Today has just been one of those days. While I came home to a lovely surprise, I just needed to forget about work and what better way to distract myself than to do something that requires my attention – bake! And given that this month is about all things hygge and orange goes so well with christmas spices – what could possibly sound more hyggeligt than a Chocolate Orange Christmas Cookie? (I definitely am in need of all the hygge today!)

I only discovered the wonders of Terry’s Chocolate Orange last year. Despite seeing it during my days in Dublin and my Irish friends raving about it, the thought of chocolate and orange just did not appeal to me. Young and foolish – I definitely was!

Now I simply cannot get enough of it and look forward to everything chocolate orange. From the yummy chocolate orange cheesecake by Lady B’s (which you can get at Artisan Coffee Design in Skegness) to Costa’s chocolate orange hot chocolate. I have become slightly chocolate orange obsessed.

So while the base recipe is my Ben’s cookies copycat recipe (it is my go to cookie recipe) I decided to inject some Christmas spirit into them. And while I would ordinarily say, let the dough rest overnight for optimal flavour – some days you just cannot wait!

Ingredients
500gm plain flour
50gm corn flour
100gm granulated sugar
150gm brown sugar (soft light brown sugar)
50gm muscovado sugar (dark)
3 eggs (medium sized)
250gm unsalted butter
1 tsp salt
1tsp Vanilla Essence
0.5 tsp Sodium Bicarbonate
200gm of Terry’s Chocolate Orange Mini’s cut into smaller chunks
(you can use 250gms but I actually think that is too much chocolate, so play around with how much you want in it)
Zest of half an orange
1 tsp all spice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
A couple of extra chocolate orange pieces Large/Mini’s to put on top at the very end
(This was a very difficult feat in our house as Dan kept stealing the leftovers!)

Method
1. Melt butter and set aside to cool.
2. Mix flour, corn flour, sodium bicarbonate and spices in a bowl and set aside.
3. Combine all three sugars to butter mixture and mix well.
4. Once combined add eggs one at a time, salt and vanilla essence.
5. Mix in flour gradually until well combined.
6. Add in chocolate chunks.
7. Keep overnight in fridge. (or be greedy like me and make a few now!)
8. Weigh out 100gm of cookie dough, roll into a ball and place on baking tray.
9. Bake at 180 degrees Celcius for 13 – 15 minutes until they turn brown.
10. Once partially cooled add a chocolate orange piece on top and let it continue to rest. (If you add the chocolate orange on too early, it will run all over the place which is not necessarily a bad thing to be honest)

Not only does our flat smell amazing and Christmassy, but these cookies are so moreish that one never quite feels like enough! My only problem with them at the moment, is that not only do I have to fight with Dan for cookies but I also have little Nisser to compete with too!

Let me know if you will be trying these!