These gluten free orange cranberry butter cookies are buttery, tender, and full of festive flavor. Dried cranberries and fresh orange zest make them feel like a holiday classic, and since they're eggless, they come together with just a handful of pantry staples.
These gluten free orange cranberry butter cookies are a simple yet classic treat perfect for the holiday season. With their rich, buttery shortbread base and bursts of sweet dried cranberries, these cranberry orange shortbread cookies bring festive flavor to every bite.
Whether you call them cranberry orange cookies or shortbread cranberry orange cookies, they're a must have recipe for any cookie tray or holiday cookie exchange.
Butter cookies or shortbread are one of my favorite holiday treats. I love the crisp on the outside, yet soft on the inside texture. These cookies melt in your mouth!
If you're looking for more cranberry recipes try my Gluten Free Cranberry Orange Muffins, my Gluten Free Cranberry Apple Crisp, my Gluten Free Orange Cranberry Biscotti or my Gluten Free White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies.
You can find all my cranberry recipes here: Gluten Free Cranberry Recipes
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Buttery, eggless shortbread base
- Easy slice and bake method
- Bursting with cranberries and fresh orange zest
- Perfect for a holiday cookie tray or exchange
Ingredient Notes
- This recipe works well with Gluten Free Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 or King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour.
- For a dairy free version, you can substitute solid coconut oil for the butter, just be sure it's soft rather than fully melted, similar to room temperature butter.
Make Ahead and Freezing
The dough log can be made ahead and frozen for up to 3 months. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, then thaw it in the refrigerator before slicing and baking as directed.
Storage
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. The unbaked dough log can also be frozen for up to 3 months, thaw in the refrigerator before slicing and baking.
Top Tip
Watch these closely in the last few minutes of baking. Shortbread cookies can go from perfectly golden to over baked quickly, and pulling them just as the edges turn slightly brown keeps that classic melt in your mouth texture instead of a dry, crumbly one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. You can substitute solid coconut oil for the butter. Make sure it's soft rather than fully melted, similar to room temperature butter. Coconut oil has a stronger flavor than butter, so you may want to add an extra teaspoon or two of orange zest to balance it out.
Yes. These gluten free orange cranberry butter cookies or shortbread cookies will be slightly soft while hot right out of the oven. Let them set for at least 10 minutes before you remove them from the baking sheet.
As the cookies cool they will get a slightly crisp texture on the outside. The inside of the cookie will still be melt in your mouth soft.
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Gluten Free Orange Cranberry Butter Cookies
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 62 cookies 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
These gluten free orange cranberry butter cookies are buttery, tender, and studded with dried cranberries and fresh orange zest. This eggless shortbread recipe is easy to slice and bake, making it perfect for a holiday cookie tray or cookie exchange.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups Powdered Sugar
- 2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 3 cups Gluten Free Flour
- ½ tsp. Baking Powder
- ½ tsp. Sea Salt
- 1 cup Dried Cranberries, finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp. Orange Zest
- ½ cup Demerara Sugar
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
Beat the room temperature butter in the stand mixer for 2-3 minutes until it's creamy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
In a bowl whisk together the gluten free flour, baking powder and sea salt. Add this to the butter mixture. Blend together until just combined. Add the dried cranberries and orange zest and mix to combine them into the dough.
Divide the dough into half. Roll each half into a log in parchment paper that's about 2 inches wide by 2 inches tall. Chill for at least 2 hours.
Place the demerara sugar on a plate or shallow dish. Roll each cookie log in the demerara sugar and gently press the sugar into the sides. Cut the log into ¼ inch thick rounds using a very sharp knife.
Place cookie rounds on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. The edges will be slightly browned around the edges when they are done.
If you made this recipe please leave a star rating and comment below. It helps other readers find this recipe and means so much to me.
- Prep Time: 120 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
I'd love to hear how these gluten free orange cranberry butter cookies turn out for you! Leave a comment and star rating below, and let me know if you add them to your holiday cookie tray. Don't forget to pin this recipe so you can make it again all season long.
Orange Cranberry Butter Cookies Ingredients
Unsalted Butter
Powdered Sugar
Vanilla Extract
Gluten Free Flour
Baking Powder
Sea Salt
Dried Cranberries
Orange Zest
Demerara Sugar
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
Beat the room temperature butter in the stand mixer for 2-3 minutes until it's creamy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
In a bowl whisk together the gluten free flour, baking powder and sea salt. Add this to the butter mixture. Blend together until just combined. Add the dried cranberries and orange zest and mix to combine them into the dough.
Divide the dough into half. Roll each half into a log in parchment paper that's about 2 inches wide by 2 inches tall. Chill for at least 2 hours.
Place the demerara sugar on a plate or shallow dish. Roll each cookie log in the demerara sugar and gently press the sugar into the sides. Cut the log into ¼ inch thick rounds using a very sharp knife.
Place cookie rounds on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. The edges will be slightly browned around the edges when they are done.
Kay says
I haven't made these yet because the measurements for the powdered sugar says 1 14/ c sugar
smallfarmbiglife says
Hi Kay. Yes, that is definitely a typo that I will get fixed right now. The powdered sugar should be 1 1/4 cups. Thanks for pointing that out for me. ~Elaine
Kay says
I tried to comment from my tablet but it's not showing up here on my laptop. I've not tried to make these yet, because the measurement for the powdered sugar says:
1 14/ cups... I'm assuming that's supposed to be 1 & 1/4th cups? My daughter has to be dairy free as well so can I sub solid coconut oil? We can't use soy substitutes as she's allergic to soy as well.
smallfarmbiglife says
Hello Kay. I've never tried to make butter cookies with coconut oil, but I presume it can be done. In this recipe the butter is at room temp so you will want the coconut oil not solid and not melted. I would set it by something warm for just a bit to get a more room temperature consistency (like coconut oil during the summer months when it's warmer outside). Coconut oil is going to have a stronger flavor than butter, so you might also want to add 1-2 teaspoons more orange zest for flavor. I hope that helps! ~Elaine
Kay says
Thanks, I will try that!