Cranberry Pistachio White Chocolate Shortbread
If you’re a shortbread fan, this Holiday Shortbread Recipe is perfect for the season with its festive pops of red and green! But they’re delicious enough to make any time of year!
These Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies make tasty Christmas cookies that are fun for holiday cookie exchanges, gifts for family or friends, or to leave out for Santa on Christmas Eve! They are winners!
Why You Must Make
- They’re super tasty and the red cranberries and green pistachios make them perfect for Christmas.
- Shortbread is very traditional for the holidays!
- These cookies freeze beautifully so you can make them up to 3 months ahead of time.
We used to gather for our neighborhood Christmas cookie exchange in the morning, sipping on a cup of tea or coffee with a few nibbles, then gathering a few cookies from each sweet laden platter before heading out to lunch. One year, we shook it up a bit and met later in the day with wine and appetizers (my kind of dinner!). This holiday shortbread recipe was my contribution in 2013.
2013 Cookie Exchange
Expert Tips
- Roll the cookie dough into two logs, each with a 2-inch diameter.
- Wrap them well in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours. The dough can also be frozen.
- When ready to bake, pull the dough out of the fridge and gently roll the logs back and forth so there is no flat side.
- PRO-Tip: Storing the dough logs in an old paper towel tube helps keep the cylindrical shape.
- Since the dough is full of nuts and chocolate, a serrated knife works best for cutting.
- If your dough gets too warm, you may find your rounds get misshapen when slicing. Pop your logs back into the refrigerator or freezer if this happens to rechill the dough. If any of the dough slices need reshaping, feel free to nudge them into rounds again.
- PRO-Tip: Since this dough is packed full of add-ins, it may be hard to get it to come together. If needed, add up to 2 teaspoons of water to help moisten the dough (especially if there’s low humidity where you store your flour).
Frequently Asked Questions
Shortbread Cookies have a higher butter-to-flour recipe, making them more delicate than roll-out sugar cookies. They also bake at a lower temperature and are very tender. These are more buttery than sweet.
Traditional Sugar Cookies have less butter than shortbread cookies, making them more sturdy and better for rolling and cutting. They contain more sugar than shortbread cookies, so they are sweeter. If packed correctly, your typical sugar cookies are better for shipping than the more crumbly shortbread cookies.
Store your shortbread cookies in an airtight container for up to a week at room temperature. They’ll keep a few days longer if refrigerated. They’ll also freeze well for up to 3 months. Just defrost overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.
You May Also Like
- Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies from Mom on Timeout
- Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Cookies
- Lebanese Shortbread
- Millionaire Shortbread AKA Ganache Topped Caramel Bars
- Plus, try these Cherry Pistachio Biscotti and these Danish Sugar Cookies
- More of the Best Cookie Recipes
Cranberry, Pistachio, White Chocolate Shortbread
Shortbread cookies with holiday colors from the cranberries and pistachios.
Ingredients
- 2 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter at room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup pistachios, lightly toasted
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup white chocolate, chopped into tiny pieces
- 1-2 teaspoons water, optional if dough does not hold together
Instructions
- Whisk together the flour and salt in a bowl and set aside.
- Using a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients and stir till just mixed. Fold in the pistachios, cranberries, and white chocolate into the dough until well distributed.
- If your dough does not hold together, add a teaspoon or 2 of water and mix well.
- Shape the dough into 2 logs about 2 inches in diameter then chill for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.
- Preheat oven to 325º and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Slice the cookies ¼ to ½ inch thick and place about 1 inch apart on prepared pans. Bake for 16-20 minutes. The cookies are ready when they begin to brown around the edge.
Notes
Total time does not reflect chilling time.
Adapted from Grand Central Bakery.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
24Serving Size:
2 cookiesAmount Per Serving: Calories: 208Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 115mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 1gSugar: 14gProtein: 3g
76 Comments on “Cranberry Pistachio White Chocolate Shortbread”
Has anyone tried this recipe with a 1:1 gluten free flour?
These cookies are amazing and I want to share them with my GF friends!
Not that I know about. But it should work if you use something like Cup 4 Cup (if it’s still available). Good luck!
Second time making these, they are so delicious. I used salted roasted pistachios, the salty pistachios with the sweet white chocolate and tart cranberries is perfect. YUM!!!
So glad you love these, too, Marinda! Thanks so much for letting me know 🙂
Cranberry pistachio white chocolate shortbread is so yummy I already made it twice. Enjoyed every time.
Someone made these for the Christmas Cookie Exchange at work. They were the most popular by far. “Hey, can I get that recipe from you?”
My tip: I ended up rubbing the butter mix with the flour mix. I did also add some water. Then I pressed the dough mix out flat on a silicon mat. I added the mix down the center then folded it up. Next I squished it into logs. Then I rolled the logs til they were about 2” diameter then rolled them in wax paper and stuck them in the freezer. It worked for me. Cookies are not perfectly round but I don’t really care.
These cookies taste good but it was a fail for me. Way too dry. They wouldn’t stick together at all. Really hard to make the rolls and hard to slice–kept falling apart and all the nuts/cranberries kept falling out. I think it needs more butter.
Hi, Heidi, the instructions mention to add water a little at a time to get to the right consistency if the dough doesn’t come together. Flour is much drier in the winter than in the summer.
Thinking about making these. All I could find was salted pistachios and I think they are also roasted. That said, do I still toast them? And how do O toast them?! I don’t know why that makes me the most nervous but I know nothing about toasting any nuts, lol. I don’t like my broiler on my overnight so hoping I don’t have to use that. So is salted fine? Is it ok not go without toasting?!
Hi, Chalise, I wouldn’t worry about toasting them if they are already roasted. If you want to, you can gently warm them in a dry skillet, but they’ll still be good if you don’t. I wouldn’t use salted pistachios (but if that’s all you have, use a kitchen towel or even paper towels to try to rub off the salt). I hope that helps!
As extra comment, use paper towel holder, makes life easier, u will need 2 of them
Thanks for your tip, Rita! I hope you enjoyed these.
Help! my mixture doesn’t hold even after adding a couple teaspoons of water. tried to roll and there’s lots of cracks in the roll. how can I save it??
I’d let it sit at room temperature to let the butter soften, then work it together with your hands before rolling it into a cylinder. Hope that will help!!
This recipe was sent to me recently, I wasn’t sure if I was going to make them but at last minute decide to. The dried cranberries, salty pistachios and creamy white chocolate blended so wonderful I was amazed. I did use 2 paper towel rolls because they measured 2 inches, bit difficult to get them in evenly but the results were amazing. I will make these my cookies for neighbours this year.
Thank you
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Rita. Thanks so much for letting me know! Merry Christmas!!!
I served these with some whipped goat cheese and fruits for a simple appetizer. Delicious!
This pistachio shortbread recipe was so incredibly delicious!! I love that it was so easy to make.
This post has just jogged my memory. I used to make cranberry pistachio shortbread all the time but I lost my recipe. Thank you for a great replacement. I can’t wait to bake them again.
Great recipe and love the paper towel roll tip!
Thanks, Cheryl!! I know I’m not the only one who wants their cookies to look as good as they taste. Merry Christmas!!!
Is margarine ok vs butter for a Gagan option? Also, have you tried with all purpose gluten free flour.l?
Ususally gluten free flour works fine in cookies, but I haven’t tested these with it. Margarine will probably be OK, but again, I’ve never tested it. Please report back and let me know how it goes, JoAnna!