These delicious and easy-to-make walnut oatmeal cranberry cookies are filled with the rich flavors of brown butter, walnuts, oats, and cranberries. They’re made without without a mixer and are perfect for fall, just like my cozy chai bars recipe!
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These cookies have that classic oatmeal cookie chew everyone loves, but with a few upgrades! Dried cranberries are chewy and tart and they brighten every bite.
Toasted walnuts add a nutty crunch that makes the texture even better. If you love baking with nuts, make sure to try my chocolate chip with pecan cookies!
Brown butter is the secret here. It only takes a few extra minutes but adds nutty, rich flavor, just like in my pumpkin and chocolate cookies.
If you’re looking for more fall cookie recipes, try my 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.
- 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
- Add a little nutmeg and or cardamom in addition to cinnamon for extra cozy flavor.
- For gluten free cookies, 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 to make them extra delicious!
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, pour into a bowl and set aside til no longer warm.
Step 2 (Picture 2 above)–Spread the oats and nuts 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, vanilla and olive oil (if using).
Step 4 (Picture 4 above)–Stir in the dry ingredients til just combined then add 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
- Too much flour or oats can make cookies heavy and dry. The best way to measure is with a kitchen scale. If you don’t have one, gently spoon them into the cup and level off. Don’t scoop or pack it down.
- Don’t skip the chill time. Chilling the cookie dough for 30 minutes keeps the oatmeal cranberry and walnut cookies from spreading too much.
- Don’t overbake. The cookies will look a little underdone when you take them out but they’ll continue to bake when they’re out of the oven.
- 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 and gluten free old fashioned oats.
Yes. Chill the cookie dough for at least 30 minutes. This will keep the cookies from spreading too much and will make them thicker.
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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Walnut Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter melted or browned, see instructions
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil optional
- 1 cup (81 g) old fashioned rolled oats old fashioned or whole rolled oats
- ½ cup (58 g) walnuts toasted then chopped
- ½ cup (110 g) dark brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (110 g) all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup (60 g) 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, olive oil (if using), sugars, egg, 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.
Marie Nixon
The cookies are delicious.
I have 3 issues with the recipe as written..
1) The ingredient listing for the grams of All purpose flour says:
“3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (110 grams) ( 110 g) all purpose flour”
I believe the 2nd (110 g) refers to the 2 Tablespoons of all purpose flour. In that case the text should be “15 grams)” Big difference!
2) The recipe lists Olive Oil as an optional ingredient but the instructions do not list when the Olive Oil is used, if the baker chooses to use it. I believe it should be added to the list on the step that says “In a large bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla.” I would suggest this sentence be modified to include ‘olive Oil, if using
3) When I saved this recipe to my online cookbook I use, I removed the word ‘Easy” from the title. IMO, this is not an easy cookie recipe what with the making of brown butter, the toasting of oatmeal and nuts and then refrigerating the dough for 30 minutes before backing. I use the Nestle Toll House Cookie recipe as a guide for an “Easy” cookie recipe. This Walnut Oatmeal Cranberry recipe is much more involved than what I would consider an “Easy” Cookie recipe.
I love the taste of the cookies and I’m glad I chose this recipe to make.
Thank you,
Marie Nixon
Natalie Ward
Hi Marie, Thank you for making these cookies and for taking the time to leave such detailed, helpful feedback! You were right about the olive oil and the flour, and I’ve updated both in the recipe card. I really appreciate you catching those and I apologize for any confusion. As for the word “Easy” in the title, that’s a fair point and something I’ll think about. So glad you loved the cookies! 😊 Have a nice day! -Natalie
Kate
What a great cookie & the amount of sugar is just right. I was afraid they might be bland but, no. I like the hearty mix of ingredients. I used 1 cup of flour to make them thicker & 3/4 cup oatmeal. I did not toast the oatmeal or walnuts. Maybe next time!
Natalie
Hi Kate! Thanks so much for making these cookies. I love how you described them and so happy you enjoyed them. Thanks for sharing your recipe notes and excited for you to make them again (maybe with the toasted walnuts :)! Hope you enjoy your day! -Natalie
Kim
They are the bomb! The best cookies I’ve ever made!
Natalie
Hi Kim, Awww love to hear that! Thanks so much for making these cookies and for taking the time to comment! Happy holidays!