Orange And Honey Butter Cookies

I recently bought the most delicious honey from the farmer’s market, which gave me an idea

If you’ve never had expensive, fancy-looking honey from a small market stand I highly recommend you try it at least once

It has this deep, rich flavor complimented by the sweet sugar in honey

I wanted to take this a step further from my original honey butter cookie recipe, which has a subtle flavor to complement the sweet

Different types of honey

Honey is honey… right?

Kind of!

Clover honey is the most common variety of honey, and most likely the kind you’re familiar with

There’s also buckwheat, alfalfa, acacia, avocado, manuka… turns out there are a lot of varieties

In this recipe, I use raw wildflower honey for the extra tang of flavor, though whatever honey you have on hand should be just fine

The difference in flavor across the varieties is minimal and mostly up to preference

Is “Raw” honey okay?

Yes! Raw refers to the bottling technique

It is not pasteurized, meaning the vitamins, pollen, and antioxidants that processing normally filters out remain

It is filtered to remove bee parts and unwanted gunk in the honey, but beyond that, it is not processed

Raw honey is thicker and more translucent, often considered the “healthier” version due to the vitamins and minerals in the honey

Other versions of honey are just fine

Note, that the more liquid and thin the honey, the greater the chance of thinner cookies. We can counter this by refrigerating your dough before baking

What if my honey is crystallized?

That’s okay! Crystallization means you truly have genuine 100% honey with no hidden additives, that’s a good thing

I would recommend getting the honey back to its lava-like consistency before adding it to this recipe, which can be done by…

Microwave: heat in 15-second intervals and check in between

We don’t want to burn the honey, we just want to get rid of the crystals. Don’t overheat it!

Hot water: place the honey in a heat-safe container and place the container in hot water

You can heat the water over the stove or use an electric kettle

Leave for a few minutes until the honey is liquid again, but keep an eye on it

Tip: Wait until the honey has cooled before adding it to your recipe

How to Store Your Honey

Unfortunately, crystalizing honey is part of the natural honey cycle

We can heat it to return the golden lava-like texture, but crystals or hardening honey means you have pure, amazing honey

The best way to store it to delay that crystalized appearance is in a cool, dark area away from sunlight

Do not refrigerate your honey, this will actually speed up crystallization

Ingredients

All-purpose flour: Measure using the scoop-and-pour method for best results

Related: How to Measure Ingredients (The Right Way)

Butter: Unsalted so we can control how much salt we add to our recipe

Honey: Raw, wildflower honey from Gerard’Z Honeybees, a fantastic small business near my hometown

Granulated sugar: Using a 1/2 honey and 1/2 sugar mixture to keep it sweet and maintain the structure of the cookie

Egg: Just one since the honey adds quite a bit of moisture

Orange: Zest and juice to add an extra layer of flavor

Baking soda: Orange juice is an acid, which will activate the sodium bicarbonate in this recipe and keep the cookies fluffy

Cornstarch: Keeps cookies soft and helps to hold a denser shape

Storage

You can refrigerate your dough for up to two days, but be sure to properly seal it either in a bag or Tupperware to prevent it from drying out

If you prefer to freeze it for later, this recipe can stay frozen for up to 3 months. Be sure to date the container they’re stored in before popping them in the freezer

Once your cookies are done baking and have completely cooled, store them in an airtight container. They can be left on the counter for 3 to 4 days