Cranberry Shortbread Cookies

Tender, melt in your mouth shortbread cookies with orange zest and fresh cranberries, sliced from a chilled dough log.

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 13

Refrigerate 2

Total Time 2 23

Course cookies

Servings cookies

Beat the butter and powdered sugar together for 5 to 6 minutes until light and fluffy, then mix in the vanilla extract.
1 cup unsalted butter, ½ cup powdered sugar
Mix in the flour, cornstarch and salt, then stir in the orange zest and finely chopped cranberries.
½ teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ cup cornstarch, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon orange zest, 1 cup fresh cranberries
Shape the dough into a log, wrap it, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Slice the chilled dough into cookies about ¼ inch (0.6 centimeters) thick and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree Fahrenheit (180 degree Celsius) oven until the bottoms just begin to turn golden, about 12 minutes.
Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet.
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Chill the dough fully: a full 2 hours in the fridge makes the log firm enough to slice into clean rounds instead of squashing.
Use a gentle sawing motion to slice: if the dough feels crumbly, a sharp knife and a sawing motion keeps the cookies from breaking apart.
Try the food processor method: pulse the dry ingredients and butter into crumbs, then add the cranberries and orange zest and process until the dough comes together.
Storage: keep baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week, or freeze the unbaked dough log for up to 3 months and slice straight from frozen.

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