These Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies are a soft and buttery almond shortbread loaded with sweetened cranberries and dipped in white chocolate.
Looking for more Christmas Cookies? Try these Coconut Krispie Date Cookies or my perfect snickerdoodles .
Easy Shortbread Cookies
Cookie week continues with these Cranberry Almond Shortbread cookies! I love giving homemade gifts and giving cookies gives me an excuse to bake. These are perfect for gifting.
Can you believe I’ve never made shortbread cookies before? Me either! I was combing through the cookie recipes on Better Homes and Gardens website, and saw some shortbread cookies and thought they sounded amazing, but I didn’t have all the ingredients. So I searched through my pantry and picked out some cranberries and almond extract. Sometimes this is how the best recipes start.
I was so surprised when I took my first bite of these cookies and they were soft and buttery in the middle. When I typically think of homemade shortbread cookies, I think of a crunchy butter cookie with a coarse crumb. These won me over immediately. So much so that I also made a cranberry orange version of them using the same base recipe.
Ingredients You’ll Need
You’ll need just 6 easy ingredients for the cookies and some chocolate to dip them in. The full recipe card is at the bottom of this post.
- Unsalted butter: be sure it’s at room temperature
- Granulated sugar
- Almond extract: can also be subbed with vanilla extract
- Salt
- All-purpose flour
- Sweetened cranberries: be sure these are finely chopped
- White Chocolate for dipping. – You can use any of the following: Ghirardelli melting wafers, almond Bark, a white chocolate bar such as Lindt or Ghirardelli or white baking chips.
How to Make Shortbread Cookies
You’ll notice there are no eggs in this recipe, so it’s especially important to cream the butter and sugar together which helps all the ingredients stick together once the flour has been added.
- Combine butter and sugar: In a stand mixer, beat the butter, sugar, almond extract and salt. Beat until light and fluffy, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Add the remaining dry ingredients: Next, slowly add the flour ½ cup at a time until all the flour has been added. Mix at a low speed until the dough is crumbly
- Add the cranberries: Once added, increase the speed to medium-high and beat only until the dough starts to come off the sides of the bowl and stick together in a ball.
- Press and shape the dough: Turn the dough out onto a piece pf parchment paper. Divide the dough into two equal halves, press and shape into a log about 1 ½ inch thick and about 6-7 inches long.
- Chill: Tightly wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours.
- Bake: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a large cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Slice the cookies at least ¼”- 3/8″ thick. Place on the prepared baking sheet approximately 1-inch apart. Bake for 9-11 minutes or just until the edges start to brown.
- Melt the chocolate: You’ll want to wait until the cookies have cooled completely. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate at 50% power in 30-second intervals; stir after each interval and continue until chocolate is melted. Reduce microwave time as needed so the chocolate does not burn.
- Dip the cookies in the chocolate, tap off excess chocolate on the sides of the bowl and then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and allow the chocolate to set completely.
Dipping Cookings
When it comes time to dip these cookies in white chocolate, I suggest using high-quality chocolate that is made for candy making so that it will set nicely. If you want to use a white chocolate bar or white chocolate chips, consider adding a teaspoon or two of coconut oil or Crisco to thin it out, but it’s not necessary. You can also use a melting wafer like Ghirardelli or an almond bark.
These cookies can be crumbly on the edges, which can fall off into the chocolate. I suggest melting half at a time in case the melted chocolate gets messy with crumbs.
Tips For Working With Slice & Bake Cookies
- Cut up the cranberries: Since these cookies are sliced, it’s important to slice the cranberries nice and small. I used a knife to chop them up before mixing them into the dough.
- Tightly roll the dough: Be sure to really press the loose crumbs together. If you have air pockets in the middle, you’ll see them when you slice the dough
- Cut them thick: They tend to spread less when the cookies are thicker, at least 1/4″
- Chill the dough: This is an essential step. The dough is much easier to cut through, and hold a shape when the dough is good and firm
- To get nice round cookies: When rolling the dough, try and roll the log as round as possible. Cookies will spread when baking, so right when they come out of the oven, use a round cookie cutter (or a couple of spoons) and press the edges of the cookies back towards the middle. You can also use the cookie cutter to trim off the browned edges. You have to do this while they are still hot from the oven.
