Chewy, moist, and delicious cranberry cookies loaded with chocolate! Fresh cranberries give these yummy cookies a refreshing tangy flavor which perfectly contrasts with chocolate and cinnamon spice. These fresh Cranberry Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies are great for holiday baking and Christmas cookie exchanges.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…so the song goes and that’s why I was inspired to finally make some holiday cookies!
Without much further ado – here’s a cookie that’s chewy, sweet with a hint of cinnamon, and with the refreshing taste of fresh cranberries all rolled into one delicious Cranberry Choco Chip Cookies! Perfect for the holidays and as a lovely gift for family and friends!
I remember vividly that Christmas season when one of the members of our church who, while he always acknowledged my presence when we saw each other, rarely spoke to me (hardly ever), and yet that one Sunday he sought me and came to me and complimented me about these cookies!
He said he really loved the taste of the cookies, especially the fresh cranberries, and wanted his wife to have the recipe so she could make it for him. Aww.
That’s when I knew the cookies really were delicious and that they made such an impact on him; he had to speak to me about it. I will never forget that day and every Christmas I remember that sweet old man for his kind words. He’s now gone to be with the Lord but his sweet compliments, I will not forget.
If you’re making this over the summer, you can replace the cranberries with fresh or dried cherries.
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Now let’s go to the step-by-step process on how to make these delightful cookies. It’s really not that hard.
First, you mix all the dry ingredients together (flour, spices, salt and oatmeal).
Then in a mixing bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract just until combined. My butter was already melted when I combined it with the other ingredients that’s why it looks liquidy in the photo below (I was in a hurry and had to melt them instead).
However, room temperature (softened) butter is so much better to use because the cookies would be more chewy and moist. If the butter is just softened it will only melt while in the oven hence the cookies retain more moisture. The taste will be the same either way though.
Then you add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Mix well just until all the ingredients are moistened.
Fold in the chopped cranberries and chocolate chips. Drop the mixture by rounded tablespoons onto the greased cookie sheets. A small cookie scooper (tablespoon size) is so helpful for this.
I used a large one in my first attempt as the photos show. Also, do not flatten the cookies as they would expand while baking. Do not overtake.
Once you’re done let cookies stand for 5 minutes before you transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. They will be quite soft so you need to let them sit a bit.
Makes about 4 dozen smaller cookies if you are using a rounded tablespoon. I used a large ice cream scoop the first time so I only managed to make about 2 dozen but the cookies were huge.
Perfect Christmas cookies in my opinion. Chewy, moist and delicious! Enjoy!
If you like what you see and would like to receive new recipe updates, we’d love you to subscribe to our posts or join our site. Needless to say, we’d love you to like us on Facebook and Instagram, too where you can get more recipes and updates. Thanks and happy browsing!
Fresh Cranberry Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 cups rolled oats or quick-cooking oats
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened or at room temp (if using salted butter lessen the salt to 1/2 tsp)
- 1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or morsels
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare two cookie sheets. Line them with parchment paper. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Add the oats to the flour mixture and mix well.
- In a mixing bowl, beat together the softened butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract just until combined.
- Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Mix well until all the ingredients are moistened through.
- Fold in the chopped cranberries and chocolate chips. Evenly distribute the cranberries and chocolate so the cookies come out beautifully dotted with red and brown colors. Drop the mixture by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets. A cookie scooper is so helpful for this so use it if you have one for equal measurements. Do not flatten the cookies. Bake for 10-11 minutes or just until lightly browned. Do not overbake.
- Let stand for 5 minutes before you transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. They will be quite soft so you need to let them sit a bit. Makes between 48 (or at least 4 dozen) cookies if you are using a rounded tablespoon. I initially used a large ice cream scoop the first time I made this so I only managed to make about 2 dozen but the cookies were huge. (See photos for reference).
Last updated on October 2nd, 2024 at 03:21 pm
The cookies not only look good, but so does the photography! I love every thing you make!
Thanks for linking up to Foodie Friends Friday. So glad you came by with your wonderful recipe! See you next week!
