Orange Yin Yang Cookies

It's about a week until Chinese New Year, my first back home in three years. You know that Chinese New Year is around the corner when those plastic cookie jars with red lids start popping up everywhere - oh, how I've missed the love letters and almond cookies! When I thought about what I wanted to make to contribute to the ever-growing collection of cookies in the kitchen, I decided that we had to have some orange cookies this year because nothing says Chinese New Year festivities quite like oranges and mandarins.



Adapted from the Monte Carlos recipe featured in The Malaysian Women's Weekly, January 2012

Ingredients:

Orange Cookies:

185g butter, chopped at room temperature
1/2 cup brown suggar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups self-raising flour
3/4 cup plain flour
Rind of 4 oranges
Juice of half an orange 

Chocolate Glaze:
250g dark/cooking chocolate
3/4 tbsp vegetable oil 
1 tsp instant coffee powder

Preheat oven at 180 degrees Celcius. Line oven trays with baking paper. 
In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla.
Sift flours together and fold into creamed mixture.
Add orange rind and orange juice, mix well to form a smooth dough.
Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes or pop in freezer for 15 minutes. 
Form cookies (I used cookie cutters) and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden. 
To make chocolate glaze, melt chocolate with oil over low heat. Take of heat and stir in coffee powder, making sure that powder dissolves fully. 
Deep cooled cookies into the hot chocolate glaze and allow chocolate to cool and set. 

The cookies are surprisingly light and when dipped into the chocolate glaze, remind me of those addictive Jaffa cakes. I also love what they represent - a balance of chocolate and orange, and hopefully a balanced, wholesome year ahead.