Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Oatmeal cookies are cookies that deliver on being quick, easy to make, cozy and so delicious. My Oatmeal Coconut Cookies and Iced Oatmeal Cookies are my current favorites on the blog.  I am so excited to add these chewy cranberry oatmeal cookies to the blog. 

• Layers of flavors and textures. The soft, chewy and buttery cookie dough filled with cozy oats, sweet brown sugar and sweet and tart dried cranberries are a flavorful delight.
• Perfect for a holiday cookie swap. Not only are these cozy cranberry oat cookies easy to make, they are also beautiful and hold up really well in both taste and appearance. They make the perfect festive cookie for your holiday cookie swaps.

This recipe for cranberry oat cookies requires only a handful of simple ingredients to make and you probably already have them in your pantry and fridge.  Here’s what you’ll need.

• Dry Ingredients: Gather all purpose flour, baking soda, salt and old fashioned oats. 
• Wet Ingredients: Gather unsalted butter, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, an egg and an egg yolk, vanilla extract and sweetened dried cranberries.

These oatmeal cookies with cranberries are as easy to make as they are delicious. Here are my recommended substitutions to make these chewy cookies with cranberries and oats if you need them.

• All purpose flour: Make these cookies, gluten free by using a good 1-1 gluten free flour. I recommend using the one from Bob’s Red Mill. Measure based off weight (270 g) rather than cup for cup. 
• Baking Soda: This helps the make the cookies chewy and puff a bit and also spread. If needed, replace the baking soda with 2 teaspoons of double acting baking powder. Please note that the final texture will be different.
• Ground Cinnamon: This is optional, but recommended for flavor. Feel free to omit or replace with another ground spice such as nutmeg, cloves or all spice.
• Unsalted Butter: Vegan butter or plant based can also be used in place of regular unsalted butter.
• Granulated Sugar and Light Brown Sugars: Maple sugar would also work well to make this refined sugar free. 
• Egg and Yolk: This recipe has not been tested without eggs. 
• Vanilla Extract: This is more for background flavor and nicely enhances the flavors of the other ingredients. 
• Old Fashioned Oats: Quick cooking or steel cut oats are not recommended for this cookie recipe. 
• Dried Cranberries: I personally love using craisins for this oatmeal and cranberry cookie recipe. Feel free to use your preferred dried cranberries. Fresh or frozen cranberries can also work in this recipe. If you choose to use frozen cranberries, do not add them until right before scooping and baking the cookie dough.

Variations

• Brown Butter Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies: Melt 1 cup (226g) butter on low heat. Allow the melted butter to begin to foam. Once it starts to foam, whisk or stir the liquid butter frequently. The butter will begin to smell nutty and very fragrant. Once the foam has subsided, the butter should have some brown, lightly toasted bits floating at the bottom. Pour the brown butter in a heat safe bowl to cool for about 15 minutes at room temperature. Transfer to the fridge to chill another 45 - 60 minutes. The butter should be almost resolidified or the same consistency as room temperature butter. Follow the rest of the recipe as written. 
• Optional mix-ins: Feel free to add up to 1 cup chopped nuts such as pecans or walnuts or white chocolate chips at the same time as the dried cranberries.

Learn how to make cranberry oatmeal cookies in a few easy steps.

1. In a mixing bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon and salt until well combined. Set aside for now. 
2. Slice the butter into tablespoon sized pieces. Place them in a microwave safe bowl. Heat the butter in 15 second increments until the butter is softened around the edges, but not melted. This usually takes 30 seconds total if using cold butter. Transfer the softened butter into a large mixing bowl fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the light brown sugar and granulated sugar.  Mix the butter and sugars on medium speed for 2 - 3 minutes or until the butter and sugars are well combined. On low, cream in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract until smooth and well combined. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients into the wet a little at a time. Mix until just combined. Gently fold in the dried cranberries and oats until well combined. Cover the cookie dough and transfer to the fridge to chill for 30 minutes - 2 hours.

3. Preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C) for about 30 minutes before baking the cookies. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a medium cookie scoop (2 tablespoons, 30 ml), scoop the oatmeal and cranberry cookie dough into balls and place them onto the lined baking sheet about 3 inches (8 cm) apart. 
4. Bake the oat cranberry cookies at 375 F (190 C) for 10 - 12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are set and are a light golden brown. The center of the cookies will be slightly puffed up. Reshape any cookies using a biscuit or cookie cutter slightly wider than the cookie. Place the cutter over the cookies so the edges of the cookie are inside the cookie/ biscuit cutter. In a circular motion, gently nudge the edges back into a round shape. Cool the chewy cranberry and oatmeal cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely to room temperature and enjoy.

Other Cranberry Recipes to Try 

• Cranberry Bread
• Cranberry Orange Muffins
• Cranberry Cheesecake

If you try this Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies recipe please rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Doing so helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to bake. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using @olivesnthyme so I can see what you’re baking! - M