These Orange Cream Cookies are soft, creamy, and taste like a dream. Made with cream cheese, bursts of fresh orange zest, and they are satisfyingly sweet! It’s like sunshine and summertime all in one bite.
If you love this recipe, be sure to check out this Cranberry Orange Rosemary Water recipe as well as my Summer Berry Salad with Burrata and Blackberry Vinaigrette.
Childhood memories.
Have you ever tasted something that reminded you of your childhood? Remember Saturday mornings waking up to the sound of lawn mowers, kids playing, sprinklers running? Then after you’ve been out climbing trees, riding bikes throughout the neighborhood, you hear your Mom, grandmother, auntie…or whoever—call your name. You knew the moment you went inside, there was something special waiting for you. Well, these Orange Dream Cream Cookies take me back to that place.
Dreaming of Summer
I love the way these cookies turned out. They are reminiscent of my childhood and they make me so happy! They smell like SUMMER! Orange has been such a prominent theme for my taste buds this year as well as my favorite color for the season. Although this is not the first recipe I’ve made since I’ve starting baking, I wanted to share a recipe centered around oranges to celebrate summer.
I like to call these cookies Orange Dream Cream cookies because they are filled with orange zest, cream cheese…and they melt in your mouth. They remind me of a softer, sugar cookie with bright flavors throughout. When you add the glaze made with fresh orange juice, the zest is so dreamy. If you opt for a creamier glaze, using heavy cream is also an option. But trust me—both are absolutely divine!
Ingredient Details
- Butter and Cream Cheese: These two work together. When you cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar, do it just enough to get the trio incorporated.
- Brown Sugar: I love brown sugar, so it’s a staple in my baking recipes. I prefer light brown for this recipe, but if you only have dark brown, go for it. Your cookies may be a little sweeter because of the molasses in dark brown sugar.
- White Sugar: I’ve made these cookies so many different ways, but I’ll say, my favorite is reducing the white sugar and increasing the brown sugar. They give me a softer, texture and I love that. For a crispier cookie: you can use 1/2 cup of brown sugar + 1 cup of white sugar so adjust accordingly.
- Eggs: I’ve made this recipe with 1 egg and 2 eggs, but I really wanted these to be more of a softer texture. Eggs will also help keep the cookies thick and kinda cakey.
- Pure Orange Extract: Orange extract will help bring out those beautiful orange flavors. You can find this extract at your local grocery store or purchase it online here.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Because everyone loves a hint of vanilla.
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour: I really like King Arthur Baking flour.
- Baking Soda : A little goes a long way. Oh, and if you didn’t know, soda spreads…powder puffs.
- Baking Powder: A little goes a long way, so I felt that I’d say it again.
- Salt: If all you have on hand is salted butter, reduce your salt by 1/4 teaspoon.
- Oranges: About four medium to large oranges should be plenty to give you the perfect amount of orange zest to incorporate into the batter and enough for the citrus glaze. I used naval oranges.
Are you looking for a refreshing cocktail? This Pineberry Pineapple Mint Cooler is my new favorite summer drinkS!
Citrus Glaze Ingredients
Orange Extract
Orange Zest
Powdered Sugar
Orange juice OR Heavy Cream/Milk – I’ve made my glaze using BOTH orange juice and heavy cream/milk. They are both delicious. The glaze will be more translucent if you use orange juice. For a creamier glaze, use heavy cream (instead of orange juice) and add butter.
Substitutions and Tips!
- I’ve learned so much from my baking mentor, Begin with Butter. A tip she shared with me, if you want your cookies softer, take them out of the oven a minute or two sooner to allow them to finish baking on the cookie sheet before transferring them to the cooling rack. Since she shared that piece of magic with me, my cookies have been amazing.
- Sometimes I’m in the mood for a chewier cookie while other times, I want a crispier cookie. I do love crispy cookies, too, it just all depends on my mood and the flavor profile of the cookie.
