Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies are sweet, buttery, and citrusy with a crumbly texture and a pleasant burst of tartness from the dried cranberries. They are a slice-and-bake cookie, easy to make, and a recipe that you want to add to your list of Christmas cookies! For another buttery cookie, try my tried and true Shortbread Cookies, too! I saw these cookies on my friend Mom on Timeout’s blog and knew I wanted to try them!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Butter: One of the key ingredients in shortbread cookies is butter! You will need 2 sticks of unsalted butter for these cookies.
Confectioners’ Sugar: Using confectioners’ sugar in the cookie dough resulted in a crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth texture to the baked cookies.
Orange Zest: For the citrusy orange flavor, you will need 1 teaspoon of orange zest. You could substitute lemon zest if that is what you have on hand. It will still give you the citrusy flavor and complement the cranberries.
Cornstarch: Cornstarch kept the cookies together, but still soft. You could also use 1/2 cup rice flour in place of cornstarch.
Dried Cranberries: Dried cranberries provide a sweet-tart flavor that contrasts well with the buttery base of the cookies.
Can I Make The Cookies Without Chilling The Dough?
I do not recommend making cranberry orange shortbread cookies without chilling the dough. Chilling the dough is an important step because it solidifies the fat (in this case, the butter). This helps the cookies maintain their shape while baking, resulting in a better shape and texture. Plus, it’s a great way to get a head start on these cookies; you can store the dough in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before cutting and baking the cookies!
What’s the Best Stand Mixer?
I use a stand mixer a lot in my kitchen and recommend my 5-quart Kenmore Elite mixer which comes with a whisk attachment, a beater, and a dough hook. The bowl also has a lid to help contain any splatters. It is an investment though, and sells for around $400 at Walmart. If you’re on a budget, another good option is the 5.3-quart Beautiful by Drew Barrymore stand mixer, which costs around $100.
How To Store Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
Store Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They will last up to a week.
Can I Freeze Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies?
Yes, you can actually freeze the baked cookies or freeze the dough.
To Freeze The Dough: Wrap the log of dough into a few layers of plastic wrap. Store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to bake the cookies, let the dough thaw in the refrigerator a bit before cutting.
To Freeze Baked Cookies: If the cookies have been baked, first, let them cool completely. Then, store them in a freezer-safe container. They will last up to 3 months.
Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- Stand mixer I recommend this stand mixer!
- Large baking sheets These ones from Nordic Ware work great!
- Kitchen scale (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks / 227 g) unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup (62.5 g) confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 1 ¾ cups (219 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (64 g) cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (65 g) dried cranberries, chopped
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer, add butter and confectioners' sugar. Beat on medium speed until creamy.
- Add vanilla and orange zest. Mix until incorporated.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt.
- With the mixer on low, add in flour mixture, one cup at a time.
- Gently fold in cranberries.
- Add dough to a lightly floured work surface and roll into a 6-inch log, about 3 inches in diameter. Wrap in plastic and seal the ends. Place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour, or until firm.
- When ready, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place it onto a cutting board.
- Slice into ¼-inch cookies and place cookies onto a lined baking sheet about 1 inch apart.
- Bake 12-14 minutes, or until lightly browned.
- Let the cookies rest for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool.
Video
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What the Test Kitchen had to say about this recipe:
Autumn
The combination of cranberry and orange is so good in this melt-in-your-mouth cookie. Its an easy one to prepare and you can definitely make this one in advance!
Elizabeth
Both the orange and cranberry flavors really stood out in each bite of these soft cookies! They just kind of crumble in your mouth (which is a good thing)!
Rachael
These are really delicious tender shortbread cookies. The orange really comes through with the zest and the cranberry is a perfect match with the orange.
Bella
These cookies almost melt in your mouth! Cranberry and orange go well together. It has a sweet and tangy flavor.
Annabelle
These are so flavorful! I love the combination of orange and cranberry and these cookies are so soft!
Selena
These melt in your mouth! They have loads of flavor as well with all the cranberry and orange. Perfect for the holidays!
Can I make these cookies without cranberries
Can I use salted butter & omit the kosher salt?
After I made the dough it was a total dry crumb… it that normal? I had to work and work to try and get it in a log, but it constantly tried to break into crumbly pieces. I finally pounded it into a semi log shape but couldn’t roll it into a round log without it breaking apart. I’m so sad… it was not a dough. I have in frig to chill but am not hopeful I can get it cut in small slices. I ck’d and reck’d the recipe and correctly measured all the ingredients. The only liquid is the 1 tsp of vanilla? The instructions don’t say anything about ending up w a very dry crumb and that it will be hard to shape. I hope I didn’t waste all the lovely ingredients— we’ll see.
There is a cup of butter (fat) in this recipe that is more than enough to bind the ingredients together. Were you able to add the butter?
Delicious, but I would like to clarify the amount of cranberries in the recipe. The ingredient list says 1 cup (65g) cranberries. I am in Australia so using Aussie measures, my 1 cup of cranberries weighed about 120g, so I went down the middle and added about 90g. I will definitely make these again but would like to know if I added too many cranberries or not enough.
Hi Lorraine – these are dried cranberries, which weigh more than fresh cranberries. So the 65g is correct. Hope you enjoy them!
Very soft and delicious. I added chopped dried apricot and dates making them a fruit cookie. The taste of the diff dried fruits was outstanding
You know, you are right! The dough is a fantastic basic dough! Any dried fruit would be fantastic!
His come you only answer some of your readers questions?
What a gem of a recipe!
I substituted the Cranberries for candied Orange pieces but I loved the light, melt-on-the-tongue texture and general buttery goodness of these cookies.
They were so easy to prepare.
I’ve never bothered chilling cookie dough before but I now see the benefit! My cookies stayed in perfect shape!
I can’t recommend this recipe enough 🙂
I love all your recipies. These are crazy good. Light, literally melt in your mouth. You keep going! Your recipies are amazing!!!!
Dough is in the fridge. Should it have been crumbly before shaped into a log? Or should I have added a liquid?
Very good! These re going into the holiday rotation for shortbread.
Can I use fresh cranberries