Eggless Cranberry Orange Cookies

Somebody could not wait to put the Christmas tree up, and so we did. Yesterday. We are still in the process of decorating it. It is a little too early, I know, but sometimes we just have give in to the little one's enthusiasm. We have already started our holiday baking, so why not start decorating as well. That gives us something do when the nasty weather keeps us cooped up inside.

We kicked off our Holiday Baking with some Cookie Cups last week and this week we made some Cranberry-Orange Cookies. 

Ingredients: (Yield about 18 small ones)

• Flour - 1 Cup + 1 tbsp
• Butter - 1 stick or 1/2 Cup, unsalted, at room temperature
• Granulated Sugar -  7 tbsp
• Dried Cranberry - 1/2 Cup
• Orange Zest - 1/2 tsp
• Vanilla - 1/2 tsp
• A pinch of salt
• Cornstarch - 1/2 tbsp
• Water - 1 tbsp

In a bowl, using a electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. In a small bowl, make a paste of the cornstarch and water - I used this mixture as an egg substitute. Add the cornstarch mixture, orange zest, vanilla extract and salt to creamed butter and sugar and mix well. Add the flour little by little and mix well to form a crumbly mix. Gently fold in the cranberries. Use your hands to bring everything together and form 2 logs of dough. Refrigerate the logs of dough for at least 2 hours. I had prepared the dough the night before and kept it in the fridge overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a sharp knife, cut discs from the chilled logs of dough. Place the discs on the lined cookie sheet about an inch apart and bake for 12-15 minutes till the cookies start turning golden brown on the edges. Take the cookie sheet out of the oven and let the cookies cool before you move them. 

These will stay fresh for 3-4 days in an airtight container.