Pretty in Pink

♬pretty in pink isn't she
pretty in pink
isn't she♬♬

It took me a quarter of century to finally get all the fuss about pink... Both my childhood and teenage years went by without fluffy pink dresses or girly bedrooms, to my mom's disappointment! Perhaps because red was my favourite colour, I always felt that any attempt to match the palette left a sense of betrayal. No pink. No news if I tell you this song by Psychedelic Furs "Pretty in Pink", that I've been singing since I baked these cookies, couldn't really change my mind and the movie, that one, completely missed me. Pretty in pink isn't she / pretty in pink / isn't she



Cranberry Orange Cookies
Lightly adapted from "Australian Women's Weekly" Cookies & Biscuits

Makes 30-45

2 cups (300 grs) plain (all-purpose) flour
200 gr unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup (165 grs) golden caster sugar
1 large egg
1 Tbsp orange zest
1/2 cup (80 gr) dried cranberries, chopped

Cream butter, egg and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until combined. Mix in orange zest, sifted flour and chopped dried cranberries, in two batches. Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth. Halve dough, and shape into disks. Wrap each disk in plastic. Refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough between sheets of baking paper until 5 mm thick.

Preheat oven to 180ºC (350°F). Line oven trays with baking paper (or use a silicone sheet). Cut cookies with different cutters (I used a flower shaped cookie cutter). Place apart from each others on trays. Bake cookies about 10 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Cookies are good on their own, sprinkled with fine sanding sugar or with fondant icing. For the fondant lightly beat 1 egg white, add 240 gr (1 1/2 cups) icing sugar, 2 tsp plain flour (sifted) and 2 tsp orange juice (or water) in two times. Add 2 drops red food colouring, and mix. Using a metal spatula, spread the icing quickly over cookies. Place half a cranberry on each flower. Set at room temperature.

These Cranberry Orange Cookies are my entry for season 3 of Eat Christmas Cookies, organized for the third consecutive year by Susan of Food Blogga. You can check all the cookies entered here, and find the perfect christmas cookie recipe.