Vegan Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies

These Vegan Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies are buttery, nutty, and tart with a touch of sweetness. They’d be great dipped in some chocolate or dusted with powdered sugar!

Originally published on November 15, 2020 and updated on November 11, 2022.

Why You’ll Love these Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies

Is it time for holiday baking yet? I love the start of winter because it means cozy days spent cooking up good food and baking up sweet treats in the kitchen. Cranberries are a classic winter flavor, so today I thought I would pair them with almonds in shortbread form. 

These vegan cranberry almond shortbread cookies are perfect for holiday baking. They make a great, festive Christmas cookie!

• Perfect for Holiday and Christmas Baking

• Only 6 Ingredients

• Easy Recipe with Step by Step Photos

The Ingredients:

Shortbread is great because it requires very few ingredients. Shortbread originates from Scotland and typically contains 3 ingredients: butter, flour, and sugar. 

To make these cookies vegan friendly, I’m substituting Earth Balance, Violife Plant Butter or Country Crock Plant Butter. The main ingredients in this recipe are:

• Salted Vegan Butter

• Powdered Sugar

• All Purpose Flour

• Almond Extract

• Chopped Almonds

• Fresh Cranberries

• Optional- Vanilla Extract

Helpful Equipment

• Cooking Sheet or Baking Tray
• Food Processor
• Mixing Bowl
• Sharp Knife

Step by Step Instructions

*Exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below!*

STEP 1: Cream the room temperature vegan butter together with the powdered sugar. 

STEP 2: You’ll then add in the flour and almond extract. At this point, the dough should have a very crumbly appearance (see the image below). This is totally okay! The dough will come together once you start shaping it.

STEP 3: Next, you’ll fold in the chopped fresh cranberries and almonds. You’ll want to mix these in until they’re well distributed throughout the dough. At this point, the dough should still be a crumbly mixture.

STEP 4: With your hands, you’ll shape the dough into a loose ball and transfer it to a lightly floured surface. 

📌 TIP: I found it helpful to loosely wrap the dough with some plastic wrap at this point. 

STEP 5: You can use the plastic wrap to roll the dough into a log that is about 12 inches long (and about 2 inches in diameter). Then, you’ll wrap up the dough and chill it for at least 30 minutes.

📌 TIP: This step is important because it makes it easier to slice the log into individual cookies! If you don’t chill the dough, it will be too crumbly to slice. I made my dough the night before and let it chill overnight. 

You could also make this dough a few days in advance and keep it tightly wrapped in the fridge until you’re ready to bake the cookies.

STEP 6: After chilling, you can slice the log into discs about 1/2 an inch wide. 

STEP 7: You’ll then bake them for a short 10 minutes. 

Serving

Let the shortbread cookies cool for 10 minutes before enjoying! The cookies will be slightly soft while still hot, but they firm up after cooling completely.

Dust the cookies with powdered sugar, dip them in dairy free white chocolate or enjoy with a glass of plant milk.

Storage

You can store these cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days (although they’re better the fresher they are). 

You can also easily freeze these cookies in an airtight freezer bag. I know I currently have some in my freezer for those late-night cravings!

Helpful Tips for Vegan Shortbread

• Use room temperature vegan butter and not cold or melted butter! This will help give us the crumbly texture that shortbread is known for.

• Chill the dough so it’s easier to work with.

• Make sure the cranberries and almonds are finely chopped.

More Holiday Baking Ideas:

• Vegan Spiced Orange Tea Bundt Cake
• Cranberry Orange Waffles
• Vegan Brown Sugar Grapefruit Donuts
• Peppermint Mocha Cookies
• Classic Vegan Snickerdoodles
• Vegan Panettone
• Cherry Almond Bonbon Cookies
• Vegan Gingerbread Cookies

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