Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies – So rich and buttery, with the most delicious combination of flavors. They’re the perfect cookie to share with friends and family this holiday season!
I love to bake all types of cookie recipes during the holiday season. These cranberry shortbread cookies have a great Christmas flavor and are so delicious! I also love to make ginger molasses cookies, snickerdoodles and hot chocolate cookies.
Cranberry cookies
I’m so excited to share these adorable and delicious cranberry orange shortbread cookies with you today! Of all the things I bake, I think cookies are my very favorite. They’re adorable, perfectly portioned, generally very quick to make, and everyone loves them! I love that there are so many different flavors and textures to experiment with, and it’s always fun to dream up new cookie creations.
These cranberry orange shortbread cookies are a new favorite in my family. They’re crisp and buttery, studded with dried cranberries, and have the perfect hint of orange flavoring. Dipping them in white chocolate is definitely optional, but it adds a sweet creaminess and makes these cranberry cookies extra fancy! You could even drizzle them with white chocolate, too!
Ingredients for cranberry orange cookies
I love that there aren’t a ton of ingredients needed to make this cranberry cookie recipe. You just need several of your classic baking ingredients and then some seasonal ingredients as well. Very easy!
- Butter
- Powdered sugar
- Zest of one orange
- Vanilla
- Orange extract
- Flour
- Salt
- Dried cranberries
- Optional: White chocolate candy melts or white almond bark
How do you make cranberry cookies?
Scroll down for the printable cranberry cookie recipe.
To make dough for cranberry cookies:
- Beat butter and powdered sugar together in a large bowl until fluffy.
- Add orange zest, vanilla and orange extract and mix until combined.
- Then add the flour and salt and mix to form a thick dough.
- Form dough into a log shape that’s about 2 inches in diameter.
- Wrap dough in parchment paper or plastic wrap and freeze for thirty minutes.
To bake cranberry cookies:
- Near end of chilling time, preheat oven to 325 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut cookie dough into 1/4 inch slices and place 1/4 inch apart baking sheet.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until light golden brown around the edges.
Top dip cranberry cookies in chocolate:
- After cranberry orange cookies have cooled, melt chocolate candy melts or chocolate bark.
- Dip each cookie into the chocolate and place on a parchment lined baking sheet to cool.
Cranberry orange shortbread cookies make a great gift!
One great thing about these cookies is that they are pretty sturdy, so they would be perfect for shipping to friends or family far away. They last several weeks if stored in an airtight container, so they are perfect for shipping. They’re also perfect for neighbor gifts, cookie trays, and holiday parties! To add a personal touch when packaging up these cranberry cookies, try using these FREE printable Christmas treat boxes or these fun Christmas gift tags.
Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter (softened)
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- zest of one orange
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon orange extract
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup white chocolate candy melts or white almond bark
Instructions
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add the orange zest, vanilla and orange extract, and mix until combined. Add the flour, salt and cranberries. Mix to form a thick dough.
- Shape the dough into a log that is approximately 2 inches in diameter. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap, and freeze thirty minutes.
- Near the end of the chilling time, preheat the oven to 325 and line a baking sheet with parchment or silicone. Slice the cookie dough into 1/4 inch slices, and place 1/4 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until light golden brown around the edges. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
- After the cookies have cooled, melt the candy melts according to the package directions. Dip each cookie into the candy melts and place on a parchment lined baking sheet to cool. Store in an airtight container.
Nutrition
I hope you’ll love these cranberry orange shortbread cookies as much as I do! Happy baking!
Originally written by Alicia from The Baker Upstairs.
Thank you for this recipe!!! It can out perfectly. The orange zest was right there, not fading in the background. I didn’t change a thing! I have to say this will be the #1 pick for Christmas! All the ingredients were right on hand. Christmas is a bit away-so they will likely be made several times.
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed them! Thank you for your kind comment and review. :)
I put some pistacios in it aswell and candied orange peel for more of an orange flavour and it was amazing, thanks to your recipe for dough :D thank you!!
Sounds delicious! Thanks for your comment!
A new family favourite! Delicious and easy to make!
I’m so glad to hear! Thanks for your comment Mary. :)
I made these lovely cookies. I just love the flavor of orange and cranberry together. It is so good any time of year but I especially like them around Christmas time. Can I say just one little thing here? I have used orange drink mix in my cookie dough, in fact I used 1 TBSP of it instead of the orange extract. WOW what a difference this has made. Thecookies are really full of the orange flavor now and with the tart cranberries what a hit. I do dip them in the white chocolate too. Please give this a try and see if you like them as much as me.
Thank you
Thank you for sharing! I am going to give it a try. So glad you enjoyed these cookies! :)
Can I use fresh cranberries?
Hi Sonia! I think the fresh cranberries would bring too much moisture to the cookies unfortunately.