Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies
The rich flavors of cranberries and white chocolate come together with panache in these delicious Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies. Each bite delivers a burst of flavors and the perfect texture as well! You’ll love the slightly crunchy cookie crust with a tender and chewy middle.
If you love vegan cookies with fruit, be sure to try these blueberry chocolate chip cookies, too.
I like to keep cranberries on hand. It’s one reason I like the fall season — you can easily purchase bags of fresh cranberries in the produce section. The rest of the year, I’m content to use dried cranberries.
Of course, you may be wondering, what to do with cranberries? I have plenty of recipes with dried cranberries at the ready. For example, I love adding them to my protein granola because they add a burst of color, flavor, and texture. And what would this vegan broccoli salad be like without some raisins or craisins added for sweetness?
But today, we’re talking about cookies. Sweet, delicious chocolate chip cranberry cookies!
Why This Recipe is a Winner
- Using vegan butter adds an authentic, buttery flavor to these tender cookies
- Adding white chocolate chips makes these vegan cookies taste undeniably delicious
- Creating a thick cookie dough gives vegan cookies a texture that’s just like the kind you’ve always loved!
What You Need
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
- Lemon — We’ll use both the zest and the juice of the lemon.
- Oats — I used rolled oats for this recipe, but you can substitute instant oats.
- Chia — We’ll add some ground chia seeds to create a thicker texture. You can use whole chia seeds; I just prefer ground because it creates a smoother finished texture.
- Syrup — I used maple syrup, but you can substitute agave nectar.
- Milk — We’ll use almond milk for the best overnight oats! Substitute your favorite plant-based milk.
- Yogurt — I love adding some plant-based yogurt (plain, unsweetened) for an even more tangy flavor.
- Protein Powder — I add some vanilla protein powder for increased flavor and nutrients. If your protein powder is not sweetened, you may want to add an extra teaspoon or two of sweetener.
- Cornstarch — We’ll use cornstarch to thicken the lemon curd topping.
- Turmeric — A pinch of turmeric makes that lemon curd sunny yellow.
- Vegan butter
- Sugar — We’ll use both granulated sugar and brown sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Ground flaxseed
- Water
- Flour — I recommend all-purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour.
- Baking powder + baking soda
- Salt
- Vegan white chocolate chips
- Dried cranberries
It’s easy to make these Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies, thanks to using dried cranberries.
- Cream fat and sugar using a stand mixer on medium speed
- Stir together dry ingredients
- Make the batter by mixing the flour in with the creamed butter
- Add chocolate chips and dried cranberries
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes then remove from the oven and cool completely.
Here are more detailed step-by-step instructions:
Step One: Cream Fat and Sugar
Use either a handheld or stand mixer on medium speed and beat the vegan butter until light and fluffy. Next, add the sugars and beat again until fluffy. Finally, add the flax, water, and vanilla and beat to combine.
Step Two: Combine Dry Ingredients
In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Now, pour the flour mixture in with the butter mixture and stir to combine. This is a thick dough. But if it’s still crumbly, add a tablespoon of water and stir that in.
Add Chocolate Chips and Craisins
I’ve always called them craisins, but if you prefer dried cranberries, that works. It’s the same thing! So, next, we’ll add most of the chocolate chips and dried cranberries and stir that in with the cookie dough.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for up to an hour.
Be sure to reserve some of the chocolate chips and cranberries to place on the top of cookie dough balls. This will make your cookies look like they came straight from the bakery.
Use a cookie dough scoop to drop rounded spoonfuls of dough about 2 inches apart on a prepared cookie sheet. Gently press a few dried cranberries and chocolate chips to the top of each cookie dough ball.
Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes, depending on your desired final cookie texture. If you prefer soft and chewy cookies, remove them at 9 minutes. If you prefer crispier cookies, leave them in the oven for up to 11 minutes.
When you remove cookies from the oven, leave them on the pan for a couple of minutes. As the cookies cool, they will firm up. Then you can use a spatula to transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Storage Tips
Store baked and cooled cookies in an airtight container. They’ll keep at room temperature up to 4 days, or in the fridge for up to 10 days. To freeze, transfer cookies to a freezer bag. They can be frozen for up to 2 months. To thaw, set them at room temperature for an hour.
Vegan Chocolate Chips
When you’re making dried cranberry cookies, you can choose the type of chocolate you want to add. For example, you can go with dairy-free dark chocolate chips. There are plenty of brands to choose from these days.
Or, you can use vegan white chocolate chips. There’s no denying the look and flavor of white chocolate and cranberry cookies. Especially during the holidays! However, the thing about vegan white chocolate is doesn’t hold its shape entirely when baked, but the flavor comes through in wonderful ways.
These Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies were a happy accident in my kitchen. I can be part cookie connoisseur and part mad scientist in the kitchen, so I was thrilled to stumble upon these ingredients and create a new delicious cookie recipe!
