Soft and Chewy White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies + VIDEO
Easy soft and chewy oatmeal cookies packed with white chocolate chips and dried cranberries. These White Chocolate Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies are a perfect treat for the holidays!
I couldn’t let the holidays pass without sharing another oatmeal cookie recipe that I absolutely love!
I originally posted the recipe for these white chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookies back in 2015, but I wanted to update the pictures for these cookies and add a video to show you just how easy they are to make.
Not only are these cookies easy to make, but they’re also jam-packed with so many goodies. You can even mix in some chopped pecan for a little something extra in these cookies. Trust me when I say that this is one cookie recipe you’ll want to keep on hand for the holidays!
Recipe Ingredients
These oatmeal cranberry white chocolate chip cookies call for ingredients you likely have in your pantry already. Here’s what you’ll need to make this oatmeal cookie recipe:
- All-purpose flour: Spoon and level the flour when measuring it, otherwise your cookies may turn out dry.
- Baking soda: Gives the cookies some lift.
- Cinnamon: Just 1/2 teaspoon complements the white chocolate and tart cranberries.
- Salt: Balances out the sweetness of the dough.
- Butter: I recommend using unsalted butter since the amount of salt in salted butters can vary between different brands.
- Sugar: I used a blend of granulated and brown sugar to sweeten and flavor the dough.
- Egg: Should be room temperature before making the dough.
- Vanilla extract: Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
- Oats: I recommend using old-fashioned (rolled) oats for this recipe.
- Dried cranberries: I used sweetened dried cranberries.
- White chocolate chips: If you don’t have white chocolate chips on hand, you can also chop up a white chocolate bar.
How to Make White Chocolate Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
The base of these white chocolate cranberry cookies is very similar to my oatmeal raisin cookies with a couple of small changes. You’ll start by whisking together a few dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and a little salt.
For the wet ingredients, you’ll cream together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Once the butter and sugars are well combined, you’ll mix in an egg and some vanilla extract. After you combine the wet and dry ingredients, slowly mix in the old-fashioned rolled oats, dried cranberries, and white chocolate chips until they’re just combined.
Once you’re finished mixing up the cookie dough, you’ll want to cover it and refrigerate it for about 30 minutes. I prefer to chill my cookie dough because it prevents the cookies from spreading too much in the oven and creates a thicker cookie.
Then, bake the cookies for 10 to 13 minutes until the tops of the cookies are set. They may feel slightly underdone when they come out of the oven, but that is exactly what you want if you’re looking for incredibly soft cranberry white chocolate chip cookies.
Once they’ve cooled for about 10 minutes on the baking sheet, you can transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling. Or you can go ahead and enjoy them, because does anyone really wait for a cookie to completely cool first?
Can I Make These Into Cookie Bars?
A few readers have asked whether they can make these white chocolate oatmeal cranberry cookies into cookie bars. I believe you could make cookies bars with this recipe, but I would probably use an 8- or 9-inch square pan. You would need to increase the baking time, but it will depend on the size of the pan that you use.
Can I Use Fresh Cranberries?
I’ve only tested this recipe with dried cranberries, but it would probably be fine to use fresh cranberries. If experimenting with fresh cranberries, remember that they’ll release a lot of moisture once baked so you may need to adjust the dry ingredients to compensate.
Baking Tips
- When measuring your flour, don’t scoop it out of the container with the measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour around, spoon it into your measuring cup, and level it off with the back of a knife.
- Be sure to use old-fashioned rolled oats in these cookies and not quick-cooking oats. Quick-cooking oats are pressed much thinner and don’t provide the same chewy texture in oatmeal cookies.
- Make sure to chill your cookie dough for at least 30 minutes so the cookies don’t spread too much in the oven.
Video Tutorial
More Oatmeal Cookie Recipes to Try!
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Apple Oatmeal Cookies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Oatmeal Scotchies
- Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
White Chocolate Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (115 grams) unsalted butter , softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups (150 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 3/4 cup (105 grams) sweetened dried cranberries
- 3/4 cup (140 grams) white chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large mixing bowl using a handheld mixer), beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smooth. Mix in the egg and then the vanilla, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Slowly add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the oats, dried cranberries, and white chocolate chips and mix until fully combined.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Using a 1.5-2 tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop the cookie dough and drop onto the prepared baking sheets. Roll the cookie dough into balls and very gently press down with your hand to flatten each ball of cookie dough slightly (make sure not to flatten them completely, just slightly).
