Orange-Milk Chocolate Chunk Cookies

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

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter (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 cookie sheets
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Instructions

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, sugar, brown sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract and salt; beat with a spoon until fluffy.
2. Beat in the egg, orange liqueur and baking soda.
3. Stir in the flour, pecans and chocolate.
4. Transfer to a bowl just large enough to hold the dough, cover and refrigerate until firm, about 4 hours or overnight.
5. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat one or two cookie sheets with vegetable shortening.
6. 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.
7. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cookies spring back when very lightly touched. Do not over-bake or the cookies will dry out.
8. Cool on the sheets for 2 minutes; transfer to paper towels for abut 2 minutes, and transfer to a rack to cool.
9. Repeat the baking procedure, using cool cookie sheets and lightly coating them with additional shortening for each batch.