Fresh Cranberry Cookies
I made this recipe up to use some leftover fresh cranberries after baking some cranberry nut bread
. A total experiment, I was kind of expecting these to be . . . not very good? For some reason, although fresh cranberries work great in bread, I wasn’t sure they’d work in cookies. But with the combination of oats, dates, nuts, and chocolate chips (duh) they’re a smash. The fresh cranberries also give them gorgeous, jewel-tone bits throughout, perfect for festive holiday tables.
Chris and I also thought they tasted even better the second day, and that’s not an easy feat for most cookies. The cranberries got a chance to mingle with the cookie dough and they keep the cookies soft for days and days.
So if you have some leftover fresh cranberries lounging about after Thanksgiving, make fresh cranberry cookies!! They have vitamin C in them so they’ll help you ward off colds this winter, right?
PrintFresh Cranberry Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 36
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) soft butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 egg
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup finely chopped dates (about 12 pitted dates)
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Set oven to 350º F.
- Cream butter and sugar until smooth then mix in vanilla and egg.
- Whisk flour, soda and salt together in a small bowl and stir in gradually to butter mixture until combined.
- Gently mix in oats and dates.
- Coarsely chop the cranberries. I just cut them into halves or quarters and ended up with about 3/4 cup when all was said and done. Add them into the dough.
- Stir in nuts and chocolate chips.
- Drop by tablespoons onto greased or lined baking sheets and bake 12-15 minutes, until edges are lightly browned and tops are set.
- Allow to cool a few minutes on sheets, then remove to racks to cool completely.
- Store in airtight containers for soft cookies, or loosely covered for crisp cookies.
50 responses to “Fresh Cranberry Cookies”
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Used dark chocolate, pecans and skipped the dates as we’re not fans. They were amazing, all were gone in a week.
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Yummmm!
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I don’t know what I did wrong! Flat as a pancake, all ran together, too! I refrigerated the rest of the dough, hardly could scoop it, and still came out flat! I won’t make them again!
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I made these and they did the same thing? Don’t know what to do to fix it? Sitting here and decided to have a drink and think what I can do to fix it.
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having a drink will fix everything lol
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Thank you for the laugh. That’s how I bake, too 🙂
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I mostly followed the recipe as written. I used quick cooking oats because that’s what I had in the house and i’m not a big fan of dates, so did not add them. After tasting the first batch out of the oven I felt the cookies were missing something (probably the dates), so I decided to add some freshly grated orange rind, which did the trick for me. This is a moist and tasty cookie that I will make again, I can’t wait to see what they taste like day two.
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Delicious! It was my first time making cranberry cookies, I used leftover cranberries from Thanksgiving. I skipped the dates and used a cup of white chocolate in addition to the semi sweet. I included some orange zest too. I am taking these to a cookie swap at church and will definitely make again!
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These were great! I figured they’d have a sour aspect which my fam loves. They also came out not cakey but a tad more crispy and flat — but not too flat.
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I followed the recipe exactly as printed.
The cookies were fantastic. I will definitely add this recipe to my favorites.-
Wonderful!
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Believe I finally found the oatmeal cranberry cookie recipe my 85 year old mother will enjoy, except minus the chocolate chips. I’ll use raisins instead of dates.
Has anyone baked these without the choc chips? Should alittle more sugar be added if not using the CC’s?-
I used whole wheat flour and replaced the sugar with 3/4 cup of pure maple syrup. I used about half the dates the recipe called for – it just looked like it was adding up to a lot as I was dicing them. They are just out of the oven and look and taste good, but am excited to taste them after they have sat for a day!
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Those cookies are absolutely amazing! I follow the recipe except I roast the pecans in a pan before choppin them, and I put less sugar since dates are already quite sweet. I also tried once to use maple syrup as one person suggested. It was delicious, but I found that it made the cookies a bit too soft. To those who write that dates are not their thing, I highly recomment to keep them in the recipe. You don’t taste the dates but they definitely add something 🙂
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Thanks, Magali!
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Update: I just made this recipe (once again!!) using Medjoul dates, which I did not chop too finely and the result is mind-blowing!!! It adds some caramel notes to the this already incredible cookie.
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OMG, these are the best cookies. What a hit with the family.Followed the exact recipe yesterday. Took a little longer to bake to get to the consistency we like, (not as soft). Had some today and yes they are even better. Will be making these often. Thanks Hilah!
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I made these cookies and used figs, cranberries, Walnuts and dark chocolate chips. They were very good but they were very flat. I think next time I will use 1 1/2 cups of flour and maybe 1/2 tsp of baking soda. Maybe they will be higher and not so sticky..My husband said they don’t look very good but they are delicious.
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This recipe is wonderful! I was searching for something to use fresh cranberries in and came across your recipe. I can’t wait to share these with my family next week. Do you think thou keep well in a cool garage for one week?
