These Cranberry Pistachio Shortbread Cookies are studded with sweet-tart cranberries and salty pistachios, wrapped in a buttery dough that practically melts as soon as you take a bite. The recipe is simple, but the results are festive, colorful, and impossible to stop at just one.
Why Cranberries and Pistachios Belong in Shortbread
These cookies are everything a good shortbread should be. They’re buttery, and just barely sweet. They melt in your mouth as soon as you take a bite, but then you get a little tart chew from the cranberries and salty crunch from the pistachios. You can sweeten them up a bit by rolling them in demerara sugar, but it’s not needed.
These are a family favorite around my house especially around the holidays, but I’ll keep a batch in the freezer year-round. They’re not giant like everything but the kitchen sink cookies, but you still feel like you’ve had a treat.
If you want them to look more elegant, chop the cranberries and pistachios into very small pieces. This makes it easier to slice into perfectly shaped rounds.
With all of the other sweet cookies and bars that are served at parties and get togethers, it’s nice to have one that’s not quite so sweet. If you’re serving up a cookie tray, try these next to a cookie with lots of chocolate, a cinnamon-sugar based cookie and some classic cut outs to get a nice variety of flavors and textures.
Holiday Baking Starts Here
These are the main ingredients you’ll need for these cookies. Don’t forget to check the recipe card, below for more details.
From Mixing Bowl to Cookie Tin
Step One: Make the Dough
Tip: Make sure allow the butter to soften so it blends easily.
Step Two: Shape and Slice
Tip: Chilling helps the flavors blend and makes slicing much easier. If the dough crumbles when you try to slice it, let it warm up a little.
Step Three: Bake and Cool
Bake until the edges just start to turn golden and cool completely on a wire rack.
Every December, I find myself making “just one more batch” of these cookies. They’re easy, elegant, and have that perfect mix of sweet, salty, and buttery that keeps everyone coming back for seconds. Stack them in a tin for gifting or stash a few logs of dough in the freezer, you’ll be glad to have them ready when the cookie craving hits or you need a last minute gift.
Don’t Forget!
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 ⅓ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cup dried cranberries chopped
- 1 cup salted pistachios chopped
- Coarse sugar
Instructions
- In an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until very smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla, then reduce speed to low. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in pistachios and cranberries.
- Divide in two and form each half into a log, 2 inches in diameter. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours. Allow to warm up for 15 minutes before slicing.
- Preheat the oven to 350º and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll the logs in coarse sugar if desired. Then use a serrated knife to slice the logs into ¼ to ½ inch thick slices and place on prepared pans. If the dough is too crumbly to cut, let it warm up a little. They will not change shapes while cooking.
- Bake for 16-20 minutes until the edges begin to brown.
Notes
- Make-ahead: Dough can chill in the fridge for up to three days. You can do this to prep ahead of time during busy seasons.
- Serving tip: These cookies are sturdy enough for gifting and travel, and they stay just as buttery and tender even after a few days.
Hi Barbara!
You list 1 teaspoon of salt twice…I’d think you meant 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, yes?
Thanks! Love all of your recipes I’ve tried!
Chris
You are correct, Thanks, I fixed it.