CHERRY ALMOND SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Cherry Almond Shortbread Cookies are made with coconut, maraschino cherries & almonds! This recipe for almond shortbread cookies is buttery tender & simply made by slicing and baking.

These soft and delicate cherry shortbread cookies will quickly make their way into your heart and become your next go-to recipe. The almond and cherries in this treat produce wonderful flavor that compliment the subtle coconut, these almond cherry shortbread cookies are simply divine.

What Are Cherry Almond Coconut Shortbread Cookies?

It is not a cookie you will see on the grocery store shelf in premade packages, but it is one you can easily make in your own kitchen. With a jar of maraschino cherries, a little almond extract, and some coconut flakes you can easily make these slice and bake cookies with a little effort and patience. These unique cookies are a combination of flavors and textures that compliment each other so well, give them a try and see just how amazing they taste!

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS SHORTBREAD RECIPE

In case you were not convinced yet to give this recipe a try, here are a few more reasons to do so. 

• Amazing flavor. The combination of flavors is one you will not soon forget. The cherry mixed with the crunchy almonds and the coconut flakes, makes for an incredibly delicious treat.  
• Simple to make. This recipe is easy to make, don’t let the pictures fool you. They look like a lot of effort, but really they are so simple and come together quickly. They are worth it!
• Basic ingredients. Another great thing about this recipe is that most of the ingredients are probably already in your kitchen. Using pantry staple ingredients like sugar, flower, baking powder, and salt gets you half way to making these amazing cookies.

Cherry Almond Coconut Shortbread Cookies Ingredients

Butter: You need 1 cup of unsalted butter, softened, to create wonderfully rich tasting cookies. While these are better with unsalted butter, you can use salted butter and simply omit the requested salt in the recipe so that they don’t turn out too salty.

Sugar: Using 1/2 cup of granulated sugar in the cookie dough and a little bit of turbinado sugar for the topping, we get a sweet (but not too sweet) cookie that tastes great!

Maraschino cherries: Add 1/4 cup maraschino cherries, chopped, for bursts of flavor in every cookie.

Almond extract: Using 1 teaspoon of almond extract will add a depth of flavor in the cookies that is incredibly delicious.

Cherry extract (optional): This is an optional ingredient, but adding in 1/2 teaspoon of cherry extract really does make the cherry flavor more pronounced in the dough.

Flour: The base of the cookie dough is 2 cups of all-purpose flour.

Baking powder: Adding in 1 teaspoon of baking powder will help the cookies puff up during baking so that they are nice and pillowy.

Salt: To help balance all the wonderful flavors in this cookie, add in 1/4 teaspoon of salt. If you used salted butter, leave this measurement out.

Coconut flakes: Use 1 cup of sweetened coconut flakes to help add texture and sweetness to these amazing cookies.

Sliced almonds: Using 1 cup of sliced almonds on top of the cookies adds a nice appearance and crunch.

How to Make Cherry Almond Coconut Shortbread Cookies

Cookie dough

Start by creaming the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer, until the mixture is light and fluffy.

Then, add in the almond and cherry extract and mix again.

Next, add the flour, baking powder, and the salt and mix to combine. Continue to mix together until soft dough forms.

After that, stir in the chopped cherries and the coconut flakes until all the ingredients are well distributed.

Chill dough

Proceed to divide the dough in half and lay out on two pieces of wax paper. Continue to form each ball of dough into an 8 inch long log.

Wrap the dough logs in the wax paper and put in the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

Bake

After the dough has chilled and you are ready to start baking, start preheating the oven to 300 degrees F.

Pull the cookie dough out of the fridge, un-wrap and cut the dough logs into ¼ inch thick slices with a sharp knife.

Arrange the cookie slices on baking sheets lined with parchment at least 2 inches apart.

Sprinkle the tops of each cookies with turbinado sugar and a few slices of almonds.

Place in the preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until they are a pale golden color.

Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Serve and enjoy!

Can cherry almond shortbread cookies be made in advance?

You can make the cookie dough for this recipe up to a week in advance. It is perfect for allowing the cookie flavors to truly develop and for getting to enjoy baked cookies on a busy day by planning ahead.

Can I freeze cherry shortbread cookies?

Yes, these cookies can be frozen in dough form by wrapping the dough logs well and sticking in the freezer for up to 3 months. The cookie can also be frozen after they bake and are finished cooling.

Cherry Almond Shortbread Cookies are a delightfully soft and tender cookie that tastes amazing. This recipe for almond shortbread cookies is made with coconut flakes, cherries with almonds on top.