Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies might just be the perfect little slice and bake cookies for the holidays, I’ll be making them right through to when I snag that last bag of fresh cranberries of the season (always a sad moment!)

we fell in love with cranberry orange shortbread cookies at first bite
These unique cranberry orange shortbread cookies are made with fresh tart cranberries and lots of orange zest, which gives them that wonderful holiday flavor combination we’ve come to love. They have a vivid cranberry flavor in a classic buttery shortbread base. They’ll brighten up any holiday assortment.
what you’ll need for cranberry orange shortbread cookies
- fresh cranberries ~ this is one case where I don’t recommend frozen because they will release too much moisture into the dough. Could you use dried cranberries? Yes, dried cranberries will work too.
- fresh orange zest ~ I actually used tangerine zest because I have a bowl of beauties on my counter, and tangerine has a distinctive citrus flavor that I love.
- butter ~unsalted
- sugar ~ granulated
- flour ~all purpose
- vanilla extract ~ if you prefer you could use almond extract, or both!
make cranberry orange cookies ahead
The good news: shortbread cookies freeze beautifully, and you can freeze them before or after baking.
to freeze before baking
- wrap the log of dough really well, I like to wrap in plastic, then in foil, and then put in a heavy duty zip log bag. When ready to bake, leave the log in the refrigerator overnight to thaw.
- you can also pre-slice your cookies and freeze. Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet and freeze until solid. Then remove to a heavy duty zip lock baggie. Force any air out before popping in the freezer.
to freeze baked cookies
- let them cool completely, then layer them, separated by sheets of parchment paper, in a sturdy freezer container and freeze.
tips for making fresh cranberry cookies
- I like to chop my cranberries in a small food processor, I just pulse to chop them finely. Some texture is fine, there will be a few bigger pieces. You can also use a sharp knife.
- Be sure to start with room temperature butter. Soft butter will incorporate into the flour to form a dough whereas cold butter won’t. This is especially important with shortbread dough that doesn’t include any extra liquid.
- Be sure to bring your dough together completely ~ you don’t want any dry flour or crumbly bits left. You can let the processor bring it together or you can do that final bit with your hands on a lightly floured surface. Shortbread dough does not contain egg or other liquid so it’s essential that you combine the soft butter and the flour completely to form the dough.
- Thicker sliced cookies will bake up softer, and thinner ones will crisp a bit. You can also control the texture by how long you bake the cookies. I suggest baking one or two first as a test. I like mine melt-in-my-mouth tender, but you might like your crispier.
yes ~ use dried cranberries too!
For those of you who can’t find fresh cranberries, you can use dried.
variation ideas for cranberry orange shortbread cookies
Add chopped walnuts or pecans to the dough.
Add white chocolate chips.
Bake the dough in a 9×9 square baking pan.
Dip half the cookies in melted white chocolate.
Cranberry Shortbread Cookies
Video
Equipment
- waxed paper or plastic wrap for wrapping your log of dough
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- zest of one orange or tangerine (just the orange part, not the bitter white pith)
- 1 heaping cup fresh cranberries*
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Rough chop the cranberries and set aside.
- Cream the butter, sugar, and zest together until well combined. I do this in my food procesor.
- Add the flour and extract, and pulse about 10 times, then run the machine briefly, just until the dough comes together into a lump or lumps.
- Add the cranberries and pulse just until they are distributed, but don't process too much.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and bring together with your hands. Work it just until it is no longer crumbly.
- Form the dough into a 10-12 inch log. The longer your log the smaller your cookies will be. Wrap the log in plastic, using the plastic to smooth out the dough and help form your log. Twist the ends tight to seal.
- Chill the dough for at least 3 hours, or overnight. I like to wrap up my log in a folded towel ~ this helps keep it round as it chills.
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Slice the dough into 1/3 inch slices and place on the cookie sheet, two inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or slightly longer if you like your cookies crisper. They will be pale on top and just turning golden on the bottom. Note: if your cookies are smaller or thinner than mine, they may take less time to cook.
- Let them cool for a couple of minutes on the baking sheets and then tranfer them to a cooling rack. Be careful, the cookies are soft and delicate when hot and will firm up as they cool.
Notes
Nutrition
more shortbread cookies to try
- New Fallen Snow Cookies
- Maple Walnut Shortbread Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies
- Chocolate Walnut Shortbread Cookies
- Pistachio Shortbread Cookies
Can I use dried cranberries??
You can but it will be a very different cookie.
Granulated sugar and no starch and called shortbread cookies. Am I missing something. Aren’t they more like a sugar cookie?
Cornstarch is sometimes used in shortbread recipes, but it’s not essential. Lots of traditional recipes focus on the butter, flour, and sugar trio exclusively. I sometimes use it, and sometimes not. Sugar cookies, on the other hand, usually contain some egg in the dough.
Thank you. I just made a batch with a lb of butter, icing sugar and corn starch.
I may try these. Thanks again
I made this recipe but I used frozen cranberry, chopped fine and then added. they are too soft. can I fix them anyway now or must I throw them out before cooking ..the flavour is awesome .
Fantastic recipe! It will now be in my Christmas favorites! Thanks for sharing!
I just mixed these up this morning and froze the dough for 3 hours. I am ready to slice and bake, but they are falling apart before Iโve sliced halfway through the dough. What is your suggestion for nice clean slices?
The frozen dough will be too hard to slice, try letting it defrost. One of two other things might have happened: the dough didn’t come together completely before rolling, or the cranberries weren’t chopped up quite finely enough.
I tried this one today and just made the dough so far. It looks a little too soft for my liking. Wasnโt crumbly at all, in fact turned a little sticky. Does it mean Iโll have problems while baking?
I only have salted butter, do you think I could use it?
Yes, go ahead, it will be fine.
How much do these spread? How would they do as a roll-out, cut-out?
Shortbread should not spread at all. You can roll out all of my slice and bake shortbread doughs, just chill the dough in a disk form and then roll out. You may have to let the dough sit at room temp for a while until it softens enough to roll.
Can you freeze the dough for baking later?
Yes, absolutely.
I have a grandson who is allergic to dairy. Do think I can make this with his dairy free margarine? I have never made shortbread cookies so Im not sure how the margarine will react. I really want to make this for those of us that are not allergic but I always try to make the same thing safe for him if possible.
When I need dairy free I use plant based butters. Margarine tends to have too much water content. Please try and let everyone know the results!