Classic shortbread cookies got a major upgrade with fresh cranberries and orange zest!! You’ll love melt-in-your-mouth buttery texture with bright holiday flavors!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
Calling all shortbread lovers! Regular shortbread gets a major upgrade with the addition of tangy cranberries and zippy orange.
You’ll love these orange cranberry shortbread cookies for number of reasons!!
- Incredible melt-in-your-mouth buttery texture
- Look beautiful on holiday cookie platters
- Subtly sweet with an orange-cranberry flavor combo
- Easy to make & freeze!
I cut these into cookie sticks, because I love how they look in holiday tins and cookie platters. You could just as easily spruce up a dessert charcuterie board with them! They never last long, so be sure to save yourself one too.
Key Ingredient Notes:
- All-purpose flour – I highly recommend a kitchen scale to weigh your flour. It’s the best way to accurately measure flour without getting too much. If you don’t have one, use the spoon and level method. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level it off with the flat edge of a butter knife.
- Sugar – Shortbread are subtly sweet! You only need 1/3 cup and a tablespoon.
- Cornstarch – A small amount of cornstarch produces a softer cookie.
- Salt – Salt enhances sweetness and rounds out the flavors. Don’t skip it. Cookies without salt taste flat and one-noted.
- Unsalted butter – I always bake with unsalted butter, so I control the amount of salt. If you only have salted butter, omit the salt from this recipe.
- Fresh cranberries – I prefer fresh cranberries for their tangy flavor, but dried cranberries work great too! If using dried cranberries, use the exact same amount, ¼ cup equals 35 grams of dried cranberries.
- Orange zest – Use a microplane to zest the outside of an orange. It’s where all the citrusy flavor lies. Avoid the white pith, since it has a bitter flavor.
How to make these shortbread cookies:
1. Make the cookie dough
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
- Add the butter cubes and mix until the butter is evenly dispersed throughout the flour, about 3 minutes. The mixture should look like wet sand and form into a ball when you squeeze it with your hands.
- Stir in the cranberries and orange zest.
Crumbly Dough
Don’t be alarmed, the dough will be shaggy and loose. Once you squeeze it together, it’ll form into a nice ball.
If you’re using dried cranberries, add 1-2 teaspoons of milk to the dough.
2. Roll & slice the shortbread cookies
- Dump the mixture onto a piece of parchment paper or a silicone mat, and knead it into a smooth ball.
- Place another piece of parchment paper on top and roll it into a 4×12-inch rectangle. Use your hands to help you shape it.
- Place the rectangle onto a sheet pan and put it in the freezer. Let the dough freeze for 20 minutes so it’s easier to slice.
- Remove the cookie dough from the freezer and carefully slice it into 24 evenly sized sticks. Place the cookies on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
3. Bake the cookies
- Bake the shortbread for about 20 minutes at 325°F, or until the edges turn slightly brown. If the cookies look too brown when they come out of the oven, they’re overbaked!
- Let the cookies cool for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Fix misShaped Cookies
The cookies will be slightly misshapen after baking. Simply squeeze the cookies from both sides with 2 offset spatulas, or bench scrapers, as soon as they come out of the oven.
Tips for Success:
- You can bake these cookies in any shape! I love the contrast you get on a cookie platter when you cut them into sticks. They look beautiful, especially drizzled in white chocolate.
- Remove any bruised, brown, or soft cranberries. Fresh cranberries should feel firm and bright red.
- Don’t overwork the shortbread cookie dough. Just knead it until it forms a ball and then stop. Overworked dough creates tough, dense cookies.
Make-Ahead Tips:
- Make the cookie dough ahead of time and double wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 5 days! Let the cookie dough sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then roll and cut it into sticks.
- You can also freeze the cookie dough or the cookies! To freeze the dough, wrap it in plastic wrap then transfer to a ziplock bag. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight or on the counter until it’s chilled but easy to work with.
- To freeze the cookies, transfer the cookies to a freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Storing Tips:
- Store the orange cranberry shortbread cookies in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
- If you can’t eat them all within a week, no problem! Just freeze the leftovers. Transfer the shortbread cookies to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.
FAQs:
A shortbread cookie is very similar to a butter cookie with a few subtle differences. A butter cookie has eggs, while shortbread do not. This makes a shortbread cookie slightly more crumbly, buttery, and rich. Butter cookies are also slightly sweeter.
Yes! If you’d rather slice and bake the cookies, just roll the dough into a 2-inch wide log, then wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill until firm. Slice the log into cookies and bake! You may need to decrease the cooking time. Just watch for those lightly golden edges.
Since shortbread dough has a high butter-to-flour ratio, it needs to chill so it can firm up. This works double duty. It makes it easier to slice and prevents it from spreading in the oven.
