Triple Orange Spice Cookies with Buxtehude And Gloomy Ruminations In the Cold Dark End of Winter

Put on Buxtehude's ciaccona en mi (BuxWV160) and grate enough orange peel for about 2 tablespoons (2-3 oranges).  Squeeze said oranges for 1/4 cup of juice.  Sigh longingly in remembrance of the heat of the summer sun.

Start Buxtehude's passacaglia en re (BuxWV161) and cream 3/4 cup of shortening and 1 cup brown sugar.  Move on to sonata III en sol (BuxWV261) and mix in 1 egg, 2 teaspoons baking power, 1/4 teaspoon salt, orange peel, orange juice, 1/2 teaspoon orange extract, 1/2 teaspoon cloves, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, and 1/8 teaspoon cardamom.  Blend in 2 and 1/8 cup white flour.  Meditate on how Europeans and Americans (non-native) destroyed the peoples of more than half the world in making these spices cheap and readily available and let the chill seep into your soul and your dough (alternatively, use a refrigerator).  Chill dough thoroughly (but do not freeze solid unless you are storing it for later). 

The wealth of the orient.

Start oven heating to 375 F.  Start this playlist of Buxtehude at 3:45, because baroque canons rock.

Roll dough into balls about 1 inch in diameter, dip one side in white sugar, and place about 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet.  Bake for 8 minutes or until just barely browning on bottom.  Angst that you will cook the cookies either too much or too little, hovering anxiously before the oven and wringing your hands inside their oven mitts.  Cookies should still be very soft (although not gooey) when taken out of oven.  Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before removing from baking sheet.   

Eat, reveling in samsara.  For better karma, share.