Orange Creamsicle Cookies

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Just like the orange creamsicles you loved as a kid, these orange creamsicle cookies are bursting with sweet and creamy vanilla orange flavor and rolled in powdered sugar just before baking for that extra melt-in-your-mouth experience.

Many years ago, I published this orange creamsicle cookie recipe on my site as a knock-off of my lemon crinkle cookie recipe. It has since then been one of my favorites to whip up all year round but always has a special spot at the holidays given their powdered sugar coating that complements the idea of snowy weather.

Whether you’re making these orange cookies in the summer or in the winter, the consensus is the same: you must make them. And you’re going to love the nostalgia of packing orange creamsicle ice cream into a delectable cookie.

Trust me, this recipe has been tested more times than nearly all of the recipes on my site. You can rest assured you’ll have perfect orange cream cookies every time if you follow this recipe exactly with all of my best tips.

For the wet ingredients team, you’ll need unsalted butter, granulated sugar, and an egg.

In order to bring that sweet orange creamsicle flavor, we’ll use a combination of zest and juice from fresh oranges as well as a hefty dose of vanilla extract.

I also always add orange gel food coloring (just a tiny bit) or a combination of red + yellow food coloring to achieve a rich orange color. This is not a requirement, but know that if you omit it, the color of the cookies will be very light orange.

Next, get your wet ingredient base together, leaving out the food coloring for now.

Remember that we’re using fresh orange zest and fresh orange juice to bring all of the bright orange flavor to these cookies. I have seen some orange dreamsicle cookie recipes use orange extract or orange essential oil, but I think the best way to make cookies is to use standard ingredients we won’t have to buy just for one recipe one time.

That said, be sure you’re using all of the zest from the orange but only 1 Tablespoon of the juice. These cookies are as sensitive to liquid as they are flour.

Once the batter is together, they get a quick 1 hour chill in the fridge to firm up, and then it’s time for the powdered sugar hugs (we love powdered sugar hugs here).

Really coat that cookie dough ball. I mean… Load it up with powdered sugar. It should even have a small pile of powdered sugar on the top of the cookie dough ball before it goes into the oven.

Like, there is no such thing as too much powdered sugar on these creamy orange dreamy cookies. While they bake, the cookie dough balls will spread slightly and create those cracks between powdered sugar chunks. Too many times over the years, folks have told me their crinkles didn’t really crinkle.

So that’s my tip. Load up on the powdered sugar and you’ll be golden! Or… Orange? You know what I mean.

You’ll also want to make sure any dough you aren’t using stays chilled in the fridge. As written, this recipe makes about 18 cookies, so you shouldn’t be stuck with tons of dough needing to chill while you’re baking a tray of them. With a bake time of only 11-13 minutes, this process goes quickly!

What I love most about these chewy cookies is that they have a distinct taste. You’d think they would scream “orange” right off the bat or taste like orange popsicles, but not quite.

While the orange taste is absolutely there, somehow the ingredients blend together perfectly to taste just like Froot Loops. Legit Froot Loops, I kid you not.

Matt and I always joke that I should just call them Orange Froot Loop Crinkle Cookies, but agree that might throw off the whole idea of the cookie and also the search terms (#bloggerlife)! But really– who knew that orange creamsicle was so close to Froot Loop flavor?

I’ve now typed “Froot Loop” more times in one paragraph than I have ever typed in my life.

Whatever you decide these cookies taste like, I think you’ll love having these orange creamsicle cookies on your list. They’re fun, fruity, beautiful, and just the right amount of nostalgia to keep you coming back for more.