Delicious Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies: Your Ultimate Slice and Bake Holiday Recipe
Get ready to fall in love with these incredibly easy and utterly delicious **Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies**! Perfect for festive occasions, holiday cookie exchanges, or simply as a delightful treat, these slice and bake cookies are guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser. With their rich, buttery base, vibrant dried cranberries, and luxurious white chocolate coating, they offer a perfect balance of flavors and textures that will leave everyone asking for the recipe.
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If you’re a fan of these buttery cranberry shortbread cookies, you’ll also adore some of my other popular recipes! Be sure to try my Oatmeal Cranberry Pecan Cookies for a chewy classic, my simple and elegant Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies, and for a minty twist, my festive Peppermint White Chocolate Sugar Cookies!
Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies: A Festive Delight
These shortbread cookies are truly a joy to make, especially during the festive season. They feature a timeless shortbread base, elevated with a bright hint of orange extract and studded with sweet-tart dried cranberries. But the real showstopper is undoubtedly the dipping of these golden-baked beauties into a luscious, smooth white chocolate coating. This extra step transforms them into an irresistibly decadent holiday treat that feels both classic and wonderfully indulgent. The vibrant red cranberries against the white chocolate make them visually stunning on any holiday platter.
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Understanding the Charm of Shortbread Cookies
Shortbread cookies are a celebrated classic in the world of baking, renowned for their simple elegance and melt-in-your-mouth texture. Traditionally, they are distinguished by a straightforward ingredient list: sugar, flour, and a generous amount of butter. This trio is the foundation of their signature richness and delicate crumb. The origin of shortbread can be traced back to Scotland, with the earliest documented recipe appearing in 1736, cementing its status as a historical culinary delight.
Over centuries, the basic shortbread recipe has gracefully evolved. Modern interpretations often include additional ingredients that enhance both flavor and texture. A pinch of salt might be added to balance the sweetness, while various flavored extracts, such as vanilla, almond, or in our case, orange, can introduce delightful aromatic notes. Mix-ins like dried fruits, nuts, or chocolate chips are also common, adding bursts of flavor and textural contrast. This evolution brings us to our delightful **Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies recipe**, a modern take on a beloved classic, perfectly blending tradition with festive innovation.
Mastering the Slice and Bake Method for Effortless Cookies
The **slice and bake method** is an absolute game-changer for busy bakers and those who love to plan ahead. Its convenience is unparalleled, allowing you to prepare the cookie dough well in advance and bake fresh cookies whenever a craving strikes or guests arrive. This method is particularly fantastic for our Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread, ensuring consistently shaped and perfectly baked cookies every time. It’s also incredibly versatile, making it ideal for experimenting with different flavors and mix-ins.
Here’s a breakdown of how this simple, effective method works for our delectable cookies:
- **Prepare the Dough:** First, you’ll combine your ingredients to form a cohesive shortbread dough. Unlike some cookie doughs, shortbread is often a bit crumbly at first but comes together beautifully as you work it.
- **Shape into Cylinders:** Once the dough is mixed, divide it into two equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, gently roll each portion into a uniform cylinder shape, aiming for about 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter. The consistency here ensures even baking later.
- **Wrap and Chill:** Tightly wrap each dough cylinder in plastic wrap. Chilling is a crucial step! It allows the butter to re-solidify, preventing the cookies from spreading too much during baking and ensuring they hold their distinct shape. Chill the dough for at least two hours, or even better, overnight. This waiting period is essential for the perfect shortbread texture.
- **Slice and Bake:** When you’re ready to bake, simply unwrap the chilled dough logs. Using a sharp knife (a serrated knife often works best for clean cuts), slice the dough into uniform ½-inch thick rounds. Place these slices directly onto your prepared baking sheet and bake until lightly golden. This method makes baking fresh, warm cookies incredibly quick and easy!
Make-Ahead Magic: Enjoying Christmas Cookies on Your Schedule
Fantastic news for holiday planners and last-minute entertainers! These **slice and bake Christmas cookies** are incredibly freezer-friendly, offering wonderful flexibility for your baking schedule. You can prepare them well in advance, reducing stress during the busy holiday season. Here’s how to manage your make-ahead plans:
- **Freezing Dough:** You can prepare the dough logs as described in the slice and bake method, wrap them tightly, and freeze them for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to bake, simply take them out, let them thaw slightly (enough to slice), and then bake as instructed. This is a fantastic way to have fresh, warm cookies ready in minutes!
- **Freezing Baked Cookies:** Once your delicious cranberry white chocolate shortbread cookies are fully baked and completely cooled, you can store them in an airtight container or a heavy-duty freezer bag for up to three months. To serve, simply let them thaw in their container at room temperature for an hour or two. They’ll taste just as fresh and delightful as the day they were baked.
Beyond freezing, these cookies also store wonderfully at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week. This means you truly have full control over your timeframe. Whether you want to enjoy these festive slice and bake Christmas cookies today, tomorrow, or a month from now, they’ll be ready. I often find myself sneaking one or two straight from the freezer for a quick, satisfying treat!
