IT�S COOKIE SEASON YOU GUYS!!!
So many cookies, so few months until I need to squeeze into a maid of honor dress for my sister�s wedding. Why is this time of year just sooo unavoidably cozy and carby and sugary? 
We were still having crisp but sort of warmish weather right up until daylight savings, and it�s like when the clocks changed, Seattle got all cold and chilly. And dark at 5PM. And also, how on earth is it November!? Ugh, it�s so insane how fast time flies. But anyway, the point is, it�s stormy and gloomy outside, and warm and cinnamon-cookie scented inside. 
I almost didn't share these cookies here... they're not over the top special or crazy or "the next big thing," they're just a really solidly awesome buttery spice cookie with the perfect chewy-crispy texture. My secret? Chocolate chip cookie dough! Even without the chocolate, ccc dough has the best texture and buttery brown sugar flavor. Last winter when I was making chocolate chip cookie variations like my life depended on it, I started rolling the dough into logs and freezing it. The dough works really well as a slice and bake, and the cookies are perfectly shaped. Oh, and the fresh citrus-cinnamon glaze dries into the prettiest smooth shell coating. So simple and so good! Spice Cookies with Citrus Glaze and Sea Salt
Makes about 36 cookies
These slice and bake cookies work best when the dough is frozen, so plan to make the dough a day in advance.
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar (or 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, if you have it)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1.5 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (store-bought or make your own)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup powdered sugar
3-4 tablespoons fresh citrus juice (I used grapefruit and clementine)
Pinch of cinnamon
Flaked sea salt
In stand mixer or with hand mixer, cream together butter, granulated sugar (and turbinado, if you using), and brown sugar until fluffy and smooth, beating for about 3 minutes. Beat in egg, vanilla, and fresh ginger, scraping bowl to combine.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice (not the extra cinnamon though).
With mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to butter mixture, and beat until combined. Separate dough into two balls.
Lay out a sheet of plastic wrap, and sprinkle half the cinnamon on it. Roll one dough ball gently in cinnamon until the outside is coated, then roll into a log (about 1.5 inch diameter), and wrap with plastic wrap. Repeat with 2nd dough ball. Place both logs in a freezer bag, or additional plastic wrap, and freeze until frozen through.
To bake:
Preheat oven to 360 degrees F. Pull out one log, and slice in 1/2 inch thick slices (should be about 18 per log). Arrange spaced evenly on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, and bake for about 12 minutes, until golden. Cool on a wire rack.
To glaze:
Whisk together powdered sugar, cinnamon, and citrus juice (start with 3 T of the juice, and add more if needed). The glaze should be thin and runny, but not watery. Once cookies are completed cool, dip the top of each one in the glaze. When the glaze is set but not totally hardened and dried, and a few flakes of salt to the top of each one. Let glaze dry completely, then eat!
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon