These perfect cranberry orange shortbread cookies are studded with cranberries and a hint of orange zest, they pair perfectly with hot tea on a cold day.Â
I plan all year for my holiday baking. Throughout the year I test and taste recipes that may be so lucky to make it into my gift boxes. Cranberries are the quintessential holiday flavor, and as a New England native, I have fond memories of passing the cranberry bogs all fall until they were harvested. If you have never seen a lake of floating cranberries – I highly recommend a trip to south-eastern Massachusetts where there is a bog on just about every corner.
These shortbread cookies are bright and fresh. The cranberries are perfectly balanced and with just a little zest of an orange. These tart beauties shine with a little help from the butter and we have reached maximum holiday flair.
These cookies come together fast with only 6 ingredients. They are perfect for make-ahead to save time for your more complex bakes. See my tips below on how I roll the perfect cookie log for slicing and freeze them for a quick bake!
I have tested several options and found a split vote when it comes to sizing, so I will give both options for cook time.
What you need for this recipe
- Orange
- Dried Cranberries
- Vanilla Extract
- Flour
- Powdered Sugar
- Butter
Helpful Tips
- Make sure your butter is room temperature. These cookies come together dry and cold butter will make the process more difficult.
- I add a squeeze of the orange juice and find that it adds just a little kick of orange, it also helps make the dough a little softer which I prefer.
- I also bake with Pink Himalyan Salt – just a personal preference.
- If using a Kitchen Aid, I recommend starting on Stir for the first 2 minutes and then setting it to 4 until the butter is light and fluffy
- I prefer to bake these on a silicone or similar as I find the bottoms get nice and crispy and I have less issues with cracking.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cold Unsalted Butter
- 1/2 cup Powdered Sugar
- 1 tbsp Orange Zest
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 2 cups Flour
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1/3 cup Dried Cranberries
Instructions
- Begin by beating your butter in your stand mixer for 2-3 minutes on speed 2.
- Add the sugar, orange zest, vanilla and salt to the butter and cream until incorporated. Aproximately 2 minutes on speed 6.
- Once fully incoporated change your mixer to STIR and begin to add the flour. Once half of the flour has been added include your cranberries. I opt to slice my cranberries to more easily incorporate.
- As the dough forms you will need to finish with mixing with your hands. Flip the dough onto a floured work surface. Roll the dough into a ball and cut into 4 equal quarters.
- Roll each quarter into a 12 inch log.
- Wrap each log in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours. (See my video on how I roll the perfect cookie log!)
- Once the cookies have been refrigerated, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prep pans with parchment paper or silicon mats.
- Cut the logs into 1 inch pieces using a ruler for consistency. I have also experimented with 1/2 inch pieces, and they are great if you like your shortbread a little crispy.
- Bake 1 inch cookies for 9-11 minutes, or 1/2 inch cookies for 7-9 minutes.
- Allow cookies to cool completely on pans before moving to a cooling rack.
