Orange Ricotta Cookies

    Have you ever had an orange scone from Panera Bread? That's what these cookies reminded me of! Flavored with fresh orange zest and iced with orange goodness! They are fluffy and fantastic!

Orange Ricotta Cookies

Ingredients:

For the cookies:

- 1 stick of butter, at room temperature

- 1 cup of granulated sugar

- 2 eggs

- 1 cup of ricotta cheese

- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

- the zest of 1 orange

- 2 and 1/2 cups of flour

- 1 teaspoon of baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon of salt

For the icing:

- 1/4 cup of fresh orange juice

- the zest of 1/2 an orange

- 2 cups of confectioners sugar

    Preheat oven 325 degrees. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and granulated sugar until fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the ricotta, vanilla, and orange zest. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Spoon mix the dry ingredients into the large bowl of batter until just combined. Prepare cookie sheets by spraying with non-stick spray. Scoop the cookies, about an inch in diameter and about two inches apart, onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake them for about 20 minutes. Let them cool completely. In a small bowl, whisk together orange juice, zest, and confectioners sugar for the icing. Dip each cooled cookie into the icing and set aside to allow the icing to set before serving.