Orange-Milk Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Pecans flavor these rich milk chocolate chunk cookies
along with grated orange zest and orange-flavored liqueur.

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter,
    at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon packed grated orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 teaspoon orange-flavored liqueur
12 ounces coarsely chopped milk chocolate bars
    (four 3 ounce bars such as Tobler or Lindt)
Vegetable shortening for the baking sheets
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans

In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, sugar, brown sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract and salt; beat with a spoon until fluffy. Beat in the egg, orange liqueur and baking soda. Stir in the flour, pecans and chocolate. Transfer to a bowl just large enough to hold the dough, cover and refrigerate until firm, about 4 hours or overnight.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat one or two baking sheets with vegetable shortening.

Using 2 to 3 tablespoons of the dough for each cookie, shape the dough into balls and place one in the center of a cookie sheet and evenly space four others a few inches in from each corner. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cookies spring back when very lightly touched. Do not overbake or the cookies will dry out. Cool on the sheets for 2 minutes, transfer to paper towels for abut 2 minutes, and transfer to a rack to cool.

Repeat the baking procedure, using cool baking sheets and lightly coating them with additional shortening for each batch.