Cranberry Shortbread Cookies are a delicious Christmas cookie recipe that is easy to make. The buttery shortbread pairs perfectly with the tart dried cranberries making them a festive cookie for holiday dessert platters.
One of my favorite Christmas cookies is shortbread. I love the buttery melt-in-your-mouth texture and they can be flavored in so many ways. For the holidays, you can’t beat a red and white cookie and these cranberry shortbread cookies are just perfect.
Shortbread cookies are so easy to make and they keep well at room temperature so they are great for gifting. For this recipe, you only need five ingredients!
They are so simple and the flavors are great. Sweet, buttery, and each bite has tart cranberry. If you want an easy cookie recipe to make this year, you need to give them a try.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour – be sure your flour is at least 11-12% protein, this will help keep the cookies from spreading.
- Softened butter – I use salted butter, but if you use unsalted add a bit more salt.
- Caster sugar – this is a very fine sugar.
- Pinch of salt
- Dried cranberries
Instructions
Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer (or stand mixer) in a large bowl for about two to three minutes or until the mixture is creamy.
Sift the flour and salt into the butter mixture and stir. When it’s almost combined, add the cranberries and continue mixing on medium speed until the dough is firm.
Wrap the cookie dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 30 to 60 minutes. You can also chill it overnight.
Take the dough out of the refrigerator. If it’s very firm, gently knead it to soften it up. Place the dough between two pieces of plastic wrap and roll it out until it’s 1/4″ thick.
Cut the dough out into rounds or squares using a cookie cutter and place them on baking sheets or cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle sugar over the tops, if desired.
Place the pans in the refrigerator for 15 minutes while the oven preheats to 320°F.
Bake the cookies for approximately 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, cool them for two to three minutes on the cookie sheets before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
FAQs
You could add some orange zest a little orange flavouring, some white chocolate chips or even some coarsely chopped nuts.
Fresh and frozen cranberries are not good for this recipe. They have too much moisture which will change the texture of the shortbread cookies. For best results, use dried cranberries.
Caster sugar is very fine and really makes a difference in these cookies. it melts into the butter so your cookies practically melt in your mouth. If you only have granulated, you can blend it in a food processor until it’s finely ground like caster sugar.
Did you chill the dough for at least 30 minutes? Chilling it allows the butter to firm up so your cookies don’t spread. And be sure to use a flour with at least 11-12% protein, this also helps from spreading.
Store them in an airtight container. They can keep for several weeks as long as they are in a good container stored in a cool, dry spot.
Yes, the baked cookies freeze great. Place them in a freezer container and separate the layers with parchment paper. They will keep for up to three months.
Whether you make these cranberry shortbread cookies for you or to share, I hope you love them! You can’t beat the color combination – it’s perfect for the holidays. Enjoy!
More Cookies Recipes
Easy Cranberry Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1¾-2 cups all purpose flour (at least 11-12% protein / sifted)** (220-250 grams)
- ⅔ cup + 1 tablespoon butter (softened) (165 grams)
- ⅓ cup + 1½ tablespoons sugar (caster / fine) (85 grams)
- 1 pinch salt*
- ¼-½ cup dried cranberries
*If using unsalted butter then use ¼ teaspoon salt.
Instructions
- Beat the butter and sugar until creamy, approximately 2-3 minutes, add the sifted flour (start with 1 3/4 cups add the remaining 4 tablespoons if needed one at a time) and the salt, combine, when almost combined add the cranberries and continue to beat with the flat beaters (#2 speed) until a firm dough is obtained, be aware that it does take time to bring it together. If you knead by hand it will take approximately 4 minutes of kneading.
- Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes or even overnight).
- Remove the dough from the fridge, and if very firm, gently knead, place the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll to ¼ inch thickness, cut out with round or square cookie cutters, place on the prepared cookie sheets. Sprinkle with sugar before baking if desired. Refrigerate the cookies while the oven is pre-heating, for about 15 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven to 320F (160C). Line 1 or 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Bake the cookies for approximately 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, let sit 2-3 minutes on the cookie sheet then move to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Patricia says
Woo…. All my friends loved it and is now ordering from me. Love it!