- Bake in separate batches at 350°F for 10-13 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
WOWWWWWWIEEEE THIS IS A GREAT COOKIE! I made this exactly to the T only adding a bit of lemon zest. WHAT A HIT! Thank you so much~!!!!
These cookies are outstanding. I made the recipe on back of the Craisins package first, and they were too dry and cake like. These are perfect. I added chopped walnuts. Thank you for sharing this outstanding recipe!
I followed the recipe as written but I used fresh cranberries and didn’t have to make any adjustments to the dry ingredients – they are delicious!! Thank you!
Hi these cookies are delicious! Do you happen to know about how many calories are in them?
So glad you liked the cookies, Alison! I’m not sure about the nutritional information, but you can plug everything into an online calculator to get an estimate.
Great recipe and exactly what I was craving. I’m a huge oatmeal cookie freak and these were the perfect balance of soft and chewy with just the right amount of crunch. I’m not sure if anybody else has tried it, but I blanched (rehydrated) my dried craisins for about 30 seconds in boiling water and allowed them to cool on paper towels before mixing them into the dough. These are definitely going to the top of my oatmeal cookie recipes.
I found this recipe a few years ago just before thanksgiving and made them for having with our coffee/tea. These are now my go to recipe for cookies and frequently get asked for the recipe I use. My family and friends always gobble 😉 these up. Look forward to serving them again tomorrow! Huge thanks for the recipe ❤️
Can I freeze the dough? I like to pre-make as much cookie doughs for my Christmas cookies as I can. I make 12 different types and usually a total of 70 dozen.
Yes, that’s fine! Just be sure to slightly flatten each ball of cookie dough before freezing them.
I’m excited to try this recipe, but all I have are steel cut oats. Will that work? Should I slightly cook the oats first to get them softer? Thanks!
I wouldn’t recommend steel cut oats for this recipe, the texture is much different than old-fashioned rolled oats.
I used whole wheat flour, 1 cup +2 tsp. of coconut oil instead of butter and added 1/4 cup coconut flakes.
These are awesome!
i HAVE A QUESTION. iNSTEAD OF MAKING INDIVIDUAL COOKIES, COULD i AMEND THE PROCESS BY SPREAD THE DOUGH IN THE BOTTOM OF A 9X13 PAN AND MAKE COOKIE BARS? IF POSSIBLE, WOULD THE BAKING TIME CHANGE? PLEASE ADVISE. THANK YOU.
You could definitely make cookies bars with this recipe, but it may not be quite enough for a 9×13 pan. I would probably use an 8 or 9-inch square pan, but an 11×7 may work too. You would need to increase the baking time too, it will just depend on the size of the pan that you use.
Can I make these with instant oats? I know recipe says not to, but that’s all I have on hand right now ?
Yes, that will be okay! The cookies won’t be quite as chewy, but they will still turn out just fine.
These turned out amazing, better than I ever imagined! Definitely hit the spot!
I was looking for something that I could make for my daughter’s fellow Deputy Sheriff’s & this fit the bill! Easy & fast to make. Very tasty, but I felt that they needed just a touch of something else, so I added 1/8 teaspoon of almond flavoring. YUM!!! They LOVED them!
This was just perfect! I did alter slightly using Bob’s Red Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour and added walnuts. I made a second time and added macadamia nuts…YUM! Thank you for the awesome recipe!
Hi can I use frozen whole cranberry’s
I haven’t tried it, but it may be okay. Just keep in mind that they’ll add moisture to the cookie dough so you may need to increase the baking time.
How long would I bake these if I wanted to make bar cookies in a metal 9×13?
I’m not quite sure, but I would guess 25-35 minutes.
I love this recipe so much, I’ve bookmarked it twice. This is truly a perfect cookie and recipe- I wouldn’t change anything. These go quickly in my house. Thanks for creating and sharing.
