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 1x
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.
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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.
★★★★★
Yummmm!
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.
★★★★★
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!
★★★★★
I followed the recipe exactly as printed.
The cookies were fantastic. I will definitely add this recipe to my favorites.
★★★★★
Wonderful!
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!
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 🙂
★★★★★
Thanks, Magali!
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.
★★★★★
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!
★★★★★
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.
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?
I think they would be fine, Gina!
Amazing cookies! Thank you Hilah for sharing!
★★★★★
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.
★★★★★
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.
★★★★★
My family loves these!!! I don’t use the dates or nuts though.
★★★★★
Thanks, Amanda!
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 😋
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 😋
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.
★★★★★
Oh Beverly I LOVE the idea of adding orange zest to these! I put orange in my cranberry sauce — it’s a great combination.
Awesome! So tasty!
Thanks !
★★★★★