Preparation and Freezing Suggestions
- Make the dough ahead of time:The dough can be prepared in advance and stored for up to 3 days in the refrigerator, but it is definitely freezer-friendly. They should last in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Freezing cookie dough: Once the dough has been rolled into the logs, tightly wrap them twice with plastic wrap and store in the freezer. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator prior to baking.
- Finished cookies can also be frozen. You may consider baking the cookies, then freezing them in an airtight container. If possible, dip in chocolate once they have thawed.
Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Chill Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes
- Yield: 24-32
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies are a soft and buttery almond shortbread loaded with sweetened cranberries and dipped in white chocolate.
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, combine the butter, sugar, almond extract and salt. Beat until light and fluffy and well combined, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Next, slowly add the flour ½ cup at a time until all the flour has been added. Mix at a low speed until the dough is crumbly, add the cranberries then increase the speed to medium-high and beat only until the dough starts to come off the sides of the bowl and stick together in a ball.
- Turn the dough out onto a piece pf parchment paper. Divide the dough into two equal halves, press and shape into a log about 1 ½ inches thick and about 6-7 inches long. Tightly wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a large cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Unwrap the dough and slice the cookies at least ¼” -3/8″ thick. Place on the prepared baking sheet approximately 1-inch apart. Bake for 9-11 minutes or just until the edges start to brown. Cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To dip in chocolate, wait until the cookies have cooled completely. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt half the chocolate wafers at 50% power in 30 second intervals; stir after each interval and continue until chocolate is melted. Reduce microwave time as needed so the chocolate does not burn.
- Dip the cookies in the chocolate, tap off excess chocolate on the sides of the bowl and then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and allow the chocolate to set completely.
Notes
- Bake the dough cold: Be sure to bake the dough cold.
- The thicker these are cut, the less they spread. Using a silicone baking mat helps prevent the bottoms from cooking too quickly and results if a softer cookie.
- If you do find these spread after baking, you can fix it. Right, when they come out of the oven use 2 spoons, knives or spatulas to press the edges of the cookie back towards the center. You can also use a round cookie cutter to trim off some of the crispier edges You have to do this right away.
- Dough can be prepared in advance and stored up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Otherwise, I recommend freezing. Double wrap in plastic wrap.
- White chocolate: You can use any of the following: Ghirardelli melting wafers, almond Bark, a white chocolate bar such as Lindt or Ghirardelli or white baking chips.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Cookie
- Calories: 266
- Sugar: 23.7 g
- Sodium: 45 mg
- Fat: 14.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 32.3 g
- Fiber: 0.7 g
- Protein: 2.4 g
- Cholesterol: 24.8 mg
Filed Under:
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
- Classic Spritz Cookies
- Anise Cookies
- Cream Cheese Cookies
- Easy Snowball Cookies
I have made this recipe twice already!
They are absolutely delicious and turned out wonderfully! I cut them about 3/8 inch each and they are perfect size that way! I first made them for a church function and they flew off the tray! Huge success. Second time I am making them for my Christmas goodie plates. Beautiful and delicious!
I loved seeing your cookies on Instagram, thank you for sharing, they looked perfect!
LOVE these cookies! I bake one log and keep the other in my freezer for when we need a quick treat. So delicious even without the chocolate.
That’s wonderful Sara, thank you so much!
My dough does not become crumbly .It sticks in my hand.can u plz help
The finished dough should not be crumbly. Please reread the instructions. Add the remaining dry ingredients: Next, slowly add the flour ½ cup at a time until all the flour has been added. Mix at a low speed until the dough is crumbly then add the cranberries: Once added, increase the speed to medium-high and beat only until the dough starts to come off the sides of the bowl and stick together in a ball.
If you mixed past the crumbly stage when the cranberries were added, that’s fine as long as the final dough comes together before rolling into logs you should be good.
If it’s really really sticky, you might need to add another 1/4 cup.