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I think they would be fine, Gina!
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Amazing cookies! Thank you Hilah for sharing!
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Really amazing cookies. My favorite!! I increased the amount of cranberries and added grated coconut anf made them larger. They tasted amazing and so soft and chewy.
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I followed the recipe as written except I mixed the cranberries, pecans, and chocolate chips with grated habanero and let it rest a bit. A sweet hot treat for Valentine’s Day. Starts sweet in the mouth with slight heat follow up. Cayenne could also be used.
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My family loves these!!! I don’t use the dates or nuts though.
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Thanks, Amanda!
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I just made these and have to say I think they are the best cookie I’ve ever made! ? I used dark chocolate chips and omitted the nuts but otherwise followed recipe exactly! Baked for 15 minutes as I prefer a crisper cookie. Yum yum ?
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I just made these and have to say I think they are the best cookie I’ve ever made! ? I used dark chocolate chips and omitted the nuts but otherwise followed recipe exactly! Baked for 15 minutes as I prefer a crisper cookie. Yum yum ?
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Holy Moses! This is officially our new favorite cookie! I left out the dates and added orange essence and zest. I will be making these again tomorrow! Hubs gave orders to keep them always on hand in the freezer.
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Oh Beverly I LOVE the idea of adding orange zest to these! I put orange in my cranberry sauce — it’s a great combination.
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Awesome! So tasty!
Thanks ! -
I never write reviews on any online recipe but these cookies are so amazing, I had to write one.
I used dark chocolate chips, and some walnuts with the pecans because I did not have enough pecans. These came out so well! The tartness of the cranberries with the chocolate and nuts and sweet cookie dough base was such a great mixture of tastes and textures.
Will definitely be making these again!-
I’m so happy you liked this cookie recipe! It’s such an unusual combination, I love it.
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I was hopeful these cookies would look just like the pics but alas, they did not. There was too mild of a cranberry taste to start, but the biggest disappointment was that they were sticky sweet and crumbled at the touch of them. Even after greasing in between each batch, they stuck and weren’t worth anything.
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Sorry it didn’t work for you. I’ve never had a problem with this recipe crumbling or sticking. Did you follow the recipe exactly?
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I made these and loved the addition of the dates. I did omit the chocolate as we were looking for a less sweet cookie that I could incorporate leftover cranberries from Thanksgiving. They did not disappoint. The dates and sugar gave all the sweetness we needed. Will definitely make these again!
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These cookies are delicious . The cranberry is the star of these cookies .
Followed the recipe but did not include the dates , ICan the cookies be frozen and for how long ?
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I froze my fresh cranberry, can I thaw them for this recipe
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This is such a yummy recipe, it is a bit time consuming but it is so so worth it! i’m adding this recipe to my personal cook book to keep in my pocket because it’s sure to become a staple in my house! thank you so much for sharing, what a magical feeling it must be to know that something you’ve crafted is now being made in so many kitchens in so many places by so many different hands!
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I followed the recipe to a T. I made 2 doz cookies. I omitted dates nuts and chocolate. But why did my cookies turn out like crepes? Is it the weight of the whole cranberries which I used?
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I guess I had better go look up what “followed to a T” means because you and I seem to be using that turn of phrase differently
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I’ve been making these for a few years – and everyone who tastes them absolutely loves them! I don’t like the choc chip taste in them, so add a few more cranberries instead.
To the person who that said they lasted a week in their house – ha, I laugh at you! They are so yummy that they last exactly 2 days in my house – and I make a double batch each time! -
Outstanding recipe. I increased oatmeal to 1 cup. Also scissored fresh cranberries into half’s and used dried dates and walnuts skipped the chocolate chips. Also found very small dinner spoons of batter worked best as they really spread and thinned out. Cook time was more like about 22 minutes at 350. Nice and deep brown and crunchy while still chewy. Thanks for another use of fresh cranberries!
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So glad you enjoyed these cookies, Steve! And thanks for sharing your changes to the recipe.
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my new fave cookie recipe! I was worried when the dough was dry and crumbly once all the ingredients were mixed, but I just rolled into lil’ balls and placed on cookie sheet – the results were AMAZING!
I subbed walnuts for the pecans
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oh my gosh yes!! I love these cookies so hard
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I make those every year as soon as cranberries are for sale and until after Christmas. They are always a hit and everyone asks for the recipe.
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Delicious soft cookies with a wonderful texture. The cranberries bake nicely and the pecans give a good crunch. I made 36 cookies for Xmas gifts, and hopefully they last that long lol.
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Haha! I have to wait to make Christmas cookies until close to the date or I will eat them all, too. Glad you liked the recipe!
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Wonderful flavor. I took them to a card party and they loved them. I have done with and without dates and were both well received.
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