This recipe is an absolute delight! I used semi sweet chocolate chips and added chopped pecans, and still decreased the already low sugar content, and I love them! My family and friends only had great things to say about these cookies! Making a double batch for a work event as I type 😉
This cookie recipe is AWESOME! Like most others, I made my initial batch exactly as posted, then 3 or 4 batches later, perfected this recipe with addition of 1/2 C. chopped pecans and zest of 1 orange. Living in Cookie Sharing Pittsburgh, my cookie plate is the first to empty. I always share the recipe with livewellbakeoften as the source of many delicious recipes. Thanks so much for sharing such a great site full of great homey recipes!
Thank you, Christine! So glad you’re enjoying the recipes!
These cookies turned out even better than I had hoped! Everyone in my family loves them?
Made a batch of these cookies today and really like them. Though I read your post, I wasn’t convinced they were cooked enough at 13 minutes and so left them in the oven 3 more minutes. Still turned out fine. I used the cherry-infused Craisins and would probably use regular Craisins or fresh cranberries next time since the one I used were so sweet and not tart. Also took other commenters’ suggestion and used 1/2 cup craisins, 1/2 cup white chocolate chips, and 1/2 cup of chopped pecans. Very nice recipe. 🙂
This was on our Christmas cookie list this year. My daughter had to stop from eating too much of the batter because it was so good. Cookies are soft and chewy. Recipe is easy.
I wouldn’t call this recipe easy, but my husband loved the recipe! I’ve never used parchment paper and don’t have a cookie scooper, so I’m adding them. The cookie dough was a bit dry to mix at the end, but maybe because I didn’t take time to get some ingredients to room temperature.
I made these…They were SOOO good!! Ate them all too quickly. I am making them again today for friends… Thanks for the recipe!
If you really want to take these over the top, add the zest of one orange. It’s a holiday favorite in our house!
Simple to make and yummy. Family loved them
Amazing! Exactly how you described them. Soft and chewy! I used the same recipe and then made a 4th batch swapped out the cranberries w/ raisins and walnuts. Sooo good! Excellent addition to our holiday cookies!
I made this but used a whole cup of cranberries as the hubs works for a cranberry grower and we have an abundance of berries – we used fresh berries and substituted chocolate chips for white and 1/3 cup of maple syrup for the brown sugar as it’s all we had on hand. I’ll tell you, they’re toddler approved and he’s never really had cranberries before or many cookies for that matter.
Hi!
When you used fresh cranberries did you add more flour or dry ingredients so they weren’t overloaded with moisture?
I’ve only got fresh berries and really wanted to make these 🙂
Thanks!
These are delicious! My husband bought a huge Costco sized bag of Craisins that have just been sitting in the pantry, so I decided to look for some cookies to make with them. I decided on this recipe because it looked simple and easy to make. I’m glad you commented that they will look a little undercooked, because I was tempted to cook them longer. The recipe is perfect as is and I will certainly be making more to share!
These are my new guilt pleasure! I have never rated a recipe before but I just had to on this one!
I’ve been looking for a great white chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookie for a while. I’ve tried a few that I wasn’t really impressed with so when I tried these I was blown away! I baked them for exactly 10 minutes and they were the perfect blend of crispy edge and chewy center.
My second batch I changed up a little by omitting the cinnamon and adding about one and a half teaspoons of orange zest. They were amazing! Next time I’ll try with browned butter and chopped pecans. It’s such a versatile recipe.
So glad you liked the cookies, Jill!
Hello. Not sure if I’m in the right place to ask a question about the oatmeal cranberry white chocolate cookies, but it doesn’t say what rack to bake them on. Unfortunately I have to use a toaster oven. So should I have it on the bottom rack or the middle. Thansk
I baked all of my cookie recipes on the middle rack.
Oh yum!! Thanks for the ideas. I absolutely love this recipe too and keep coming back to it. Think I’ll even add it into my Christmas cookie collection ?
I love these cookies! I also added orange zest and used cake batter extract instead of vanilla. Delicious!!
Followed to the T. Came out really dry and broke up. All ingredients barely stuck together. It still tasted really good though. Ended up adding it to my vanilla yogurt since the cookie crumbled
Great taste but very very dry and are now hard. Not how I like my cookies. Any ideas?
They may have just been slightly over baked. If you make them again, try reducing the baking time by 2 to 3 minutes and see if that helps. You can store this batch of cookies with a slice of bread and that will help soften them.
Wonderful idea! I’m making another batch today so I will give less time a try. Thank you so much