catch up: cranberry clementine shortbread

in the madness that is november and december, while i did have time to cook and great intentions to post, i didn't quite make it. and why shouldn't we have cranberries all winter long?

i have a confession. i made this before thanksgiving. at the start of the holiday hubbub. back when pumpkin and cranberries were a novelty and we were patiently waiting for the first snowfall.

now that the holidays are over - turkeys have been carved, packages unwrapped, trees put away, and champagne glasses clanked - life goes back to normal. whatever that means.

and let's not forget the cranberry, even though it's real time to shine - sitting beside a big hunk of turkey on my thanksgiving and christmas plate, is gone. the shortbread is the perfect sweet & tart combination.

cranberry clementine shortbread
adapted from a singleton in the kitchen, who adapted it from dorie greenspan's Baking From My Home to Yours

30 min prep, 30 min chill, 45 min bake; makes 12 wedges

for the filling:
2 clementines, zested and juiced
12 ounces cranberries
1 cup sugar

for the shortbread:
13 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup plus 2 teaspoons sugar

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1. make the filling. add the clementine zest & juice, cranberries, and sugar into a saucepan over medium heat. bring to a boil, stirring frequently. stir almost constantly and cook until the cranberries pop and your spoon leaves tracks, about 5 minutes. scrap the filling into a bowl to cool to room temperature.
2. make the shortbread. beat the butter and sugar with a mixer until fluffy. turn the mixer down to low and add the egg and yolk. mix in the vanilla. mix in the baking powder and slowly mix in the flour until incorporated. turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and divide in half. form each half into a flat disc and wrap in plastic wrap. chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
3. preheat your oven to 350F. lightly butter a 9 inch springform pan. take one of the dough discs and either roll it out to about the size of the pan or use your fingers to spread it out across the bottom of the pan. either way, the bottom should be covered with a layer of dough.
4. cover the layer of dough with the cooled fruit filling. spread the filling out evenly.
5. unwrap the second dough disc and roll out the same size as the pan. place the dough on top of the fruit filling.
6. bake for 30-40 minutes, until the top is light golden brown and a skewer comes out clean.
7. let cool about 20 minutes, then run a knife around the outside edge of the shortbread and remove the side of the pan. let cool completely. if you don't, the fruit filling is screaming hot and will burn your mouth off.