Can we talk about blood oranges for a minute?
This fruit is so unbelievably gorgeous. As a child, I was always thrown off by the name. ‘Blood’ oranges. As much as I tried to convince my nephews and younger cousins that my aversion to sunlight was due to my being a vampire, I never really wanted to eat something with ‘blood’ in its title.
I’m an adult now, and that has all changed.
These little beauties are sweet and sometimes bitter. To top it off, they’re not as acidic as their bright orange cousins. The flavor is reminiscent of an orange but there’s something more to it. There’s a slight berry flavor that makes eating a blood orange a completely unique experience. Your fingertips stain with the deep red juice and the segments catch the light in shades of pink, red, and an almost black burgundy. To top to all off, squeeze the juice into a bit of powdered sugar and you’re left with a vibrant pink glaze.
If there’s any downside to this particular citrus, it’s that the season for blood oranges is so short! Most grocery stores will never stock them and you sometimes have to search out the specialized supermarkets to find them, but they’re worth it. For the few months they’re out, they’re one of the best things to bake with. Plus, they are annoyingly photogenic.
Now that I’ve gone on about my fascination with blood oranges, let’s move on to these cookies. These shortbread are completely unexpected: blood orange, basil, and bourbon. They’re slightly sweet, slightly herby, with a bit of crunch from the walnuts, and a hint of alcohol.
A couple years ago, my friends and I took a trip to San Francisco. While there, we went to this incredible cocktail bar so dedicated to their speakeasy theme that we needed a password to get in. It was just light enough inside to see where you were walking, but for the most part, it was dark, ambient, and difficult to photograph even if you could take your phone out and try to sneak a snap. Now, I’ve never really been a cocktail kind of girl. I stick to my standard scotch and soda anytime I go anywhere, but this place managed to get the smokiness of my favorite libation into a glass with flavors I’d never put together on my own. I was impressed and went home to google different cocktails I could make with the few bottles of scotch and bourbon I had at home. Everything was far more complex than I was willing to take on (I’ll leave the egg whites in drinks to the pros!). However, these shortbread cookies are something I felt would make a good cocktail.
Clearly, I’m more willing to experiment with baked goods than drinks! What are some strange flavor combinations you like that don’t seem like they’d work but totally impress?
| Cook Time | 22-27 minutes |
| Servings |
cookies
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- 300 grams butter room temperature (2 sticks + 1/3 cup)
- 150 grams granulated sugar (2/3 cup)
- 450 grams flour (3 3/4 cup)
- 2 blood oranges zest and juice
- 3 Tbsp bourbon any brand works, preferably one with a stronger taste
- 3 basil leaves chopped finely (if using dried basil, I usually put 2 tsp in)
- 2/3 cup walnuts toasted and chopped
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar sifted to remove lumps
- 1/2 blood orange juice only
- 2 Tbsp bourbon
Ingredients
Blood Orange, Basil, and Bourbon Shortbread
Blood Orange and Bourbon Drizzle
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- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy--about 2-5 minutes.
- Mix together your flour and blood orange zest. Add the dry ingredients to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until just combined.
- Add the blood orange juice, bourbon, basil, and walnuts. Mix until just incorporated. The dough will be soft and sticky.
- Split the dough in half. Roll each half into a ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 300°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove your chilled dough from the fridge.
- Sprinkle flour on your countertop and on top of your dough. Using a rolling pin, roll your dough until it's about 1/3" thick. Using a cookie cutter or a knife, cut into whatever shapes you like. (For some reason, I'm fond of this particular cookie in a triangular shape).
- Place cookies on the baking sheet. Using a fork, poke the dough a couple times. This will help keep the cookies from rising too much in the oven. Place the filled sheet pan in the freezer for about 5-10 minutes until the shortbreads feel solid (this will keep them from spreading in the oven).
- Bake about 22-27 minutes until the bottoms of the shortbreads just begin to turn golden brown. The top should still look a bit pale. If your cookies are a bit thicker, you may have to leave them in a bit longer to crisp up the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool a bit before transferring to a wire rack.
- Once your shortbreads have cooled, combine the ingredients for your blood orange and bourbon drizzle. If you want the consistency to be a bit thicker, don't be afraid to add some extra powdered sugar. Using a spoon, whisk, or--my tool of choice--a sandwich bag with one tip cut off, drizzle your glaze over your cookies. Allow them to dry on the cooling rack or on a piece of wax or parchment paper.
Blood oranges, as beautiful as they are, have an annoyingly short season. If you want to make these after they're done for the year, you can easily substitute the blood oranges with regular oranges or grapefruit (though I'd only use one large one instead of two!).
If you have particularly juicy oranges, you may need to give these a bit of a knead in flour before you roll them. That's perfectly fine. You don't want them to stick to the counter while you're trying to move them onto the baking sheet. Unless you go completely overboard, a little extra dusting here and there won't hurt.