Thanks, Cynthia! I truly love Foodie Friends Friday! Always look forward to it! 🙂
I love all of the flavors you have combined in these cookies. I am hosting a great giveaway on Dining With Debbie. (1) $50 gift certificate to my favorite jeweler robinsonlane.com and (2) a signed copy of Arkansas Pie: A Slice of the Natural State written by fellow blogger, Kat Robinson. I would love for you to come enter Merry Merry Munchies and the rafflecopter entry. I think you would enjoy either one of these prizes. http://diningwithdebbie.blogspot.com/2012/11/2012-merry-merry-munchies-3-baked.html
Thanks, Debbie! Glad you like the cookies! Will check out your site! 🙂
Thank you for sharing these with our FFF Cookie Party! What a great combination! Sharing on my Walking on Sunshine FB page this afternoon at 3:00! Come back to VOTE on Sunday!
Thanks, Lois! Very sweet of you to do that. 🙂
Your pictures are beautiful! Those cookies are perfect! Thanks for sharing on Foodie Friends Friday!
Awww! Thank you so much for your kind words. Thanks for stopping by here, too! 🙂
These cookies are my new favorite! The combo of cranberries and chocolate chips is perfect!!
I love the combo of the cranberries with the chocolate chips. These will look fantastic on a Christmas cookie platter!
Totally love the flavor combination in these cranberry choco chip cookies! I think I’ll give them as gifts this year!
Love these cranberry cookies! Have been eating them non stop! 🙂
What a great idea for cranberry cookies! I can’t wait to try this.
These look DELICIOUS!!!! Could I use rehydrate dried cranberries in place of fresh? Thank you!!!
Author
Sure, I think that should be fine. Fresh is better because of the tanginess the cranberries impart but the rehydrated cranberries should work, too.
Great recipe! Thanks for sharing- great way to get fresh crans into the diet.
Author
So glad you enjoyed this! Thanks for letting us know. This is my favorite holiday cookie for sure.
They are delicious, I just them out of the oven. How well do they keep and for how long? Is refrigeration needed, can they be frozen?
Author
I don’t refrigerate them if I’m eating them in the next couple of days but if you’re thinking an extended length of time then simply freeze for up to 2-3 months. Glad you liked them!
Can the raw dough be frozen? I’d love to have them readily available in the freezer to bake fresh when I’m in the mood.
Author
Yes. Do it this way. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Once the dough is chilled, drop heaping tablespoons (or however you like the size of the cookies – refer to recipe) onto the baking sheet as if you were going to bake them. Place the baking sheet in the freezer for about an hour, until frozen. Once they’re set, place the individual dough balls into a freezer-safe plastic bag and write the date. Frozen cookie dough will keep for about 3 months.
Do they taste about the same with no chocolate?
Author
It will be better with chocolate because its sweetness provides contrast with the tart cranberries. If you cannot have it, it may still work but may not taste the same. Let me know if you try it. Thank you!
I wanted to let you know your tripled and double measurements are wrong. You have 1 and 1/2 sticks of butter for all three. Even though you give the correct measurement in cups you have the amount of actual sticks incorrect. I looked just at the amount of sticks needed and realized it was not correct. Thank you! They are delicious cookies.
Author
Hi Lisa! For the sake of my American audience I added the sticks but since it’s not the original measurement or a measurement by itself (just a helpful guide) it will not automatically translate like the cups. I will just delete it so it’s not confusing. Perhaps it’s easier to just retain the cups. Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
These cookies are delicious! I just made them as I had bags of fresh cranberries in the freezer. My only question is my cookies were not puffy like the picture. I used softened butter and did not flatten them. Is there a trick to them being puffier? Thx!
Author
Glad you enjoyed these cookies! They truly are awesome. I don’t make large sizes for these cookies so they don’t spread too much. You can place the batter in the fridge for 30 minutes or at least while preheating to ensure the butter is cold as you place them in the oven. Hope that helps.
Crazy good. I’ve made these 3 times in the past month. They have the perfect amount of tart (cranberry) with the perfect amount of sweetness. I love a good oatmeal chocolate chip and this just takes it over the top. It’s Mother in law and Husband’s new favorite cookie, Mine too! Crumbl should hire you to make their cookies.
Makes a great cookie exchange recipe. I’ve been wanting to see how they freeze but they never are around long enough to put in the freezer! Just about to make a double batch right now with all my cranberries that accidentally thawed. THANKS!
Author
Yay! So glad you loved these! They’re absolutely yummy! Thanks for letting me know.