Essential Ingredients for Perfect Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
These delightful shortbread cookies come together effortlessly with a few key, high-quality ingredients. Each component plays a vital role in achieving that signature buttery flavor and tender, crumbly texture:
- All-purpose flour: The structural backbone of our cookies. Accurate measurement is paramount for shortbread to prevent spreading and maintain its tender crumb. I strongly recommend using a kitchen scale to measure 416 grams for precision. If a scale isn’t available, use the spoon-and-level method to avoid packing too much flour into your measuring cup.
- Powdered sugar: Also known as confectioners’ sugar, this fine sugar blends seamlessly into the dough, contributing to the smooth texture of the shortbread. Like flour, it’s best measured by weight, but if using cups, ensure it’s sifted before measuring to prevent lumps.
- Salted butter: The star of shortbread! You’ll need 3 sticks of good quality, room temperature salted butter. The butter provides richness, flavor, and that characteristic tender crumb. If you only have unsalted butter, simply add ¾ teaspoon of fine salt to the recipe.
- Orange extract: This bright, citrusy extract adds a wonderful festive aroma and flavor that perfectly complements the cranberries and white chocolate. If orange isn’t your preference, feel free to substitute with almond extract for a nutty depth, classic vanilla extract, or even a touch of lemon extract for another citrus twist.
- Sweetened dried cranberries: These jewel-toned berries add bursts of tangy sweetness and a lovely chewiness to the cookies. The combination of cranberries and white chocolate is a match made in heaven! If you enjoy baking with various berries, you might also love my Blackberry Coffee Cake. Ensure they are finely chopped for even distribution throughout the dough.
- White chocolate: For that luxurious dip! I highly recommend using high-quality white chocolate baking bars, such as Ghirardelli, for the best melting consistency and flavor. You can also use candy melts or good quality white baking chips. When melting, be cautious not to overheat the white chocolate in the microwave, as it can seize easily. Low and slow is key!
Essential Equipment for Shortbread Success
To ensure your Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies turn out perfectly, you’ll need a few standard baking tools and a couple of specific items for the slice and bake method:
- **Stand Mixer or Handheld Mixer:** Essential for creaming the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, and for incorporating the dry ingredients.
- **Large Mixing Bowls:** For combining ingredients efficiently.
- **Baking Sheet:** A sturdy baking sheet will ensure even heat distribution.
- **Silicone Liner or Parchment Paper:** To line your baking sheet, preventing sticking and aiding in even baking.
- **Plastic Wrap:** Crucial for tightly wrapping and chilling your cookie dough logs. This helps the dough firm up and prevents spreading.
- **Sharp Knife (preferably serrated):** For cutting clean, even slices from your chilled dough logs. A serrated knife can often make a cleaner cut without squishing the dough.
- **Wire Rack:** For cooling the baked cookies completely before dipping them in chocolate.
Expert Tips to Prevent Your Shortbread Cookies from Spreading
Achieving perfectly shaped shortbread cookies, especially with a slice and bake method, often comes down to a few critical techniques. Here’s how to ensure your cranberry white chocolate shortbread cookies maintain their beautiful form and don’t spread excessively in the oven:
- Ensure Your Dough is Thoroughly Chilled: This is arguably the most important step. The butter in the dough needs to be firm. In the recipe card below, I recommend chilling your dough for at least two hours. For optimal results, especially if you live in a warmer climate or your kitchen is warm, chilling the dough overnight is even better. Once you remove the dough from the fridge, work quickly to slice it and arrange the pieces on your baking sheet. Minimize handling the dough with your warm hands, as this can soften the butter. If your oven takes a while to preheat, or if you’re baking in batches, pop the baking sheet with the sliced cookies back into the refrigerator while you wait.
- Measure Your Flour Accurately: The ratio of fat to flour is critical in shortbread. If there isn’t enough flour, the butter can melt and spread too rapidly in the oven, causing your cookies to lose their shape. Your best bet for precision is to use a kitchen scale to measure your flour by weight (typically 120-128 grams per cup). If using volume measurements, employ the spoon-and-level method: spoon flour into your measuring cup until it overflows, then level off the excess with a straight edge.
- Verify Your Oven Temperature: An accurate oven temperature is key to preventing spread. We’re baking these slice and bake Christmas cookies at a slightly higher temperature of 375°F (190°C), rather than the more common 350°F. The hotter temperature helps to quickly set the outer edges of the cookie before the butter inside has a chance to melt excessively and spread. However, many home ovens can run a little hot or cold (mine included!). Using an oven thermometer is an inexpensive way to get a consistent reading of the actual temperature inside your oven, allowing you to adjust your oven dial as needed.
- Choose Parchment Paper Over Silicone Baking Liners: While I adore my Silpat baking liner for many baking tasks, its highly nonstick surface can sometimes contribute to slightly more spreading and result in darker browning on the bottoms of cookies compared to parchment paper. If you’re particularly concerned about preventing spread and achieving perfectly uniform cookies, opt for parchment paper. The slight friction parchment provides helps the cookie hold its shape as it bakes.
