Orange chocolate chip cookies ready in one hour – these zesty cookies are sure to steal your heart if you love all things chocolate orange!

I shared these Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies in January and have made those cookies many times since. Lately, I’ve been experimenting adding different flavours/ingredients to the original recipe.

I will pretty much find any way of combining chocolate into a recipe! Chocolate can be paired with so many different flavours, my favourites are white chocolate and cranberry, dark/milk chocolate and peanut butter and chocolate and orange.

The last flavour combination inspired me to share this new vegan cookie recipe!

If you’re from the UK like me, then you’ll be familiar with Terry’s Chocolate Oranges. For anyone who’s never tried one of these, they’re basically chocolate shaped like an orange and you break off segments of the chocolate. Before going vegan, I was literally obsessed with TCO and would eat so much of this chocolate. But seeing as there’s no exact vegan version of a TCO currently available, I’ve made my own so I don’t have to miss out anymore!

The cookie dough before baking: I love the big chunks of chocolate!

To really get the orange flavour to come through in each bite of this cookie, I do my usual trick of rubbing the sugar and orange zest together before creaming with the butter. The natural oils in the orange zest release and they infuse into the sugar, making the baked cookies taste incredible with a hint of citrus.

I took a few cookies into work for my colleagues to taste and they were well received, with one of my co-workers requesting the recipe. That’s the best feeling when you’ve made something, knowing someone has enjoyed what you’ve put your love and effort into!

This recipe makes 15 deliciously soft, gooey cookies that have perfectly crispy edges. We love ours eaten fresh from the oven, but they are amazing warmed up in the microwave and topped with vegan whipped cream or ice cream!

Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 12

Total Time 57

Servings 15

Author What Jessica Baked Next

Ingredients

200 g dark or light brown sugar
Zest from 1 large orange
112 g dairy-free baking block softened
60 ml plant milk (my favourites are soya and oat)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
250 g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons cornflour
1/2 teaspoon salt
100 g bar vegan dark chocolate broken into pieces
125 g vegan dark chocolate chips plus extra to press into the tops of each cookie

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl mix the sugar and orange zest together until the orange starts to release it's aroma. Now add the the softened plant butter to the bowl and beat until the mixture is creamy and fluffy.
Now add the plant milk and vanilla extract and mix to combine. The mixture might look like it's seperated at this point, but don't worry as once the dry ingredients are added the cookie dough will come together.
Place a sieve over the top of the mixing bowl and sift all the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cornflour and salt) and mix until a dough starts to come together.
Stir through the chocolate chips/chunks until evenly distributed throughout the dough. Cover the bowl and leave the dough in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes – this an optional step but I find it makes rolling the cookie dough easier, you can skip this step and roll the cookie dough straight away.
Preheat oven to 180°C / 160°C Fan / 350°F / Gas Mark 4. Line two large baking trays with baking parchment or silicone baking mats. Divide the dough into 15 equally sized pieces. I like to weigh mine to be exact (aim for approx. 60g portions). Place the balls of cookie dough out on the baking trays and leave room between each piece of cookie dough to allow the cookies to spread - I bake my cookies in batches, and usually only bake 4 on a tray at one time.
Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes or until they’ve turned a light golden colour. Once the cookies are out of the oven press a few extra chocolate chips/chunks into the tops of each cookie if desired.
Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking trays – as they cool they’ll firm up.
Once the cookies are cooled store them in an airtight container. The cookies will keep for up to 3 days, but like most baked goods they’re best enjoyed on the day of baking. Try warming the cookies in the microwave and serving with either whipped cream or ice cream.