More Cookie Recipes:
- Honey Cookies (Heirloom Recipe)
- Russian Tea Cakes (Snowball Cookies)
- Thin and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Classic Pecan Sandies
Orange Cranberry Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup (155 g) all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon (75 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon (8 g) cornstarch Note 1
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 1 stick (113 g) unsalted butter cold and cut into ½-inch cubes
- ¼ cup (40 g) fresh cranberries finely chopped, Note 2
- ½ tablespoon orange zest
For garnish:
- 2/3 cup (80 g) powdered sugar
- 3 teaspoons (15 g) orange jucie
Instructions
To make the cookies:
- In a large mixing bowl with the paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, cornstarch and salt.
- Add the butter cubes and mix until the butter is evenly distributed into the flour mixture, about 3 minutes. The mixture should resemble wet sand and should form into a ball when squeezed in your palm.
- Stir in the cranberries and orange zest.
- Turn the mixture onto a parchment paper or silicone mat and knead it into a smooth ball. Place another sheet of parchment paper on top and roll it into a 4×12-inch rectangle.
- Freeze for 20 minutes to firm up.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325°F
- Slice the cookies into 24 sticks and arrange the cookies on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the edges starts to lightly brown.
- (TIP: The cookies will be slightly misshapen. Simply squeeze the cookies from both sides with 2 offset spatulas, or bench scrapers, as soon as they come out of the oven.)
- Cool the cookies on a wire rack.
To make orange glaze:
- In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and orange juice until smooth. Transfer the glaze into a pastry bag or a squeeze bottle and drizzle over cooled cookies.
⭐️ Did you make this recipe?
Please leave a review and let us know how you liked it!
Tips & Notes
– Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
– If you can’t eat them all within a week, no problem! Just freeze the leftovers. Transfer the cookies to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
These are super yummy, but like many comments before, my dough was way too dry to come together. I used a scale and fresh cranberries, but I still ended up putting about two tablespoons of whole milk. We loved these and got my toddler to help roll and cut them.
Hi, Rebecca! So glad you loved the cookies!! Thank you for sharing your feedback and adjustment. It’s helpful!!
When using fresh cranberries do you chop them raw?
Hi, Elaine. Yes, I chop them raw.
Is this dough freezer friendly? If so, how long can I freeze it for before I’m ready to bake?
Hi!! This question has been answered in the blog post above the recipe card under Make-Ahead Tips.
I found my dough way too dry, so I added whole milk. Also the cooking time is off , i baked mine 30 minutes and still not done. I wish when people post recipes they would put exact thickness and cooking times. It makes it hard for those who do not cook a lot.
Hi, Kona. Thanks so much for your feedback. I hoped that indicating the size of the rolled dough would be enough information to give you an idea of the thickness of the dough. As for the exact baking time, it’s basically impossible to give an exact baking time that works for everyone since every oven is different. Oven temperatures fluctuate wildly from oven to oven. That’s why I give a visual cues to watch, like baking until the edges start to brown slightly.
Made 2 batches, one for a friend brunch and one for the family. I’m not a big cookie maker, but this was a fun and simple recipe that turned out great. Not to mention, it’s perfect for this time of year as we make the shift into cooler temps! I’m not a fan of fresh cranberries so I used dried/sweetened and added the recommended amount of milk. They are super tasty, and even with the glaze, they aren’t overly sweet. The main struggle for me was getting the dough into the right shape when rolling, but otherwise, loved this recipe!
Laila, I’m so glad you tried and loved these cookies!! Thank you so much for sharing your feedback!!
So easy and delicious! They look fancy- and didn’t take a ton of effort. I added the white chocolate drizzle like the photos- and I added some fresh squeezed orange juice and a little milk since I used dried cranberries. I love this recipe!
Hi, Jess. So happy you tried and loved the cookies. Thank you for your feedback.
I made these tonight. My dough was very dry. I added another half a stick of butter and some flower to make up for adding too much butter. But they still turned out super yummy. Will be making these again for sure!!
I’m so happy you liked the cookies, and sorry you ran into dry dough issue. If you make it again, I recommend weighing the flour and use fresh cranberries. And if you run into dry dough again, simply add 1-2 teaspoons of milk. Thank you for sharing your feedback, Shelby!
Really delicious flavor and very pretty cookie.
I followed the instructions exactly but had trouble with my dough being way too dry—it wouldn’t stick together and kept crumbling apart when rolling. In desperation I put it back in the mixing bowl and added a squeeze of the orange juice I had from zesting the orange. That caused the cookies to be a little chewy/gummy which is not ideal, but they still look and taste great. Maybe vanilla extract would have worked better. I will definitely try these again.
Hi, Jen. Thank you for trying my recipe and sharing your feedback. So helpful! Did you use dried cranberries? If so, I’d highly recommend using fresh cranberries next time.
Love these biscuits made great Christmas presents. Very easy to make. Only thing is mine spread each time and didn’t keep the shape so one second batch I got to flat scrapers and patted the side back into shape as soon as they came out of the oven looked great then
Tracey, thank you so much for your feedback!! So happy you tried and loved the recipe!
Should I make any adjustments for high altitude? I live at 6,000 ft and am so excited to make these next week for Christmas!
Hi, Ellie. Thanks for reaching out. I haven’t tested this recipe in high altitude, so I don’t have a particular advice. I’d suggest bake it as is and start checking for doneness at 16min.