Friday, November 19, 2010

Cranberry Pecan Cookies with Orange Glaze


I make tons of Christmas cookies every year and I try and rotate the flavors, but sometimes there is one cookie no one will let you leave off the rotation.  If I left these cookies out of the tins; I don't think I'd ever hear the end of it from my husbands' Uncle Stan.  Every time I see him; he reminds me how much he likes these.

I always hand deliver the cookies, but one year I went to Uncle Stan & Aunt Ladybugs house and no one was home. (Yes that is their names, cute huh!)  I left the tin on the doorstep and figured they would find it when they got home.  They had heard from others that I delivered cookies and were feeling a little left out that they didn't get any.  Once I heard of this, I dropped them off another package.  A couple of days later Aunt Ladybug calls me and says, "I found the tin in the backyard, the dog must of gotten them!"  We both laughed.  Maybe it was really Uncle Stan who got to them.


Cranberry Pecan Cookies
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup milk
2 tbsp. fresh orange juice
1 large egg
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
2 cups frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped
1 cup pecans, chopped or ground

Orange Glaze
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
Zest from 1 orange
2 tbsp. fresh orange juice
Pinch salt

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.  To a mixer add sugars and butter, beat on medium speed till combined.  Add the milk, orange juice, and egg and mix till combined.  Add in flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda, and mix till combined.  Stir in the cranberries and nuts.

Tip:  I've made the cookies enough to know the easiest way to deal with the cranberries is to dump half of a bag in a blender and process a couple of times until they are chopped.  Fresh cranberries are only available for a short time, so I will buy a few extra bags and keep them in the freezer so we can enjoy these cookies whenever.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto cookie sheets lined with parchment.



Bake 11-13 minutes.  Let cool.  I like to use parchment here because you can let the cookies cool on the parchment, frost them on the paper, remove and you will have less mess to clean up.

Melt butter in pan, add orange zest, orange juice, salt and powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth.  I like to put my glaze in a small pitcher and drizzle over cookies.


Tip:  To store cookies, I like plastic storage containers.  I put one row of cookies, a layer of wax paper and layer the cookies that way; otherwise they will stick together.


Enjoy, 

Gina

34 comments:

  1. Yum!!! Lucky uncle Stan and aunt ladybug! Would love to try these!

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  2. Wowza...these look FAB!! I love the combo of orange and cranberries. I hardly ever bake cookies, but might have to make an exception for these!! I'm posting a nut recipe with orange and cranberry flavor tomorrow...

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  3. Yum, Sounds deeeelicious! And I bet it was uncle Stan. He probably didn't want to share and then blamed the poor dog! hahaha

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  4. Wow those cookies look so good but that orange glaze knocks it outta the park! I have so many cranberries right now - this could be a great use. Love it!

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  5. orange glaze is my absolute favorite. It goes well with anything, I swear.

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  6. Oh, I need cranberries so I can make these. They look delicious. I'm not a cranberry sauce/compote kind of person, but I LOVE cranberry in baked goods.

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  7. Deliciousness!! Your photographs of the cookies made me so hungry just now :) Btw - it was great meeting you at FoodBuzz - I look forward to reading your future posts! Please do stay in touch :)

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  8. Oh Gina these cookies look like cookies you buy at a gourmet cookie shop. I can see why Uncle Stan doesn't want you to leave these out of the rotation. I'm putting them on my Christmas cookie baking list.

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  9. These really look perfect to add to my cookie plate; love anything with cranberries. Great photos.

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  10. Oh man, those look delicious! I may have to make those or at least try a low carb version. Beautiful pictures, too!

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  11. Do not, I repeat, do NOT leave these off the rotation! These cookies are just too gorgeous not to have during the festive season, Gina. I love the combination of flavors your put together, I just know they blend in extremely well!

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  12. Gina
    those cookies look outrageous!!! wow, I want to go right in the kitchen and make them right now!!

    Hope your weekend is going well!
    Dennis

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  13. Gosh, Gina, you are killing me with those sexy looking cookies, esp. the first picture...oh man..that's something!

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  14. Hi Gina,
    These cookies look so appealing! I can see why they are so popular...and why sweet Uncle Sam loves them so much. I am saving these to try next week. Thank you for sharing, dear. I hope you have a beautiful Sunday!

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  15. Oh my word Gina, can I seriously have a dozen of those please?! They look soooooo good. I LOVE pecans and I LOVE cranberries. YUM!!! :)

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  16. Gina these look fantastic! I love cranberries with orange. What a lovely recipe, Are you ready for Thanksgiving?;)

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  17. Cake Duchess, I wish, I'm going to start doing my grocery shopping tomm!

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  18. Since I've started my blog, my mom has gotten in the habit of browsing and following blogs as well. She was RAVING about the thought of these cranberry pecan cookies when we were talking yesterday, and I was hoping to stumble upon them when I finally took the time to sit down and catch up on blogs. So glad I did...these look amazing!

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  19. Love the cranberries peeping out from the gorgeous cookies. Lovely pictures.

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  20. Gina-Perfect yummy holiday cookies. I love the orange glaze topping. Beautiful photos, as well!

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  21. All these cranberry recipes popping up all over the place! The flavors in these cookies sound wonderfully festive

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  22. What a cute story about the lost tin of cookies and how personal of you to hand deliver your cookies.

    I just know hubby will love these cranberry cookies...and I luv it too with the pecans! Thanks for sharing and have a great holiday. ;)

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  23. Oooh, that glaze looks awesome! What a great combo of flavors. Yum!

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  24. I can't say that I blame the dog ;) These are amazing!

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  25. These look very delicious and I love the orange glaze!

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  26. Wow Gina these look good, anything with cranberries has my interest. I also love the glaze with citrus flavor- a nice compliment to the cranberries;)

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  27. I love cranberries in baked goods. Your cookies look amazing. I made a similar cookie, but yours look much better. Next time I will make these.

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  28. I still have some cranberries in the freezer, so I'm thinking I'll have to bake these. Yum!!

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  29. Wow, I love the flavor and texture combinations of your cookies! Sound and look perfectly delicious. Thanks for entering your creation to the March's Culinary Smackdown Battle. Best of luck! :)

    Amy
    http://utry.it

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  30. Think maybe it's Auntie Ladybug who is hiding the cookies? hehe I know I'd hide them--they wouldn't last long around here!

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  31. YUM! these are fantastic Gina! was hoping you would post the recipe to them soon! Had some cranberries left over that I was just wondering what to do with. I will wonder no more :)

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  32. I love these. L-O-V-E! What a keeper recipe! You rock! And I love that you have an Aunt Ladybug. :)

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  33. Thanks Katty, glad you liked them and yes I love having an Aunt Ladybug too.

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