Chewy Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Cookies

These oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies bake up thick; giving you chewy, soft cookies!  Made with cold butter, old fashioned oats, dried cranberry and walnuts.  This easy, no chill cookie recipe is perfect for Christmas cookie baking or anytime you are craving cookies.

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This oatmeal cranberry walnut cookie recipe is for all the oatmeal cookie lovers! They have the perfect soft chewiness from the oats and dark brown sugar.  I don't even buy light brown sugar anymore.  It's one of my baking secrets. 🤫 Trust me on this one; it makes all your baked good taste just a little bit more special.

As someone who has been baking cookies for more decades than I care to admit, I know a thing or two about a good oatmeal cookie!  Ya’ll love my coconut oatmeal cookies and breakfast cookies {which would be delicious with cranberry and walnuts!} so I’m sharing all my secrets on how to make soft, thick and chewy cranberry walnut oatmeal cookies.

💗 why you will love these oatmeal cookies 

• Loaded with nuts ~ the addition of walnuts adds great texture and flavor!
• Soft and chewy ~ these cookies have soft middles and crispy edges.
• Classic nostalgic cookie vibes, perfect for Christmas or any day!

💭 how do you toast walnuts? And do I have to?

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Place the walnuts in a single layer on a parchment or aluminum foil lined baking sheet and place in the preheated oven for 6-8 minutes {I use my Breville countertop oven}.  Stir the nuts halfway through to help them toast evenly.

The short answer is no, you don’t have to toast the walnuts. BUT, toasting them takes out some of the natural bitterness in walnuts and adds richness to the chewy oatmeal cookies or cinnamon walnut coffee cake.

🛒 ingredients and substitutions

Please scroll to the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and baking directions.

All-purpose flour ~ adds structure to the cranberry walnut oatmeal cookies. If not using a kitchen scale, be sure to fluff the flour in the container; then spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a flat surface. I haven't tested it, but feel pretty confident a 1 to 1 gluten free flour substitute will work fine.

Baking soda ~ adds some lift and thickness to the cookies.

Butter ~ I prefer to bake with unsalted butter so I can control the saltiness.  If you only have salted butter, leave out the kosher salt.  The butter is used cold, just cut it into small cubes.

Kosher salt ~ helps balance the flavors and sweetness.  If you only have table salt, start with half the amount.

Cornstarch ~ my secret ingredient for thick oatmeal cookies!  If you don’t have cornstarch, you can leave it out with no other changes to the recipe.  The cookies will spread more and won’t be as thick.

Brown sugar ~ I prefer dark brown sugar, but light brown also works just fine.

Granulated sugar ~ adds sweetness and moisture to the cookies.

Eggs ~ two large eggs are needed, preferably at room temperature.

Vanilla ~ vanilla bean paste adds flavor to the cranberry walnut oatmeal cookies. You can substitute pure vanilla extract.

Old-fashioned rolled oats ~ use the spoon and level method to measure, if not using a scale. See the flour note above, if you don't know this method.

Dried cranberries ~ typically found with the nuts and dried fruit in the grocery store. I use sweetened dried cranberries.

Walnuts ~ I use premium California half walnuts {unsalted and unroasted} that I buy at Trader Joe's.

Pro tip ~ to quickly bring eggs to room temperature, place them in a bowl of warm tap water for 5-10 minutes.

🍪 how to make soft oatmeal cookies

Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare baking sheet pans with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Toast the walnuts on a parchment or aluminum foil lined baking pan for 5-8 minutes. Allow the nuts to cool and chop into small pieces before making the cookies.

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat the cold and cubed butter and kosher salt on medium-high until softened. Scrape up and down the bowl.

Then add the dark brown and granulated sugars and mix on low until incorporated, then turn up to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, stop and scrape the bowl at least once during this time.

Scrape down your bowl and add pure vanilla extract the eggs, one at a time, mixing on medium until combined, about 30-45 seconds per egg. Scrape up and down your bowl again.

With the mixer on low, add the baking soda and cornstarch and mix on low for about 15-30 seconds, until fully combined. Then add the all-purpose flour and blend until some large streaks of flour remain.  Scrape up and down the bowl.

Add in the old-fashioned oats, toasted walnuts and dried cranberries and mix on low until just combined. Using a cookie scoop, place cookie dough on prepared baking sheet. Add a few walnut pieces or dried cranberries to the top of each cookie dough ball, if desired.

Bake 12-14 minutes, until edges are lightly browned, but centers still look soft and unset.

If the cookies are puffier then you would like use a flat bottomed glass or your clean hand to lightly press them down when they are hot out of the oven {use caution because they will be hot}. Allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

💬 frequently asked questions

why are my oatmeal cookies hard?

Oatmeal cookies need more moisture to stay soft.  These cranberry walnut cookies get extra moisture from the dark brown sugar.  You also want to be careful to not over measure your flour or old-fashioned rolled oats.

These oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies won't look "done" when in fact they really are. The middles may still look slightly uncooked, but they will finish cooking while they rest on the pan. If they look completely dry when you take them out of the oven, sadly they are over baked.

how do you get perfectly round cookies?

Remove the pan of baked cookies from the oven and use a large round biscuit cutter {this is the set I own} or glass/mug to “scoot” each cookie into a nice round cookie. This also creates a slightly thicker cookie. I learned this technique from Erin at Cloudy Kitchen.