- If you don’t want your cookies as sweet, you can reduce the brown sugar by 1/4 cup (3/4 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup of white sugar).
- Refrigerate cookie dough for AT LEAST one hour before baking. Allow dough to sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before baking. You will notice a difference in the textures when you bake (if you can’t wait) versus when you allow your dough to sit at room temperature before baking.
- If you can’t find orange extract you can still make these cookies without it. I’ve also made them with only extract sans the zest and they are still delish! But please, for the love of ALL things good…ADD THE ZEST! Thank me later!
- You can refrigerate the uncooked cookie dough for up to 3 days. After that, go ahead and wrap that thang on up and freeze it.
- If your cookies don’t come out looking exactly like m—it’s OKAY! The beauty of it all is that they taste amazing!
- You may have leftover glaze. If you do, feel free to refrigerate and top cookies with glaze and microwave for a few seconds to warm it up a bit. They reheat well. Keep it under 20 seconds.
- I encourage you to use a food scale to get an accurate measurement of grams for your flour.
- You can use non-dairy butter, cream cheese, and cream/milk in this recipe. Non-dairy/vegan butter and cream cheese does not take long to get soft, so be mindful when you take it out. One day I’ll tell you a story. *laughs*
Storage
Baked cookies can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for 3 to 5 days. You can also freeze your cookies for up to 2 to 3 months. Ours don’t last that long.
I’ve made so many batches of this recipe, I decided to start freezing the dough to have it ready to bake. It can store in the freezer for up to 3 (three) months. I like to go ahead and scoop them and roll them into balls then place them in a freezer bag.
To bake from frozen, you will need to add an additional 2 to 5 minutes of bake time for this recipe.
If you need to purchase new kitchen accessories, shop My Pretty Brown Eats List here!
Other Summer Recipes to Enjoy!
- Strawberry Walnut Tostadas
- Lemon Pepper Roasted Cauliflower
- Watermelon Basil Breeze Gin Cocktail
- Southern Peach Pie
- Strawberry Cilantro Mocktail
I’ve made these cookies for family, quite a few times including family celebrations. I hope you love this recipe as much as we did. If you make these cookies, tag me (@myprettybrowneats) on social media. You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and TikTok as well as using the #myprettybrowneats hashtag on IG and TikTok.
Orange Cream Cookies
Equipment
- Stand Mixer or Electric Mixer
- Food Scale
- Cookie scooper
- Silicone spatulas
- Parchment Paper
- Measuring cups
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 330 grams King Arthur All-Purpose Unbleached Flour -measured using a food scale
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 1 stick
- 6 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1/2 teaspoon pure orange extract
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 3 tablespoons orange zest approximately 3 to 4 oranges
- 1 cup brown sugar, light brown
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Citrus Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon orange extract
- 2 tablespoons orange zest
- 1/4 cup orange juice OR use heavy cream or milk if you want a creamier consistency. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to heavy cream/milk.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. I prefer parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl whisk dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- For the wet ingredients: using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer with paddle attachment: cream together butter, cream cheese, white sugar, brown sugar — on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Once creamed: add eggs one at a time, then add vanilla extract, orange extract, and 3 tablespoons of orange zest on medium speed until combined. Scrape down the sides, if needed.
- Next, gradually add mixed dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt) to the wet mixture. Mix until it's incorporated. Be sure to scrape down the sides to ensure you incorporate all of the flour. You don't want to over-mix your dough. As soon as the flour mixture is incorporated, you can stop your mixer and finish by hand.
- Transfer cookie dough to a bowl and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least ONE hour or overnight. No longer than 48 hours.
- When ready to bake: allow dough to sit at room temperature just until it is soft enough to scoop. About 10 minutes. Scoop dough using a 1½ inch cookie scooper, roll into dough balls, and drop them on a prepared baking sheets 3 inches apart.
- Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool for 3-5 minutes on baking sheet before moving them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Serve and enjoy!
These look great! Your photos really pop too. Nice