Marly’s Tips
- Flour: I prefer using all-purpose flour. If you want to use whole wheat, here are my recommendations:
- do half all-purpose and half whole wheat
- use whole wheat pastry flour (this is different than whole wheat flour)
- do half all-purpose and half whole wheat white flour. Either way, you may need to add another tablespoon of water.
- Assess your dough: If the dough is too sticky, it means there’s not enough flour. Add a tablespoon or two of flour to get a thicker consistency.
- Baking Time: I recommend baking these cookies for 9 minutes in a preheated oven, then removing them and allowing them to sit on the cookie sheet for another 2 minutes. Because of residual baking, the cookies will firm up even after removing them from the oven. As a result, I find removing them at 9 minutes, creates a deliciously tender cookie.
If you love these cranberry chocolate chip cookies as much as we do, you will definitely want to try your hand at a few more favorite vegan cookie recipes. These are some favorites:
- The Best Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies are loaded with chocolate chips surrounded by a chewy, buttery cookie.
- These Vegan Double Chocolate Chip Cookies combine a chocolate cookie dough with lots of melty chocolate chips.
- Looking for some color? These Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies are so easy to make and you’ll love the bright red color and velvety cookie combined with chocolate chips.
- Not in a cooking mood? Make this Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls recipe that’s infused with oatmeal, peanut butter, and, of course, chocolate chips.
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Ingredients
- 1 cup vegan butter , softened
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract or vanilla
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 3 tablespoons water
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ⅓ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 to 2 cups vegan white chocolate chips
- 1 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the butter in a mixing bowl. Use either a handheld or stand mixer on medium speed and beat until light and fluffy. Add the sugars and beat again until fluffy. Add the flax, water, and vanilla and beat to combine.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Pour the flour mixture into the butter mixture and stir to combine. This is a thick dough. But if it's still crumbly, add a tablespoon of water and stir that in.
- Add most of the chocolate chips and dried cranberries and stir until combined. Reserve some chocolate chips and cranberries to place on the top of cookies. Cover and refrigerate the dough for up to an hour.
- Drop by rounded spoonful about 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Add more cranberries and chocolate chips to the top of each cookie dough ball. Bake for 9 minutes, (or up to 11 minutes depending on your desired final cookie texture). If you prefer chewier cookies, remove them at 9 minutes. If you prefer crispier, cook for a few minutes longer. See note.
- Once the cookies are done, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for a minute or two on the cookie sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store baked cookies in an airtight container.
Recommended Equipment
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Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This post was originally published in 2014 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2020.
Hello it seems like the ingredient list is missing cornstrach. How much should we add. I remember this being critical 🙂
Hi John. Thanks for your comment! The recipe has been corrected to include 1 T of cornstarch.
I just made these and they are AMAZING. Recipe was easy to put together and chill in the fridge. I let them cool as the recipe says and they have the best texture. Cripsy enough on the bottom but still tender inside. I feel like you can sub other things in place of the cranberries and white chocolate chips and they would be amazing. If anyone is looking for vegan white chocolate chips, Nestle now makes allergen free white and dark chocolate chips. I found them in my regular grocery store. Thanks Marly for this great recipe! I will definitely be making these again soon
Hi Molly! Thanks so much for your comment. I’m so glad you like these cookies! And thanks for the feedback on Nestle chocolate chips. It’s about time they got on the dairy-free train!
Looking forward to making these, they look delicious! I wanted to add that I just discovered Walmart has their own version (Great Value) of vegan chips now that are also organic and cheaper! Using organic sugar makes them truly vegan, not just dairy free.
Hi Pamela. I heard about this but I haven’t tried them yet. Thanks for the info, I will check them out!
I can’t believe how good these cookies are! I love that they’re vegan too!
Made these today, and they are fabulous!!! I used 1/2 coconut oil because I was low on margarine, so they baked a bit differently, I suspect, but the coconut oil enhanced the flavor of the cookie. The raspberry extract is perfect with the dark chocolate and the tartness of the cranberries. Thanks for posting this great recipe!
That’s awesome. I love the addition of coconut oil – I bet that really complemented the other flavors!!
Monica , did you use both vegan margarine & coconut oil ? If so how much of each and how long did you bake them & what temp ? Thanx 😉 K
Kasia, I used Smart Balance as my margarine (not sure if that’s technically vegan) and coconut oil, half cup of each. Mind you, my coconut oil is solid since I mistakenly stuck it in the fridge when I bought it, and I’m not sure whether that made a difference. Otherwise, I followed Marly’s recipe exactly.
Marly, these are gorgeous! I actually love that they’re not totally pink and just have the lovely pink flecks. It gives them an air of class–like they don’t have to try too hard to be fabulous. 🙂 I’m definitely pinning these for later. Would you kill me if I used real butter? 😉