Thanksgiving recipe, this one is actually hard. I am not a huge Thanksgiving food fan, I know, I am super weird. I do just about everything to get out of eating turkey and dressing. And if we eat it at Thanksgiving, we definitely don't eat it at Christmas - we have been doing Mexican the past few Christmases with homemade tortillas, enchiladas, and rice and beans. but for a favorite recipe that we start making at Thanksgiving, it would have to be these cookies. We start making them at Thanksgiving and make several batches through Christmas.
Cranberry-Pistachio Shortbread
2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt (add more salt if using unsalted pistachios)
2 sticks unsalted butter , at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup salted or unsalted pistachios
1 cup dried cranberries
I used salted pistachios and Craisens; I loved the sweet and salty combination. I would recommend buying pre-shelled pistachios, it is worth the extra money. We bought the shelled kind when I made them last year and it was a huge pain! Also, I did not chop my pistachios or cranberries. When we sliced the cookies to bake, the knife cut right through the ingredients and this turned out perfectly.
In a large bowl, whisk the flour with the salt.
In the bowl of your stand mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter. Add the sugar and beat until smooth and creamy (about 3 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract, then gently stir in the flour mixture just until incorporated. (Add a couple tablespoons of milk if it seems dry) Fold in the chopped pistachios and dried cranberries, and make sure they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.
Divide the dough into two equal portions. Place each half on the center of a 14 inch (35 cm) length of parchment or wax paper. Smooth the dough into an evenly shaped rectangle that is about 10 inches (25 cm) long and 2 inches (5 cm) wide. Wrap the shaped logs tightly in wax paper, twist the ends to seal, and refrigerate for at least two hours, or up to three days. Dough can also be frozen for up to two months. If freezing, it is best to defrost the logs in the refrigerator overnight before slicing and baking.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Using a sharp knife, slice the logs into ¼ inch thick cookies, and place the cookies on the prepared sheets, (I placed the cookies very close together as I was out of parchment paper, they didn’t expand so this was fine). Bake on the center rack for about 15 – 20 minutes, or until the cookies are just beginning to brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
Recipe makes about 45 cookies and they taste great with a glass of milk or a cup of coffee in the morning!
You guys, I made them and they were so yummy and Christmasy looking. They're all red and green. And super easy. I'll be making these again. Thanks for sharing, guys! So, speaking of the Leos family, they have had an awesome week on Give1 Save1. You guys must be feeling extra generous with the holidays and everything. The week is coming to a close, so if you haven't made a donation to help bring those babies home (for some tasty cookies), then go ahead and do it now. Before you spend all your money on Black Friday craziness! ;) You guys have an awesome weekend. I'm outta here. Lindsay's kicking off Christmas tomorrow. You remember Lindsay, right? Well, she's a Give1 blogger now. She's actually already done a few posts on family updates. So give a warm welcome to Lindsay, who'll be sharing some fun Christmas pins tomorrow!!! See ya next week.
Lots of Love,
Beth
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