Oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies are soft, chewy brown butter cookies filled with dried cranberries and toasted walnuts. This easy recipe comes together without a mixer. They’re perfect for fall and the holiday season!
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These brown butter oatmeal cookies are the perfect fall cookie! Brown butter and toasted walnuts add a rich, nutty flavor. They’re also packed with chewy dried cranberries!
This cranberry walnut oatmeal cookies recipe is full of cozy flavors. It’s perfect for fall and for sharing during the holidays.
If you’re looking for more fall cookie recipes, try my chai bars recipe, chocolate chip with pecan cookies, and biscoff chocolate chip cookies!
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Why we love this recipe
- Brown butter makes these the best oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies! It adds a nutty, elevated flavor just like my chocolate chip maple syrup cookies.
- The toasted walnuts and chewy dried cranberries are so delicious to bite into like these white chocolate cranberry shortbread cookies!
- Cranberry walnut oatmeal cookies are easy to make without a mixer!
Ingredients
Here are useful notes about some of the ingredients for this recipe for oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies.
- Butter: Use unsalted butter. For extra flavor, we are using brown butter! It only takes a few extra minutes to essentially toast the butter. The butter develops a rich, nutty flavor. See recipe card for instructions!
- Extra virgin olive oil (optional): The browning process causes some of the water to evaporate from the butter. A tablespoon of olive oil replaces some of the water lost from evaporation. Olive oil also makes the cookies even more delicious!
- Brown sugar: Use light or dark brown sugar. I recommend dark brown sugar for a richer flavor.
- One egg: Use 1 large room temperature egg.
- Cranberries: Dried cranberries add a tart, sweet flavor and extra chewy texture.
- Walnuts: I recommend toasting your walnuts for an extra crispy bite and added flavor. See recipe card for instructions on toasting.
- Cinnamon: Adds a hint of extra warm flavor, but it doesn’t overpower the other flavors.
- Oats: Use old fashioned rolled oats or whole rolled oats. I don’t recommend quick cooking oats for this recipe. We’re toasting the walnuts and oats for a few minutes to enhance their flavor. Be sure to also try my oatmeal cookies with tahini!
Substitutions & Variations
- For extra warm flavor, add a little nutmeg and or cardamom in addition to cinnamon!
- To make these cookies gluten free, swap in a 1-to-1 all purpose gluten free baking flour (such as Bob’s Red Mill) and gluten free old fashioned oats.
- Instead of dried cranberries, use raisins, craisins or Raisinets.
- Swap in chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, white chocolate or butterscotch chips in place of the nuts or cranberries.
- Sprinkle cookies with a pinch of flaky sea salt for extra flavor!
Instructions
Step 1 (Picture 1 above)–Melt or brown the butter. To brown butter, melt it in a medium skillet over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir frequently. The butter will get bubby and then it will get quiet and turn an amber color. When the butter reaches this stage, remove it from the heat. Pour into a bowl and set aside til no longer warm.
Step 2 (Picture 2 above)–Spread the oats and walnuts out on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 F for 8-10 minutes. Stir once. Allow to cool then pick out the nuts and chop them.
Step 3 (Picture 3 above)–In a large bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla.
Step 4 (Picture 4 above)–Stir in the dry ingredients with a spatula til just combined then stir in the cranberries and walnuts. Do not over mix. Chill uncovered in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Step 5 (Picture 5 above)– Scoop cookie dough with a medium cookie scoop. Roll into a ball then set a few inches apart on the baking sheet. Gently press down to about 1/2 an inch thickness. Put the rest of the dough in the fridge.
Step 6 (Picture 6 above)–Bake at 350 F for 10-12 minutes til the middles are puffed and edges are golden brown.
Expert Tips
Tip #1: Spoon the flour into your measuring cup. If you dredge the measuring cup into the flour, the flour will become compact. This can lead to dry cookies.
Tip # 2: Cool butter to room temperature before using.
Tip #3: Don’t skip the chill time. Chilling the cookie dough for 30 minutes keeps the oatmeal cranberry and walnut cookies from spreading too much when they bake.
Tip #4: Do not overbake. The cookies will look a little underdone when you take them out, but keep in mind that the cookies will continue to bake when they’re out of the oven.
Tip #5: Add a pinch of flaky sea salt to the freshly baked cookies.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Swap in a 1-to-1 all purpose gluten free baking flour (such as Bob’s Red Mill) and gluten free old fashioned oats.
Your cookies could have been overbaked or you may have used too much flour. Be sure to measure your flour accurately. Also, keep in mind that cookies will firm up and set up as they cool on the baking sheet.
Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
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Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted or browned, see instructions
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil optional
- 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats old fashioned or whole rolled oats
- ½ cup walnuts toasted then chopped
- ½ cup dark brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (110 grams) all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Melt or brown the butter. To brown it, add butter to a medium skillet set over medium heat. Stir occasionally as the butter melts. Once melted, reduce heat to medium-low. Continue cooking the butter, stirring frequently. The butter will get foamy and bubbly then it will get quiet and turn an amber color and will have a nutty aroma. You'll also see brown bits start to form on the bottom. This browning will take around 4-6 minutes once the butter has melted. When the butter reaches this stage, remove it from the heat. Pour the brown butter into a small heat proof bowl. Set aside to cool til no longer warm to the touch.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Spread oats and walnuts on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 8-10 minutes, stirring once. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Once cooled, chop walnuts.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla.
- Stir in the dry ingredients with a spatula til just combined then stir in the cranberries and walnuts. Do not over mix. Chill uncovered in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- While the dough chills, preheat the oven to 350º Fahrenheit and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop cookie dough with a medium cookie scoop. Roll dough into a ball then set a few inches apart on the baking sheet. Gently press down to about 1/2 an inch thickness. Put the rest of the dough in the fridge.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes til the middles are puffed and edges are golden brown. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Please note that nutritional values are created by an online calculator and should only be used as an estimate.
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