Joe Penrod. I came across his work some time ago. I enjoy all of his work, but I found myself quite drawn to his piece titled “Deflated”. He masked the shadows of inflated balloons using blue tape, to create a precision shape that captures the likeness of the cast shadow. Three weeks later the blue tape shadow remained, however the balloons were deflated and laying on the ground.
We spoke about his art, then we made our own work inspired by Joe Penrod. We made chalk shadows in the road! I snagged a package of 60 pieces of chalk with a variety of colors. One student would pose, then the other student would outline their shadow with the color of chalk that resembles their current mood. After outlining the shadow, they would color it in together.
They had so much fun with this project and the chocolate dipped orange cookies that followed. I can’t tell you which one was better, the art project or the cookies!
So here you guys got a two-for-one, a craft and a delicious chocolate dipped orange cookie recipe. I hope you guys have as great of a week as I did, and I hope this weather and great snacks continue on into this coming week!
- 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons finely shredded orange peel (zest)
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ounce sweetened baking chocolate or almond bark
- 1/4 cup chopped nuts
- With an electric mixer or stand mixer, beat shortening and sugar on medium speed. Add egg, shredded orange peel, and fresh squeezed orange juice and continue to beat on medium speed. In a medium bowl sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the orange batter. Mix ingredients well. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Roll chilled dough, 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Shape cookies with a round cookie cutter about 2 1/3 inches in diameter. Overlap the shapes to form a crescent shape. Transfer to a greased baking sheet and bake about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, melt chocolate in microwave or with a double-broiler. Dip one end of cooked cookies in chocolate and sprinkle with nuts. Place cookies on wax paper and, allow chocolate to harden.
