Irresistibly chewy and loaded with plump cranberries, these Sourdough Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies are a flavor-packed indulgence. The combination of tart cranberries, rich white chocolate, nutty brown butter with the subtle tang from sourdough, creates an utterly crave-able combination. The best part about this recipe is it can be made in one bowl for a quick and easy treat.
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Twist to classic oatmeal cookies
A festive twist on my favorite Sourdough Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, these cookies are a favorite in our house! This recipe was inspired by my bf who greatly prefers dried cranberries over raisins. Loaded with juicy, tart cranberries that complement the sweetness of white chocolate and brown sugar, I know your family will love them just as much.
If you love oatmeal cookies, try the most popular sourdough cookie recipe of 2023, classic Sourdough Oatmeal Cookies.
Why I love this recipe
- All-mixed by hand, no special equipment needed.
- Makes delicious cookies packed with oatmeal!
- Brown butter adds a nutty, caramel-like flavor.
- Sourdough complements the sugary sweetness.
- Sourdough adds moisture keeping these cookies tasting fresh for longer.
- Juicy cranberries and rich white chocolate in every bite.
Love sourdough cookies? Check out my recipes for Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies, Sourdough Crinkle Cookies, Sourdough Chocolate Cookies and Sourdough Lemon Cookie Pies.
What you need
Old-fashioned oats: This recipe was tested using old-fashioned oats. Don’t use quick oats or steel-cut oats as this will drastically change the texture of your cookies.
All-purpose flour: the low protein content of all-purpose gives these cookies their chewy, tender texture, don’t substitute another type of flour, such as whole wheat in this recipe as it would affect the texture of the cookies
Sourdough discard: feel free to use your sourdough discard directly from the fridge, if you don’t have any discard add 56 grams of flour and 56 grams of water to the recipe
Oil: Helps these cookies maintain their chewy consistency, you can use any type, as long as it’s a neutral-flavored oil.
Dried cranberries: Both sweetened or unsweetened cranberries will work for this recipe. Do not use fresh or frozen cranberries. I use it to make my Cranberry Sourdough Bread, Cranberry Sourdough Muffins and Cranberry Orange Sourdough Biscotti.
White chocolate chips: Semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips are a great substitute. If you love white chocolate, try my recipe for Sourdough White Chocolate Ube Cookies.
See recipe card for detailed ingredient information.
Baking with Sourdough Discard
Sourdough discard adds a great tangy flavor to these sourdough oatmeal cookies. Conveniently, you can use your discard straight from the fridge without the need to activate or feed your sourdough starter since it won't be used for bread-making.
You can use older discard with a more pronounced acidity or use a freshly-fed sourdough starter. Both will yield delicious cookies, but offer a slightly distinct flavor.
Step-by-step instructions
STEP 1 Brown butter: Heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until it becomes fragrant, develops a nutty aroma, and takes on a light brown color. Bloom the cinnamon in the hot butter while it cools (image 1).
TIP: Let the brown butter cool completely before adding in the sugars. Using butter that is too warm may cause your cookies to melt and spread as they bake. Your butter should be around 70 to 80 F, and should thicken when whisked (image 2).
Cooling browned butter may take much longer than you think (sometimes up to 45 minutes)! To cool down browned butter quicker, put the mixing bowl on a larger bowl filled with ice. This speeds up the process and should only take about 10 to 15 minutes.
STEP 2 Make the cookie dough: Whisk in the sugars and wet ingredients (image 3). Fold the dry ingredients, including the oats into the dough (image 4). Add in the cranberries and white chocolate chips (image 5). Divide the dough using a cookie scoop into 3-tablespoon portions (image 6).
TIP: Set a few cranberries and white chocolate chips aside to top your cookies.
STEP 6 Bake: Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 375 for 10 to 12 minutes (image 7). For perfectly round cookies, use a large biscuit cutter (about 4.5 inches) and round them while they are still warm right out of the oven (image 8).
TIP: Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes. The cookies will not be fully set after you pull them out of the oven, and will continue to bake due to residual heat. This step is just as important to the process as baking and is what gives them their soft and chewy texture.
