For some, it wouldn’t be Christmas without baking something with cranberries. They’re colorful, tangy, and good for you to boot. These Cranberry Orange Pinwheel Cookies are great to bring to a holiday cookie exchange. The dough can be prepared days ahead of time, which is nice.
I like to use cranberries in decorating as well as baking. If you’re entertaining, save some cranberries to make this cute candle holder. I snipped some greens from a shrub in my front yard, layered with cranberries, and added water so they floated to the top. Next, I added a tealight candle and a little red baker’s twine. So simple, yet very frugal and pretty!
Frugal Tip: Many people don’t realize that fresh cranberries can be frozen. Cranberries are in season right now, so buy them on sale and freeze them for later!
This was originally posted here: 25 Days of Christmas Treats
- 1½ C. flour
- ¼ tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ½ C. butter, at room temperature
- ¾ C. sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ⅓ C. finely chopped fresh cranberries
- ½ C. finely chopped pecans
- 1 Tbsp. freshly grated orange zest
- In a bowl, combine the first three dry ingredients. Set aside.
- Next, cream the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla together. Add dry ingredients until mixture forms a dough. Refrigerate one hour or more.
- In a small bowl, combine cranberries, pecans and orange zest.
- On a floured surface, roll the dough to a 10″ square. Sprinkle the cranberry/pecan mixture onto the dough, leaving about an inch on each of the ends. Press into dough slightly, then roll in a jelly-roll fashion. Wrap in wax paper and freeze 4 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375. Slice the dough in ¼″ rounds and place on a parchment-covered cookie sheet. Bake approximately 13-15 minutes or until lightly browned on top.
