Citrus Stripe Cookies

These cookies make very festive ice cream sandwiches, or fun dippers for a fruit-yogurt dip.

Ingredients

Dough

• 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• Gel paste food coloring

To Flavor the Dough

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice powder, or other flavor of your choice
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon lemon oil, or other flavor of your choice

Instructions

1. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Beat together the butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla extract until lightened in color and fluffy.
3. Add the flour and mix on medium speed until combined. The dough will be soft, but not sticky.
4. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. Here's a good tip: flatten the dough with your hands to a disc about 1/2 inch thick, and it will chill quickly and evenly.
5. When the dough is well chilled, it will feel almost like fudge: firm, but easily molded. Divide the dough into three more or less equal portions. These will become your flavored doughs for shaping.
6. For each 1/3 of dough, add 2 tablespoons fruit juice powder (lemon juice powder, orange juice powder, etc.) and 1/4 teaspoon matching citrus oil. If desired, add matching gel paste food coloring, such as lemon yellow.
7. Blend the dough briefly in the mixer, just until all the color and flavoring is combined. Repeat with the other portions of dough, using other colors and flavors.
8. If the dough has warmed up, chill it again briefly.
9. To shape the stripes, roll each color of dough into a rectangle about 12 x 3 x 1/4 inch high. Cut each long rectangle in half so that you have six short rectangles.
10. Brush a little water on each piece of dough. Stack the dough, alternating colors, to create a tall striped rectangle. Wrap well and refrigerate for about 30 to 60 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
11. When the dough is well-chilled and firm, use a sharp chef's knife to cut it into 1/4 inch thick slices. Place 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets.
12. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, until firm when pressed, and the edges have begun to brown lightly.
13. Remove the cookies from the oven.
14. Cool completely before serving.

Notes

* To flavor 1/3 of dough; add other flavors as desired.

No fruit juice powder? Try adding 2 tablespoons freshly grated rind (zest). You may need to increase the amount of oil to get the same depth of flavor.

Don't waste those scraps of colored dough. Gently roll them together into a log, slice, and bake your own tie-dye citrus cookies. Totally rad!

Attribution

Recipe and photo used with permission from: King Arthur Flour