Better Homes And Gardens Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies
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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 .
Cookie week continues with these Cranberry Almond Shortbread cookies! I love giving homemade gifts and giving cookies gives me an excuse to bake.
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.
Ingredients You'll Need
You'll need just 6 easy ingredients for the cookies and some chocolate to dip them in.
- 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
- Ghirardelli white chocolate melting wafers
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 about ¼" thick. Place on the prepared baking sheet approximately 1-inch apart. Bake for 9-11 minutes or just until the edges start to brown.
Dip in chocolate: You'll want to 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.
Dipping in White Chocolate
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. I love the Ghirardelli melts, I think they taste the best.
If you want to use a white chocolate bar or white chocolate chips, consider adding a tablespoon of Crisco or vegetable oil so it will set quicker.
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.
- 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
Can I freeze These?
The dough can be prepared in advance and stored for up to 3 days in the refrigerator, but it is definitely freezer-friendly. 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.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Chill Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes
- Yield: 24-32
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 about ¼" 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
- The thicker these are cut, the less they spread
- 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 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.
Nutrition Information:
1 Cookie
266
23.7 g
45 mg
14.7 g
32.3 g
0.7 g
2.4 g
24.8 mg
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Christmas Cookies, Almond Cookies, Shortbread Cookies
These Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookieswere originally shared at Better Homes and Gardens.
Better Homes And Gardens Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies
Source: https://beyondfrosting.com/cranberry-almond-shortbread-cookies/
Posted by: garlandfrome1953.blogspot.com
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