These White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies are a family favorite for the holidays! They’re soft and chewy and have just the perfectly caramelized edges.
Oatmeal cookies? Yeah. They are everybody’s favorite cookie in this house.
Since my kids finish off a bag of dried cranberries before breakfast and I have been in love with white chocolate for about 25 years now…
Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies are pretty much our perfect cookie.
Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
Growing up, me and my siblings were OBSESSED with the oatmeal cookies from IKEA (don’t give me that look, they’re amazing). It was always a huge treat when our parents brought home a box.
I eventually moved out, lost oatmeal cookie privileges, and had to figure out how to make my own.
Ever wondered how to make oatmeal cookies? It’s SO easy!
I use that base recipe for everything – Oatmeal Cookie S’Mores Bars, Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, Everyday Easy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies…
Seriously, it’s amazing. So I figured I’d use the exact same base to make White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies – and we have a winner!
How to Make Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies:
It’s super easy to make homemade oatmeal cookies.
Basically, you combine the dry ingredients so they’re thoroughly mixed.
Then you cream butter and sugar, mix in the eggs and then stir everything together.
Fold in the cranberries and white chocolate and give the dough a quick chill – then roll into balls and bake.
Tips for Making Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies:
- don’t overbeat the eggs – only mix them with the butter and sugar until combined, otherwise you could get tough cookies
- don’t skip the chilling – if you’re really short on time, use a large bowl, spread the cookie dough as much as you can and stick it in your freezer for 15 minutes. Not chilling will lead to your cookies spreading a lot
- use the right kind of white chocolate – don’t use melting chocolate, use chocolate chips or chunks for baking. If you’re going to use melting chocolate, the cookies will spread more but will also be more caramelized. It tastes nice, but it’s a little different.
- don’t overbake the cookies – these will be very soft and fragile when they come out of the oven. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- if you have spreading issues – sometimes the cookie lords are just against you, and your cookies spread even if you did everything right (whyyyyy, right?!). In this case, take a large spoon and push them back together right as they come out of the oven. They won’t be perfect, but they’ll be fine.
How to store Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies:
Room temperature:
These cookies can be left in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
They never last that long around here though!
Freezer:
If you want to store the cookies for a longer time, freeze them on a lined baking sheet in a single layer until firm, about 1-2 hours. Transfer to labelled freezer bags and freeze for up to 3 months.
To thaw, simply place on a cooling rack (important or they’ll get soggy!) and leave out at room temperature for 20-30 minutes.
Get the printable recipe here:
White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
Recipe details
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
- 1 ¼ cups flour
- 1 ¼ cup rolled oats
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients:
- 8 tablespoons butter softened
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Other:
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup white chocolate chips or more if you want it super chocolatey
Instructions
- Place all dry ingredients in a medium bowl and mix until combined.
- Add butter and both sugars to a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until a cookie dough forms. Fold in the cranberries and white chocolate. Chill until cold, about 30-60 minutes.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a cookie sheet. Scoop balls of dough with a cookie scoop or tablespoon measure - I do a heaping tablespoon per cookie - and place on the prepared cookie sheet.
- Bake for 10-14 minutes, or until flattened and lightly browned. Cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.
Edie says
These are delicious! The cranberry white chocolate combination is perfectly paired😃
Nora says
I’m so glad, Edie!
Tricia Hodapp says
I made these a few weeks ago and everyone loved them….me too! I was thinking about adding some orange flavor. Have you tried an orange extract that doesn’t taste fake? I would try orange zest, but I’m making them for Christmas….and need A LOT!
TAHNK YOU!
Nora says
Tricia, I think adding orange flavor sounds absolutely delicious. I have only ever used orange zest in cookies though. But I will say that I absolutely adore the Nielsen Massey pure lemon extract. It tastes pretty much like distilled lemon zest. (I’m not sponsored by them, I genuinely just love their product.) I would have high hopes that their pure orange extract is just as good, just make sure you don’t accidentally buy their orange blossom water. Hope this helps!