👩🏻‍🍳 expert tips for the best chewy cookies

Follow the recipe ~ I develop recipes and test them multiple times, making lots of mistakes along the way. Once I am happy with a recipe, I test it a few more times to make sure it is consistent. Even one small change by you can change the outcome.

Hold some walnuts and dried cranberries aside to press on top of the cookies prior to baking to give them that bakery style look.

Use a scale to measure your ingredients.  I know I say this all the time, but weighing your ingredients is the most accurate and will give the best results. This is the scale I use in my kitchen and if your budget is tight, this Escali scale is also fantastic!

Use real butter, not margarine for the best tasting cookies.

Do not grease your cookie pans, which can make your cookies spread more. Use parchment paper or silicone baking mats instead.

Don't over bake the cookies! You want to remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are set and the middle is still a little soft, even a little raw looking for cranberry walnut oatmeal cookies.  They will continue to bake and set up as they cool.

Remember to pin this recipe to Pinterest! Use the button on the recipe card or the share buttons on the side or bottom of this page.

 💡 variation ideas

Add chocolate ~  You can also add dark or white chocolate chips. Up to a half cup would be fine with no other changes.

Dried fruit ~ dried blueberries would be delicious in place of the cranberries!  Or if raisins are more your style, go with them.  Chopped dried cherries are also a solid choice.

Small batch ~ this recipe easily splits in half to yield a small batch of oatmeal cookies.

🫙 how to store

Cookies stay fresh in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Baked oatmeal cookies freeze well, in an airtight container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months.  This is by far my favorite way to store cookies for freshness. The cookies will thaw at room temperature in about 30 minutes.

Remember to snap a picture and tag me on Instagram if you make these Chewy Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Cookies. It warms my heart to see you bring these recipes to life! Thank you for being here and happy baking!

🍪 more no chill cookies

• Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Coconut Pecan Cookies
• Cherry Almond Cookies

If you make this recipe {or any recipe!} from two sugar bugs please come back and leave a review and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating.  I read every comment, and I LOVE hearing from you!

📖 recipe

Chewy Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Cookies

recipe created and tested by:

Tasia

These oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies bake up thick; giving you chewy, soft cookies!  Made with cold butter, old fashioned oats, dried cranberry and walnuts.  This easy, no chill cookie recipe is perfect for Christmas cookie baking or anytime you are craving cookies.

5 from 9 votes

I highly recommend using weight (metric) measurements when available for more accuracy and the best results.

Please note

When using 2x or 3x ingredients, the grams in parenthesis DO NOT adjust, you will have to manually do that.

Print Recipe rate this recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Bake Time 14 minutes mins

Total Time 29 minutes mins

Course Cookies

Cuisine American

Servings 32 cookies*

Calories 178 kcal

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ ½ cup walnuts toasted (56g)
• ▢ 1 cup unsalted butter cold and cubed (226g)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 1 cup dark brown sugar firmly packed (200g)
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
• ▢ ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• ▢ 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (188g)
• ▢ 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (240g)
• ▢ ¾ cup dried cranberries (120g)

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare baking sheet pans with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Toast the walnuts (½ cup/56g) on a parchment or aluminum foil lined baking pan for 5-8 minutes. Allow the nuts to cool and chop into small pieces before making the cookies.
• In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat the cold and cubed butter (1 cup/226g) and kosher salt (½ teaspoon) on medium-high (speed 6 on KitchenAid) until softened, about 1-2 minutes. Scrape up and down the bowl.
• Then add the dark brown (1 cup/200g) and granulated (1 cup/200g) sugars and mix on low until incorporated, then turn up to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, stop and scrape the bowl at least once during this time.
• Scrape down your bowl and add pure vanilla extract (1 tablespoon) the eggs (2 large), one at a time, mixing on medium (speed 4) until combined, about 30-45 seconds per egg. Scrape up and down your bowl again.
• With the mixer on low, add the baking soda (½ teaspoon) and cornstarch (2 teaspoons) and mix on low for about 15-30 seconds, until fully combined. Then add the all-purpose flour (1 ½ cups/188g) and blend until a few large streaks of flour remain.  Scrape up and down the bowl. 
• Add in the old-fashioned oats (3 cups/240g), toasted and cooled walnuts (½ cup/56g) and dried cranberries (¾ cup/120g) and mix on low until just combined.
• Using a cookie scoop (I use a size 30 scoop).  Each cookie dough ball weighs 44g), place cookie dough on prepared baking sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. Add a few walnut pieces or dried cranberries to the top of each cookie dough ball, if desired.
• Bake 12-14 minutes, until edges are lightly browned, but centers still look soft and unset.
• If the cookies are puffier then you would like use a flat bottomed glass or your clean hand to lightly press them down when they are hot out of the oven (use caution because they will be hot). Allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

If using salted butter, omit the kosher salt.

If you only have table salt, start with half the amount.

The cornstarch can be left out with no other changes, but know the cookies may spread a little more.

Cookies stay fresh in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Baked oatmeal cranberry walnut cookies freeze well, in an airtight container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 cookieCalories: 178kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 2gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 61mgPotassium: 58mgFiber: 1gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 192IUVitamin C: 0.03mgCalcium: 16mgIron: 1mg

The nutrition information is based on third-party calculations, is an estimate only and may not be entirely accurate. Actual nutritional values will vary based on brands used and portion sizes.

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