These slice and bake chocolate orange cookies start with a buttery cocoa dough, bright with fresh orange zest and cozy ground cardamom. Roll in sparkling sugar before slicing to give every cookie a glittering edge for the holiday cookie tray.
What you should know first
Creaming fresh orange zest with the butter and sugar releases its oils into the dough. This is what makes these slice and bake chocolate orange cookies taste bright. This article covers how to keep the log round, slice clean cookies, make the sprinkles stick, and freeze dough for make-ahead baking.
⏱ Prep Time: 20 minutes. Total Time: 2 hours (includes chilling). 🍪Serves: 30 cookies. 🧾 Ingredients: 10, plus sugar and sprinkles for decorating. 📊 Difficulty: Easy. 🥛 Dietary: Vegetarian.
- Ground cardamom adds a warm, floral note to the chocolate; ground cinnamon works in its place.
- Shape the dough into a 2-inch-wide log and chill it until solid, about 1 hour, turning it every 20 minutes so it stays round.
- Brush the chilled log with beaten egg white so the crystal sugar and sprinkles stick.
- Slice the log into ¼-inch rounds and bake at 350°F for 9 to 10 minutes, until the cookies are set and the centers have slight resistance when touched.
- Use only decorations labeled edible with an ingredient list; "non-toxic" or "for decoration only" glitter and luster dust aren't meant to be eaten.
- Baked cookies keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week, and the dough log freezes for up to 1 month.
Generated with AI and experts from the Tara Teaspoon team.
These chocolate orange cookies are one of my favorite ways to gift baked treats and dress up a holiday cookie tray. Chocolate and orange is a timeless flavor combination, and the slice and bake method gives them extra wow factor. After a roll in sparkling sugar and sprinkles, they quite literally glitter and shine!
I first created this recipe for the pages of Ladies' Home Journal magazine. I've perfected it with glittering edges and a helpful tip for keeping the cookie dough log round in a paper towel tube.
Jump to:
- What you should know first
- Easy slice and bake holiday cookies
- Ingredients
- Equipment
- How to zest an orange
- How to make chocolate orange cookies
- Tara's tips for perfect chocolate orange cardamom cookies
- Customize your slice and bake cookies
- Make ahead and storage
- FAQ
- More holiday cookie recipes
- 📖 Full Recipe
- 💬 Comments & Reviews
Easy slice and bake holiday cookies
If you’ve made my Slice and Bake Spiral Cookies, you know just how easy old-fashioned icebox cookies can be. This recipe uses the same simple technique with a buttery, cardamom-spiced dough that tastes festive. Make them for Christmas, Valentine's Day, or anytime the craving hits!
For a cookie box variety, pair them with my Chai Cookies with Cashew Butter, Moravian Spice Cookies, or Clementine Almond Cookies.
Here are the other reasons these cookies are a must-make:
- Slice, bake, and repeat: Make the dough in advance and keep a log in the freezer, so you’re always ready for fresh-baked cookies all season long.
- Easy to gift: Stack the baked cookies in a pretty tin, or wrap a whole log of dough with a bow for a homemade gift that’s ready to bake.
- A grown-up twist: A touch of warm cardamom makes these chocolate orange cookies taste sophisticated and a little unexpected.
- Bakery-worthy: Slicing a chilled log gives you neat, round cookies that look like they came from a bakery.
Ingredients
These helpful ingredient tips will make it easier for you to gather your supplies for orange chocolate cookies. See recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantities.
- All-purpose flour: For the most tender dough, measure the flour carefully using the scoop and level method or weigh it on a digital kitchen scale.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: Use natural unsweetened cocoa powder, not Dutch-processed.
- Granulated sugar, vanilla extract
- Ground cardamom: If you don't have cardamom, replace it with ground cinnamon.
- Unsalted butter and salt: If you only have salted butter, leave out half the additional salt.
- Fresh orange zest: Always use fresh orange zest for these cookies: it's where they get all of their bold orange flavor.
- Large egg and egg white: The extra egg white holds the sugar and sprinkles on the outside of the cookie dough log.
- Decorations: I cut my cookie dough log in half and rolled the logs in a mix of colored sugars, edible glitter stars, and sprinkles. Here’s exactly what I used:
Equipment
- Microplane grater
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Cardboard paper towel tube
- Parchment paper
- Bench scraper
- Pastry brush
- Sharp chef's knife
- Baking sheets
How to zest an orange
You’ll need one large orange for this recipe. Start by washing it under cool water and then pat it dry.
Use a microplane or the small side of a box grater to finely grate the outside of the orange, rotating it as you go so you only remove the bright orange layer. The white part just below the peel is called the pith, and it has a bitter taste.
Tip: Zest the orange before you cut or juice it; a whole orange is much easier to grate.
How to make chocolate orange cookies
Learn how to make slice and bake cookies by following these easy step-by-step instructions. See recipe card for comprehensive directions.
- Step 1: Cream together the butter, sugar, and zest. This releases the zest oils into the sugar.
- Step 2: Mix in the egg and vanilla, then add the dry ingredients and mix into a dough.
- Step 3: Form dough into a log on a sheet of parchment paper.
