White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies
These White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies are the best Christmas cookies ever! This easy recipe yields soft, chewy, flavorful cookies that are so pretty; studded with white chocolate chips and sweet dried red cranberries. A must have for any holiday celebration!
I just wanted to drop a note on how much I LOVE this recipe! I have made these multiple times and they come out perfect every time. Truly a crowd pleaser! YUMM!
— Beth
Baking holiday desserts is one of my family’s most beloved Christmas traditions. My VERY favorite cookie to enjoy during the holiday season are these White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies. They’re always the most requested cookies from family and friends with their soft and chewy centers, crisp edges and melt-in-your mouth scrumptious flavor.
Why you should make this recipe
- Add-ins. Tart dried cranberries and sweet white chocolate come together for the most perfect treat for your holiday cookie trays.
- Feeds a crowd. This recipe makes over two dozen cookies! You’ll have plenty for holiday cookie tins, lunchboxes, class parties and STILL have lots left to enjoy at home! Need even more for a bake sale or party? Simply double or even triple the recipe.
- Freezer-friendly. These are a great candidate for the freezer. You can either freeze the dough or you can freeze the cookies once they have been baked. This means fresh, homemade cookies in a moment’s notice!
- Simple ingredients. Aside from grabbing the cranberries and chocolate chips from the store, the rest of the recipe uses pantry staple ingredients you probably have on hand.
Ingredients needed
The cookie dough is made from standard ingredients: flour, leavener, salt, sugar, butter, egg, & vanilla. It’s the ratios and small details of those ingredients that make this recipe stand out from the rest. Here’s everything you’ll need:
- Butter. You want room temperature butter that is cool to touch, not warm. When you press it, your finger should make an indent. It shouldn’t sink down into the butter, nor slide all around.
- Sugar. These use a mix of dark brown sugar and white granulated sugar. I prefer more brown sugar than white granulated sugar because the moisture in brown sugar promises an extra soft and chewy baked cookie. White granulated sugar is still necessary because it’s dry and helps the cookies spread. A little bit of spread is a good thing.
- Egg + egg yolk. Another way to promise a super chewy cookie is to use an extra egg yolk. The extra egg yolk adds richness, soft tenderness, and binds the dough. You will need 1 egg and 1 egg yolk.
- Vanilla. A must for flavor.
- Flour. Use all-purpose flour for best results and be sure to measure flour correctly. Use the spoon and level method or simply weigh the flour on food scales.
- Cornstarch. The addition of cornstarch helps to keep the cookies ultra soft and makes them nice and thick.
- Baking essentials. Baking soda and salt ensures these bake properly.
- White chocolate + dried cranberries. The most amazing flavor combo! I like to add a few extras to the tops of my cookies, before baking, for an extra special presentation.
How to make this recipe
This white chocolate cranberry cookie recipe is simple, straightforward and will be your new go-to for Christmas and beyond! Just follow these easy steps!
Please see the recipe card for the full, printable recipe with all of the details.
- Prep. Start by heating the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large cookie sheet/baking pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Combine wet ingredients. Beat butter and sugars together in a large bowl with an electric stand mixer and paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Blend in egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of bowl as needed.
- Dry ingredients. Add flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt; mix well. Gently fold white chocolate and cranberries into the mixture.
- Scoop cookie dough. Use a cookie scoop to drop about 2 tablespoons of dough, 1-1/2 inches apart, onto baking sheets. Add a few white chocolate morsels and cranberries to the tops of the cookies for a prettier cookie.
- Bake for about 9-12 minutes. Your perfect Christmas cookies will bake up light golden brown around the edges, but still soft in the middle. Cool on baking sheets for about 1 minute and remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Expert baking tips
- Measure flour correctly. It is super important to measure the flour correctly. If you use a measuring cup to scoop up flour out of the bag, you are likely packing in way too much flour which will yield cake-y and less flavorful cookies. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup and level the top with the back of a butter knife. See a visual of this here. For the most accurate measurement of flour, use a food scale.
- Chill the dough. This may or may not be necessary for this cookie recipe. If you feel that your butter is too soft or the cookie dough does not feel cool to the touch, I recommend chilling the dough for about 30 minutes. It will help you avoid flat cookies. Chill time also gives a chance for the flavors and textures to meld together and intensify.
- Big cookie dough balls. Roll your cookie dough into larger balls for softer, chewier, thicker cookies.
- Don’t over bake. Remove the cookies from the oven as soon as the edges turn a light brown and the top center is pale. As the cookies cool, they will firm up, but the center will be soft and chewy.
- Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Either one of these will help the cookies to bake evenly, so you have a perfect batch every time. Spraying your cookie sheet with nonstick spray causes too much grease, which may cause the cookies to spread. A silicone baking mat is great because it will grip onto the bottom of the cookie dough, and prevent the cookies from spreading too much. These mats also promote even browning.
- Allow baking sheets to cool after each batch. Placing cookie dough balls onto a hot baking sheet is most likely going to cause these cookies to spread too much. Always use room temperature baking sheets.
Frequently asked questions
These white chocolate cranberry cookies are perfectly chewy due to the addition of cornstarch, which helps produce soft and thick cookies. We’re also using more brown sugar than white sugar for a moister, softer cookie. And an extra egg yolk increases chewiness.
Different types of sugars will affect the texture and possibly make your cookies more crispy than chewy. White sugar creates crispier cookies and brown sugar creates chewier cookies. That’s why pretty much all of my cookie recipes contain more brown sugar than granulated sugar. I like a chewy cookie!
This particular recipe, yields 28 cookies and each have 155 calories, 22g of carbohydrates, 2g of protein and 7g of fat.
Customize this recipe
These are pretty much perfect as-is, but feel free to get creative and experiment with your favorite ingredients! Here’s some options:
- Chocolate. Try using semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of white chocolate chips or use a combination of the two types.
- Nuts. For an added crunch, mix in up to about 1 cup of chopped nuts. Just be sure to use unsalted nuts, to avoid these cookies turning out too salty. Pecans, macadamia nuts or walnuts would be delicious!
- Double the recipe. This recipe yields about 28 medium cookies. You can double the recipe if you need a larger batch for a party, gifting, or event.
Storage recommendations
- Storing. Baked cookies will keep in an airtight container or zip-top baggie at room temperature for about 1 week, but I can’t imagine them lasting that long!
- Freezing baked cookies. Store in a freezer-safe container or baggie and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Freezing dough. This dough can be frozen and baked at a later date. Simply scoop balls onto a parchment lined pan and freeze until solid. Once frozen, remove from the cookie sheet and place in a freezer bag for up to about 3 months. You can also freeze the cookie dough in individual cookie dough balls.
- To bake from frozen: Defrost for an hour or two in the fridge and bake as directed. If the dough is very cold, you may need to add a minute or two of cook time.
In my opinion, no holiday celebration is complete without white chocolate cranberry cookies! You won’t believe how good they taste and you’ll get tons of compliments. I’ve been told time and time again that this is someone’s new favorite cookie!
If you try these, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves them as much as mine does, be sure to give it a five star ⭐️ rating! Also, tag @kimscravings on Instagram with a picture of your creation. It’s so fun to see what you’re cooking! Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies (updated recipe)
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 cup dark brown sugar (light brown will work)
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup white chocolate morsels + more to add to the tops of the cookies before baking
- 3/4 cup dried cranberries + more to add to the tops of the cookies before baking
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large cookie sheet/baking pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with mixer until light and fluffy.
- Blend in egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of bowl as needed. Add flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt; mix well. Stir in white chocolate and cranberries.
- Drop rounded spoonfuls (about 2 tablespoons) of dough, 1-1/2 inches apart, onto baking sheets. Add a few white chocolate morsels and cranberries to the tops of the cookies for a prettier cookie.
- Bake for about 9-12 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for about 1 minute and remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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One of my favorite cookies to bake. Occasionally, I add copped macadamia nuts.
Thank you for this recipe! These cookies are perfect. I am NOT a baker, but I followed all your tips and the recipe exactly and they are amazing!
Among the many recipes for cookies like these, this is the best and my whole family just loves them. Thank you!!
White chocolate and cranberry is one of my favorite combos, and these cookies are the best! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
These cookies were absolutely delicious!! Perfect texture and we loved the combo of cranberries with white chocolate.
I just wanted to drop a note on how much I LOVE this recipe! I have made these multiple times and they come out perfect every time. Truly a crowd pleaser! YUMM!
This is my go to recipe for amazing tasty cookies! Thank you so much, everyone in my house loves them!
These cookies are fabulous and so festive for the holidays. They were perfectly crisp around the edges and soft in the centers – exactly how I love them!
Excellent cookies! I followed the recipe exactly except substituted dried cherries instead of cranberries. This recipe is a keeper! I look forward to making them again!
I just made these cookies for the first time and I am so happy I found this recipe. Excellent balance of flavor. I will be bringing these to a Christmas party next week!