Tips and Frequently Asked Questions
While both are popular choices for cutout cookies and share some flavor similarities, their compositions and textures differ significantly. Shortbread has a more minimalist recipe, traditionally made without eggs or leavening agents, resulting in a denser, incredibly buttery, and distinctively crumbly texture that melts in your mouth. Sugar cookies, on the other hand, typically include eggs and leaveners like baking powder or soda. This gives them a lighter, softer, and chewier texture, making them ideal for frosting and decorating.
The lines between shortbread and butter cookies can sometimes blur, as both heavily feature butter. However, butter cookies generally have a slightly higher sugar content than traditional shortbread, making them a bit sweeter. They also often incorporate eggs, which contribute to a softer, sometimes snappier texture than the crumbly shortbread. This higher sugar and occasional egg content also makes butter cookies excellent for holding intricate shapes, perfect for elaborate cutout designs.
Absolutely, yes! These white chocolate cranberry cookies are excellent for freezing, making them a perfect make-ahead option for the holidays or whenever you need a quick treat. You have two great options: you can freeze the rolled-up dough logs, well-wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 2 months. Alternatively, you can freeze the fully baked and cooled cookies in an airtight container or a heavy-duty freezer bag for up to three months. Simply thaw at room temperature before serving.
Based on the recipe, one of these delicious cranberry white chocolate shortbread cookies contains approximately 183 calories. For comprehensive nutritional information, including macronutrients and micronutrients, please refer to the detailed recipe card provided below.
If you enjoyed this recipe, you’re in for a treat with my other cookie creations! I highly recommend my fragrant Lemon Lavender Cookies and my delightful Raspberry White Chocolate Cookies for more fruity and floral notes. For an incredibly easy, berry-filled dessert, check out my Lemon Blueberry Cookies, which are a simple cake mix recipe bursting with fresh berries! If butterscotch is your weakness, don’t miss my comforting Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies. For even more inspiration, explore my curated roundups of the Best Cookies for a Cookie Exchange and the Best Gluten Free Dairy Free Cookies Recipes!
If you give this delightful recipe a try, I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts! Please consider leaving a rating and a comment below. Your feedback is incredibly valuable and helps other bakers discover and enjoy these recipes! And of course, don’t forget to share your beautiful creations with me by tagging @chenee_today on Instagram! I can’t wait to see your festive shortbread cookies!
Discover More Irresistible Cookie Recipes!
Looking for more baking inspiration? Explore these other fantastic cookie recipes that are sure to become new favorites:
- Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies with Cinnamon Sugar
- Almond Flour Peanut Butter Cookies
- Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies with Brown Butter and Sea Salt
- No Spread Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies
📖 Recipe
Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies – Slice and Bake Recipe
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Equipment you may need
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¾ sheet baking pan
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measuring cups and spoons
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mixing bowls
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whisk
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rubber spatula
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food scale
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hand mixer
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parchment paper
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stand mixer
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cooling rack
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silicone baking mat
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plastic wrap
Ingredients
- 1½ cup (341 g) salted butter – room temperature (3 sticks)
- 1 ½ cup (180 g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) orange extract – (or vanilla, or almond extract)
- 1 cup (121 g) sweetened dried cranberries – chopped
- 3 cups (384 g) all-purpose flour – plus more for rolling
- 8 oz (227 g) white chocolate – chopped (about 1½ cup)
Instructions
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In a large bowl, cream together softened butter and powdered sugar until the mixture is light, fluffy, and smooth.1½ cup salted butter, 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
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Add the orange extract and mix thoroughly until it’s well combined and fragrant throughout the butter mixture.1 teaspoon orange extract
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In a separate, medium-sized bowl, combine the all-purpose flour and the chopped sweetened dried cranberries. Stir them together until the cranberries are evenly coated with flour – this helps prevent them from sinking in the dough.1 cup sweetened dried cranberries, 3 cups all-purpose flour
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Gradually add the flour and cranberry mixture to the butter mixture. Mix with a hand mixer or the paddle attachment of a stand mixer on low speed until the dough just begins to come together and no dry streaks of flour remain. Be careful not to overmix.
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Divide the dough evenly in half. Lightly dust your work surface and your hands with a bit of extra flour. Roll each portion of dough into a uniform cylinder shape, approximately 1 ½ to 2 inches in diameter.
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Tightly wrap each dough cylinder with plastic wrap. Transfer them to the refrigerator and chill for a minimum of 2 hours, or ideally, overnight. This chilling process is crucial for the cookies to hold their shape during baking. The dough can be prepared and chilled up to 3 days in advance.
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Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking liner.
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Once the dough logs are thoroughly chilled, unwrap them. Using a sharp serrated knife, carefully cut each log into ½-inch thick slices.
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Place the cookie slices onto the prepared, ungreased baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Bake for 12-13 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are just beginning to turn a very light golden brown.
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Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
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While the cookies are cooling, melt the chopped white chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in short 15-second increments, stirring well after each interval, until smooth and fully melted. Be careful not to overheat.8 oz white chocolate
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Once the cookies are completely cool, dip one half of each cookie into the melted white chocolate. Gently shake off any excess chocolate, then place the dipped cookies onto parchment paper or a silicone mat to allow the chocolate to set.
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Notes
Nutrition
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