Ring in the holidays with these festive Cranberry Orange Icebox Cookies. So easy to make and loaded with seasonal flavors you’ll want to share with everyone!
Why We Love Cranberry Orange Cookies
- This cookie dough is so easy to make. It’s one of my favorites when working on cookie plates because the dough has to chill overnight. I can prep ahead and bake them up later.
- My kids say they taste like “Christmas & Orange Juice” which is exactly what we’re going for!
- These cookies go great with hot chocolate, coffee, or a cup of tea on a cold night. Santa will 100% be happy you left a plate of them out on Christmas Eve.
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Cranberry Orange Icebox Cookies
WET INGREDIENTS: We’re sticking with cookie dough basics – unsalted butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
DRY INGREDIENTS: You’ll need all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt to finish off the cookie dough base. To spice the cookies, grab some pumpkin pie spice from the cabinet. If you don’t have any on hand, don’t worry! I have a substitution in the recipe card below.
ADD-INS: What makes these cookies really amazing are the add-ins. You’ll need crystallized ginger, orange zest, and some dried cranberries.
COATING: Grab some red and green sanding sugar for a festive look. The sugar will coat the edges of the cookies and leave the centers alone to show off all the yummy add-ins.
How to Make Cranberry Orange Cookies
Jump to RecipeSTEP 1 Start by mixing together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt, and set that bowl aside for now. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until pale. Then mix in the eggs and vanilla.
STEP 2 Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients mixing until just combined. Then stir in the dried cranberries, crystallized ginger, and orange zest until everything is evenly combined.
STEP 3 Turn the cookie dough out onto a floured surface. Divide the dough in half and roll each half into a 10-inch dough log with squared-off sides. Wrap the cookie dough in plastic wrap and chill for 10 hours in the fridge or 2 hours in the freezer.
Step 4 Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Place the green sanding sugar onto a piece of waxed paper. Unwrap one cookie dough log and roll it in the sugar until the sides are coated. Then cut the log into 1/4-inch slices, ending up with 12 cookies. Repeat with the red sanding sugar and the second dough log. Place the cookies slices onto a lined baking sheet.
STEP 5 Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the cookies are slightly golden brown. Remove them from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
Tips & Tricks
- When you’re forming the dough logs, press dough slightly on each side once the log is formed to square off each edge. If you prefer a round cookie, roll the dough log so it’s a cylander instead.
- I love using festive colored sanding suagr to coat the outside fo these cookies. But if you want to change things up – regular white sugar can be used instead and makes the edges sparkle, nonpariel sprinkles are great if you want more than one color, and you can even use finely chopped nuts like pecans or almonds.
- You can stor the baked cookies in an air-tight container for up to 1 week at room temperature or freeze the cookies for up to 3 months.
Cranberry Orange Cookies FAQ
Can cranberry orange cookie dough be stored?
Absolutely! You’ll need to chill the cookies dough in the fridge for 10 hours or in the freezer for 2 hours for the recipe itself. If you want long-term storage, wrap the cookie dough log in plastic wrap, then foil, and then place them into a gallon-sized food storage bag. Then you can freeze the dough for up to 3 months. Just thaw the cookie dough overnight in the fridge before slicing and baking.
Other Recipes You May like
- Chocolate Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
- Loaded Cookie Butter Snickerdoodles
- Slice & Bake Swedish Christmas Cookies
- Italian Ricotta Cookies
- Apple Cider Cookies
- Christmas Pinwheel Cookies
Cranberry Orange Icebox Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (see note)
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup dried cranberries finely chopped
- ¼ cup crystallized ginger finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 3 tablespoons green sanding sugar
- 3 tablespoons red sanding sugar
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar for 1 minute until pale and creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix to combine.
- At low speed, mix in the dry ingredients. Then the dried cranberries, ginger, and orange zest and mix until evenly combined.
- Form the cookie dough into a ball on a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a 10-inch log. (I like to have squared-off edges instead of a rounded dough log.)
- Wrap the cookie dough in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 10 hours. Or you can freeze it for 2 hours. (see note)
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper.
- Place the green sanding sugar onto a piece of waxed paper and unwrap one dough log. Roll the cookie dough into the colored sugar until completely coated on all sides. Repeat with the red sanding sugar and remaining cookie dough.
- Cut each dough log into 1/4-inch slices – you want 12 slices from each dough log. Place the slices onto the prepared cookie sheets about 2-inches apart.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes until the cookies are slightly golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack to room temperature.
Notes
- If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can substitute 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, and 1/4 tsp ground cloves.
- You can keep the cookie dough in the freezer for up to 3 months. Just add a layer of foil around the plastic wrap and then pop the logs into a gallon-sized food storage bag. Let the dough thaw overnight in the fridge before slicing and baking.
- You can store the baked cookies in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
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