- Step 4: Use a straight edge to help you form a smooth log in the parchment, then twist the ends closed.
- Step 5: Optional: cut a paper towel tube down the center and gently open it.
- Step 6: Place wrapped dough log in the cardboard tube to prevent it from getting a flat side in the fridge.
- Step 7: Unwrap the chilled dough log and cut it in half. Smaller logs are easier to work with, and you can decorate each half with a different sprinkle combination or freeze one side for later.
- Step 8: To decorate, brush a log with beaten egg white to act as glue for the sprinkles.
- Step 9: Place sprinkles on a plate or baking sheet and roll the log in the mixture to coat the outside.
- Step 10: Slice log into cookies, rotating the log a quarter turn each cut, and bake the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Tara's tips for perfect chocolate orange cardamom cookies
- Chill the dough log until firm: Cold dough holds its shape under the knife, giving you clean, round edges instead of squashed ovals.
- Keep the log round as it chills: Dough flattens on whichever side it rests on, so rotate the log every 20 minutes during its hour in the fridge. Resting it inside a cut paper towel tube gives it extra support.
- Slice straight down: Use a sharp knife and press down in one firm motion. Sawing back and forth drags the dough and pushes the rounds out of shape.
- Pull from the oven a little early: Bake just until the cookies are set and the centers have slight resistance when you touch them, 9 to 10 minutes. Overbaked cookies turn dry, so check them at 9 minutes.
Customize your slice and bake cookies
This recipe is fun and easy to customize. Here are a few ideas to try:
- Dip or drizzle with chocolate: The baked cookies can be dipped or drizzled in dark or white chocolate for gourmet flavor.
- Swap the spice: Replace the cardamom with 2 teaspoons espresso powder for a mocha orange version. Or, use ground cinnamon or ground ginger in place of ground cardamom.
- Add some heat: Add a pinch of ground cayenne pepper for a dark chocolate chili orange twist.
- Roll in nuts: Instead of sprinkles, roll the log in crushed pistachios or almonds for a nutty edge.
Make ahead and storage
Make ahead in the fridge: Keep the plain parchment-wrapped dough log in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Wait to brush it with egg white and roll it in sugar until you’re ready to slice and bake.
Make ahead in the freezer: For longer storage, wrap the plain log tightly in plastic wrap, tuck it into a freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw it in the fridge for 3 to 4 hours or overnight before decorating. You want it soft enough to slice but still cold, so the rounds hold their shape as you cut them.
Room temperature: Store baked, cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Freeze baked cookies: Stack the cookies between sheets of parchment in an airtight container and freeze for up to 1 month. The parchment keeps them from sticking together. Let them thaw at room temperature before serving.
FAQ
Slice the log into ¼ inch rounds. Keeping every slice the same thickness helps the cookies bake evenly, so none are underdone while others brown too quickly. Thicker slices will need a minute or two longer in the oven.
This means your dough is too cold, which often happens with a log straight from the freezer. Let it sit in the fridge until it’s soft enough to slice but still cold, and the rounds will cut cleanly.
More holiday cookie recipes
If you enjoy slice and bake cookies, you'll also want to try these festive cut-out cookies:
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📖 Full Recipe
Chocolate Orange Slice and Bake Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1¾ cups (224g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (42g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange zest (from 1 large orange)
- 1 large egg
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
For the Decorations
- 1 large egg white
- Gold pearl sugar (white sparkling sugar, and pink pearl sugar)
- Edible gold glitter stars (and edible silver glitter stars)
- White pearl sprinkles
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, salt, and ground cardamom; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugar with orange zest until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla, then stir in the flour mixture. Blend until just combined, scraping sides of bowl as necessary.
- Transfer dough to a sheet of parchment, form into a log 2 inches in diameter and roll tightly in parchment, twisting ends to secure. Refrigerate until solid, about 1 hour, rotating every 20 minutes to maintain shape. (Optional: cut a paper towel tube along its length and place the parchment-wrapped log inside to prevent the dough from getting flat on any one side).
- Heat oven to 350°F. (If desired, divide the log in half to make them easier to work with. Each section can be decorated separately with a different sprinkle combination or you can freeze one half for later.) Lightly brush a dough log with egg white. Place crystal sugar and star sprinkles in a rimmed pan and roll log in sprinkles until coated well. Slice the log into rounds that are about ¼ inch thick, rotating the log a quarter turn each cut to help keep it round. Place rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet an inch apart.
- Bake until cookies are set and there is slight resistance when you touch centers, 9 to 10 minutes. Cool on pans for one to two minutes then slide parchment from pans onto the counter and let the cookies cool completely.
Equipment Needed
- Hand mixer or stand mixer
- Paper towel cardboard tube optional
- Pastry brush
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Tara Teaspoon
I'm Tara, a recipe developer and food stylist with nearly 30 years in food publishing, including the test kitchens of Martha Stewart and Ladies' Home Journal. My recipes and styling have appeared in magazines, cookbooks, television and advertising, and I'm the author of two cookbooks, Delicious Gatherings and Live Life Deliciously. Every recipe here is tested and reliable. Have a question? Leave a comment and I'll answer it, or get new recipes by email.
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