Rosemary says
Hi Patricia, thanks so much, so glad you and your friends like them. Have a great week.
Laura says
The dough was extremely crumbly even though I followed the recipe to a T. Added a bit more butter but that did not help. After putting it in the frig for an hour I tried rolling out but still was extremely crumbly. Very disappointing for sure. Any suggestions for next time?
Rosemary says
Hi Laura, start with 1 1/2 cups of flour and if it is too wet then add more, adding more butter should actually bring the dough together. Hope that helps.
Nancy says
I made these at Christmas. They were delicious. Will make them again next year
Rosemary says
Hi Nancy, thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed them. Happy New Year.
Taza G. says
Is there a reason why you can’t roll the dough into a log before refrigerating it, and then just cut 1/4″ rounds?
I’m planning to make these tomorrow.
Rosemary says
Hi Taza, no reason, you can certainly do that. Let me know how it goes.
Linda says
What quantities – for everything!
Rosemary says
Hi Linda, the recipe card is at the bottom of the post. 🙂
elizabeth says
Have made many shortbread recipes and this is the best! Really melts in your mouth
Rosemary says
Hi Elizabeth, thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed them. Have a great weekend.
Lynn says
Note there is an inconsistency in the directions for using unsalted butter vs. salted butter. At the top under Ingredients it says for unsalted butter to add more flour. At the bottom is says to add more salt. I assume you meant salt. You may want to correct
Rosemary says
Hi Lynn, thanks so much, I corrected. Have a great weekend.
Lynn says
🙂
Becca Degenhardt says
My dough didn’t come together either. I added a bit of butter, Still didn’t. Then added juice of half of an orange. And about tsp water. It did come together finally. I’ve had them in for 10 and am adding time at 5 min at anytime as they are not getting done yet. I may have made them too thick. But, they are not spreading at all!
Donna Ann Martucci says
I was wondering could you use fresh cranberries in this recipe?
Rosemary says
Hi Donna, to tell the truth I have never used fresh cranberries, you could try it and see how it goes. Let me know if you do.
Carol Della Valle says
Ingredients….??? How much flower, sugar etc
Rosemary says
Hi Carol, it’s in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. 🙂
michelle ruggiero says
So disappointed in this recipe.I measured using a kitchen gm scale for accuracy. Dough was so crumbly.I then added another tbsp of butter and attempted to gather in a ball. Finally I squeezed a tbsp a tbsp fresh orange juice after adding some zest of an orange to get it to come together and refrigerated over night. Next day so difficult to roll. I left on counter for two hrs and proceeded. They looked perfect . But the taste was too bland for my palate.Since they looked so pretty, Im going to attempt again with a few changes. Im going to lightly moisten cranberries with a tbsp of fresh oj then drain and chop them up smaller, and add additional tbsp of caster sugar. I re review to see if this helps. I did watch the video twice to see what I did different. I could not determine the problem.
Rosemary says
Hi Michelle, I recommend that you knead or mix the dough longer. My daughter who did the video likes to make the dough by hand and she said it took 3-4 minutes to knead it together. I used a machine and it was at least 2 minutes. What do you mean by bland?
michelle ruggiero says
I just loved the girls. The video was a nice addition. Jw who they are, dtgs, cousins, sisters? Love the accent!!!!!
Rosemary says
Hi Michelle, thanks so much, they are sisters and also my daughters. Erika and Vanessa. 🙂 They were both born and raised in Italy although they now live in Toronto.
Pam Biggs says
I don’t have an electric mixer
Can I do with a whisk or should I use food processor?
Rosemary says
Hi Pam you could use a whisk, but it will be easier with a food processor. Pulse until almost combined then finish gently kneading to form a dough ball. I hope you enjoy it.