Gluten Free Cranberry Shortbread

One bite of this buttery crisp gluten free cranberry shortbread with dried cranberries and pistachios and you will be hooked! These simple gluten free slice and bake cookies make a delicious treat for the holidays!

I am really excited about these gluten free citrus shortbread cookies with pistachios. They are buttery and full of flavor. I love to use lime zest instead of orange zest when baking with cranberries. It adds delicious tanginess.

You can find dried cranberries all year long. I love to use Ocean Spray cranberry to make my shortbread cookies. There are many other brands of dried cranberries as well, but our grocery store mostly seems to carry this one brand.

If you prefer to try a regular drop-style cookie, these gluten free cranberry white chocolate cookies are also really good.

Why you will love these cookies:

1. They are full of buttery shortbread goodness. They melt in your mouth!
2. These cookies are made with dried cranberries so that you can enjoy them all year long.
3. You can cut them out in circles or use your favorite cookie cutters!
4. They are made with only five simple ingredients.

This is a great easy recipe to make if you are looking for the perfect gluten-free slice and bake cookies. If you love cookies as much as we do, check out all of my delicious gluten free cookies recipes.

These homemade cookies are easy to make for Thanksgiving; these are the perfect gluten free Thanksgiving cookies! I also have an amazing traditional Gluten Free Shortbread recipe that is really easy to make.

Ingredient notes:

• Gluten free flour blend - I tested this recipe using Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour Blend and King Arthur's Measure for Measure Gluten Free Blend. For some reason, Bob's blend needed a little more flour. If you notice the dough is a bit wet, add a little more flour using Bob's 1 to 1. (That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours, and I can not guarantee the recipe will work if you use other mixes.)
• Xanthan Gum - If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
• Butter - To make this recipe dairy-free, substitute the butter for vegan butter.
• Cranberries - Use dried cranberries because fresh ones will add too much moisture.
• Pistachios - If you are nut-free, omit them. You can also use other types of nuts, like pecans.

How to make gluten free cranberry cookies:

Step 1: Add your dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend them all together.

To measure your gluten free flour, I recommend using the spoon method or leveling method. In a perfect world, people weigh their flour, but most do not own a kitchen scale.

Put the measuring scoop into the flour and fill. Do not pack the flour. Use a knife to scrape along the top to remove the extra flour.

Use a spoon to fill the measuring cup. Use a knife to level along the top to remove the extra flour.

Step 2: Add the wet ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend.

Step 3: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix them into a dough.

Step 4: As I mentioned above, for some reason, I found that Bob's GF 1 to 1 blend was a bit wetter than the King Arthur blend. If you notice this, it is okay to add more flour, so the dough isn't too sticky.

Step 5: Form the dough into a log and wrap it with plastic wrap. Chill it in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours. Remove the dough and preheat the oven to 375º F. I use a higher heat so that the cookies are set quickly and don't spread.

Step 6: Slice the cookies into circles and put them onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.

Step 7: Bake at 375º F for 8-10 minutes. Be sure to keep an eye on them, so they don't overbake.

You may also love this simple Gluten Free Maple Shortbread recipe.

Make it fancy:

Make your citrus cranberry shortbread fancy by drizzling or dipping half of the cookies in melted white chocolate. You can sprinkle them with crushed pistachios or sprinkles.

Tips and Recipe FAQ:

More gluten free cookie recipes:

• Easy Gluten Free Gingerbread Melting Moments
• Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Cookies
• Gluten Free Chocolate Espresso Cookies
• Buttery Gluten Free Pecan Cookies

📖 Recipe

Gluten Free Cranberry Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

Sandi Gaertner

Delicious buttery melt in your mouth gluten free cranberry shortbread cookies. These cookies are easy to make and are perfect any time of the year.

4.80 from 5 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Chill Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Course Gluten Free Dessert Recipes

Cuisine American

Servings 12 cookies

Calories 294 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 ¼ cups gluten free flour blend * see note
• ▢ ½ cup sugar
• ▢ dash salt
• ▢ 1 cup butter softened to almost melted
• ▢ 1 cup dried cranberries
• ▢ ⅓ cup pistachios removed from the shells and chopped
• ▢ 2 teaspoon lime zest
• ▢ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

 

• Add your dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend them all together.
• Add the wet ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend.
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix them into a dough.
• Note: or some reason I found the Bob's GF 1 to 1 blend was a bit wetter than with the King Arthur blend. If you notice this, it is okay to add more flour so the dough isn't too sticky.
• Form the dough into a log and wrap it with plastic wrap. Chill it in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.
• Remove the dough and preheat the oven to 375º F. I use a higher heat so that the cookies are set quickly and don't spread.
• Slice the cookies into circles and put them onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.
• Bake at 375º F for 8-10 minutes. Be sure to keep an eye on them so they don't overbake.
• Remove from the oven to a cooling rack.
• Optional: drizzle or dip in white chocolate.

Notes

1. I have tested this recipe with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF and Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 GF blend. That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours. You may need a bit more of Bob's blend so the dough isn't too wet.
2. Xanthan Gum - If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
3. To make this recipe dairy-free, substitute the butter for vegan butter.
4. To measure your gluten free flour, I recommend using the spoon method or leveling method. In a perfect world, people weigh their flour, but most do not own a kitchen scale.
   Put the measuring scoop into the flour and fill. Do not pack the flour. Use a knife to scrape along the top to remove the extra flour.
   Use a spoon to fill the measuring cup. Use a knife to level along the top to remove the extra flour.
5. These cookies will keep for up to 3 days in an air-tight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.

SPECIAL NOTE

Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn't test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookieCalories: 294kcalCarbohydrates: 34gProtein: 3gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 41mgSodium: 136mgPotassium: 45mgFiber: 3gSugar: 16gVitamin A: 487IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 24mgIron: 1mg

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Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.