I had leftover cranberries from another cookie recipe and came across this. Sooo easy and so good. I think they are my new favorite. I dipped half of the cookies. They are so good even without the white chocolate.
Oh that’s wonderful Linda!! I am so glad you found this recipe!
I followed the recipe exactly, and it was crumbly when I took it out of the fridge! I could not slice it into cookies !
Hi Katie, unfortunately, this sounds like an error on your end. If the dough was crumbly in the mixer, you can use your hands to compact it and finish mixing together, or turn them mixnig speed up a notch to combine the dough. It you did not compact the dough or fully combine it before rolling into a log, then it will not magically come together in the fridge.
I’ve never made shortbread and was a little intimidated by the rolling / slicing process- these turned out perfectly. They are SO delicious, definitely going into my Christmas cookie rotation!!
I made sure the butter was soft but not TOO soft, chilled the dough thoroughly, and sliced just over 1/4 inch thick. I also used the gram measurements provided to help ensure good results 🙂
Thank you, will definitely be making these again soon – I have a feeling they won’t last long!
Hi Molly, that’s fabulous! I am so glad you gave this one a try! Thank you so much. Now you have a wonderful base recipe and it’s very easy to adapt this with different extracts and zests.
I made these cookies yesterday. They are absolutely delicious!! What do you think about adding sweet dried cherries instead of cranberries? Thank you.
Amazing, thank you! Yes, any sweetened dried fruit would work great.
I followed this recipe exactly. They came out flat and the edges spread and turned brown. I guess that’s why I normally stick to recipes I know are good. I don’t know – maybe 375 degrees is too high.
Hi Kari, I am really not clear on why most people make these and they come out great, and others experience spreading. It could have to do with the oven or pan type, it could have to do with the difference in ingredients or something different in the preparation method. If you see on my photos, I do have some spreading and browning on the edges, but cutting them thicker helps to prevent too much spreading. I trim that before dipping. This base recipe is from Better Homes and Gardens (I was a contributor to their site for a couple years, and this recipe was for their site), and I’ve made it quite a few times. I can’t seem to replicate the issue
I appreciate your reply. I decided to give these another try! They turned out great! I cut them thicker – instead of 1/4” I cut them 3/8”. I also turned the heat down slightly, in between 350 and 375. I did have to cook them for 13 minutes but they look wonderful.
Hi Kari, I am so glad to hear that! Do you have any idea how thick you cut them the first time?
These cookies were very easy to make and looked amazing and tasted delicious. The people who tasted them absolutely LOVED them. They are a keeper.
I wish I could post a picture of my cookies.
That is the best! Thank you so much! You can ALWAYS email me a picture, I would love to see them! julianne at beyondfrosting dot com
Very disappointed with this recipe. I refrigerated the cookie dough overnight and it fell apart as I was cutting it. They turned out greasy, I will not make these again.
Hi Frankie, if the dough was not pressed together well enough in the logs, then it could crumble when you slice. Not sure why they would be so greasy though.
I have fresh cranberries. Can I use those instead?
I have not tested the recipe with fresh cranberries.
These are very tasty.
But .. they spread out to be almost lace-like. They look nothing like the photos. And they are very buttery (greasy) like another comment stated.
I’ll try again with more flour.
Hi Nancy- I have followed up with you via email to get some more details because this doesn’t sound right at all.
These look great! Any thoughts on adding some orange extract to them?
Yes! I use orange zest to make a cranberry orange version. https://beyondfrosting.com/cranberry-orange-shortbread-cookies/
oh my goodness….these cranberry shortbread cookies are absolutely the best. I can’t wait to add them to my Thanksgiving cookie platter. I sliced my cookies pretty thick and after dipping them in white chocolate….all I can say is YUM!!!
Thank you so much for sharing this incredible recipe.
That is so amazing! Thank you so much!
These cookies are delicious as well as easy to make!! I made them for Thanksgiving but very doubtful they will be around by then! I will have to make more! This a new favorite recipe! I have already shared it with my sisters! Thank you!
I love this so much Jennifer, thank you!