• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Barbara Bakes™
  • Home
  • About
  • Info
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • Breads
  • Breakfast
  • Dessert
    • Cakes
    • Cookies
    • Ice Cream
    • Pastry
    • All Desserts »
  • Main Dishes
    • Beef
    • Chicken
    • Pork
    • Pasta
    • Meatless
    • All Main Dishes »
  • Side Dishes
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Baking Tips
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • About
    • Recipes
    • Baking Tips
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Dessert » Cookies

    4th of July Lemon Cranberry Shortbread Cookies

    Published by Melissa on June 17, 2014 | Updated June 10, 2022 | 17 Comments

    Pin
    Share
    Tweet
    Jump to Recipe

    4th of July Lemon Cranberry Shortbread Cookies

    These easy-to-make, red, white and blue star-shaped cookies for the 4th of July are a sandy, crumbly shortbread cookie studded with dried cranberries, covered in a tart lemon glaze and topped with fun red, white, and blue stripes.  

    A fun change from a traditional cut out cookie. These melt-in-your mouth cookies are made with a shortbread cookie dough, and have a tart lemon flavor from the lemon zest in the cookie and a tart lemon glaze on top. I diced the dried cranberries before I added them to the dough, so it was easier to roll out and cut in to a fun star shapes.

    4th of July Lemon Cranberry Shortbread Cookies

    My husband added the sprinkles (sanding sugar) to the cookies while I iced them. We tried adding the sprinkles in a variety of ways. I think the vertical stripes ended up being our favorite.

    These cookies came together quickly and easily, and would be a perfect addition to any 4th of July party.

    4th of July Lemon Cranberry Shortbread Cookies
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe
    No ratings yet

    4th of July Lemon Cranberry Shortbread Cookies

    Cook Time12 mins
    Total Time12 mins
    Course: Cookies
    Author: Barbara Schieving
    Prevent your screen from going to sleep

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups all-purpose flour
    • ¼ cup cornstarch
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
    • ½ cup powdered sugar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 tablespoon lemon zest
    • 1 cup dried cranberries finely chopped
    • 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
    • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

    Instructions

    • In a small bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch and salt and set aside.
    • In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in vanilla and lemon zest. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients until well blended. Mix in the dried cranberries.
    • Shape the dough in to a flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate one hour.
    • Preheat oven to 350º.
    • On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to ¼ inch thick. Cut the dough in to desired shapes. Place the cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets or cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
    • Bake until lightly browned on the bottom about 10-12 minutes. Don't over bake. Cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet and then remove to a wire rack to cool.
    • Icing
    • Whisk together powdered sugar and lemon juice to create a thin glaze. Spread the icing on the cooled cookies and decorate with sprinkles as desired.

    And if you’re looking for a fun way to start the day on the 4th of July, try my popular 4th of July Muffins.

    4th-of-July-Muffins-Barbara-Bakes

    Pin
    Share
    Tweet
    « BLT Breakfast Sandwich
    Cherry Almond Cheesecake Twists »
    about us

    About Melissa & Barbara

    As of June 2022 Melissa Griffiths now is the one adding recipes. So think of it as Barbara Bakes, and Melissa too! Melissa and Barbara have been blogging friends for over 10 years and when Barbara was ready to retire and spend more time with her family, Melissa took over the site. Read more...

      • Facebook
      • Instagram
      • Pinterest
      • Twitter

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




    1. Jessica @ Sweet Menu

      June 20, 2014 at 12:23 am

      I just love how versatile shortbread is! These look so pretty and I love the lemon cranberry flavours!

      Reply
    2. Maureen

      June 19, 2014 at 7:12 pm

      Perfect for the 4th of July (or any other day if you ask me). It’s the middle of winter on the 4th of July for me now but I always put the flag bandanna on the dog and head to the tourist beach for a stroll. It’s amazing how many holidaying Americans say Happy 4th of July to the dog. 🙂

      Reply
    3. 2 Sisters Recipes

      June 19, 2014 at 10:57 am

      You come up with the most amazing recipes for cookies, cakes and everything else. I love a shortbread cookie and with two ingredients that we adore, lemon and cranberries, what could be better? Have a great week Barbara.

      Reply
    4. Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella

      June 19, 2014 at 1:55 am

      Happy 4th of July coming up for you mum! 😀 xxx

      Reply
    5. Rocky Mountain Woman

      June 18, 2014 at 4:57 pm

      They look so festive! I’ll have to make some for my grandkids…

      Reply
    6. Claire @ Claire K Creations

      June 18, 2014 at 3:20 am

      Mmm lemon and shortbread combined sounds delicious Barbara!

      Reply
    7. Angie (@angiesrecipess)

      June 17, 2014 at 9:00 pm

      These shortbread cookies look so very beautiful!

      Reply
    8. Shannon @ Bake.Frost.Repeat

      June 17, 2014 at 7:21 pm

      I love shortbread AND I loved that they are iced. They are so festive and cute as well.

      Reply
    9. Melissa @ My Recent Favorite books

      June 17, 2014 at 4:41 pm

      I love cookies like this! =)

      Reply
    10. Sherry

      June 17, 2014 at 4:14 pm

      Barbara, these look awesome!
      About how many did the batch make?

      Reply
    11. Sherry

      June 17, 2014 at 3:57 pm

      Barbara, these look awesome! How many did the batch make?

      Reply
      • Barbara Schieving

        June 17, 2014 at 4:15 pm

        Thanks Sherry – about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

        Reply
    12. Carol at Wild Goose Tea

      June 17, 2014 at 2:52 pm

      I had to pin this recipe. My favorite cookies are shortbread. And my personal symbol is a star, after the meaning of my middle name. So these cookies are MINE. Smiles—-

      Reply
    13. Maggie Unzueta @ Mama Maggie's Kitchen

      June 17, 2014 at 10:48 am

      I have a 4th of July bbq every year. LOVE these cookies.

      Reply
    14. Ami@NaiveCookCooks

      June 17, 2014 at 10:28 am

      I love shortbread cookies. These look awesome!!

      Reply
    15. Rosa

      June 17, 2014 at 9:36 am

      Pretty and festive!

      Cheers,

      Rosa

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Welcome!

    Melissa and Barbara smiling

    Baking made easy! Sharing fabulous recipes for cookies, cakes, pies, breads and more. Barbara Bakes (and Melissa too!) Recipes from both of our kitchens to yours.

    Learn More »

    Popular Posts

    Featured Image for post Old Fashioned Buttermilk Donuts

    Old Fashioned Buttermilk Donuts

    Featured Image for post Easy To Make Naan - Indian Flatbread

    Easy To Make Naan – Indian Flatbread

    German-Chocolate-Cake-Barbara-Bakes

    Easy 5-Ingredient German Chocolate Cake

    Air fryer french fries sitting next to a cup of dipping sauce

    Garlic Parmesan Air Fryer French Fries

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    SEEN ON

    as seen on promo graphic

    SEEN ON

    as seen on promo graphic

    About

    • Home
    • About
    • Contact
    • Press

    Browse

    • Recipe Index
    • Popular
    • Baking Tips
    • Travel

    Subscribe

    • Newsletter
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

    As an Amazon affiliate, and affiliate with other businesses, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2022 barbarabakes.com. All rights reserved. DISCLOSURE - PRIVACY POLICY.