Baker's Tips
Weigh your ingredients: For the best results, use a kitchen scale to measure out your ingredients instead of using cups and tablespoons. It’s much more accurate and will increase your chances of success.
Test your leaveners for freshness: Baking powder and baking soda have a limited shelf life and will eventually lose their effectiveness. To see if yours still work, combine a pinch of baking powder with a drop of vinegar. If the mixture fizzes, then your leaveners will work.
Use a large cookie scoop: Using a cookie scoop to portion your dough evenly, ensures uniform sizes that bake consistently.
Don’t overcrowd your baking sheet: These cookies will spread and flatten during baking, so be sure to leave space between the dough to prevent them from sticking together.
Bake the cookies on the middle rack of the oven: I found in my testing that baking the dough on the bottom rack of the oven caused flatter cookies.
Use a light-colored baking sheet: Dark baking sheets retain more heat and may cause your cookies to over bake or even burn.
Don't overbake your cookies: When you remove the cookies from the oven, they might seem under baked even a little wet, and that's perfectly normal. No need to fret; the residual heat from the hot baking sheet will keep baking the cookies. Be cautious not to overbake them, as doing so could result in a hard and dry texture instead of the desired soft and chewy consistency.
Make ahead instructions
A few days ahead: This cookie dough can be made up to 3 days in advance, and will continue to develop flavors as they chill. After the folding in the cranberries and white chocolate chips, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until ready to use. When it's time to bake, roll out the cookies and follow the provided baking instructions.
Long-term storage: Portion out the cookie dough and arrange it on a parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer (no need to space them out). Freeze the baking sheet for at least 2 hours. Once the dough is completely frozen, transfer it into a zip-top plastic bag and store for up to 3 months.
To bake frozen cookie dough: Arrange cookie dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet with room to spread. Bake at 375 for 18 to 20 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
The flavor of discard depends on your unique starter. Older discard will have a tangier, acidic flavor than freshly-fed sourdough starter. In my experience sourdough added a delicious tang that doesn’t overpower the flavor of lemon.
Absolutely! You can make the cookie dough up to 3 days in advance. Portion out your cookie dough and refrigerate them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet covered with plastic wrap.
Several factors could be causing your cookies to turn out flat. Here are some tips to prevent flat cookies:
1. Use old-fashioned rolled oats not quick oats or steel-cut oats.
2. Ensure your butter cools completely to prevent the sugars from melting.
3. Do not bake the cookies on the bottom rack.
4. Make sure your baking soda is still fresh and viable.
5. Use a 100% hydration sourdough discard to maintain the intended moisture content of this recipe.
6. Use a biscuit cutter to round out your cookies and get rid of scraggly edges.
These cookies last about 7 days stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
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Cranberry Oatmeal Sourdough Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- 3 18 by 13 baking sheet
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Ingredients
- 113 grams unsalted butter
- 4 grams cinnamon ground
- 150 grams brown sugar
- 100 grams cane sugar
- 56 grams oil neutral-flavored
- 1 egg
- 113 grams sourdough discard
- 6 grams vanilla extract
- 120 grams all-purpose flour
- 4 grams baking soda
- 5 grams salt
- 245 grams old-fashioned oats
- 100 grams dried cranberries
- 100 grams white chocolate chips
Click US Customary to view volume measurements
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 375 F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Brown butter: Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat the butter until it begins to smell nutty and turns the color of graham crackers, about 5 minutes. Transfer the butter to a large mixing bowl, add the spices, and allow the mixture to cool completely.113 grams unsalted butter, 4 grams cinnamon
- Stir in the sugars: Whisk in the sugars until completely incorporated. It may look a little grainy, but this is totally normal.150 grams brown sugar, 100 grams cane sugar
- Make the dough: Add in the sourdough discard, egg, oil and vanilla, whisk until the discard has completely dissolved.56 grams oil, 1 egg, 113 grams sourdough discard, 6 grams vanilla extract
- Fold in the dry ingredients. Stir the mixture using a spatula until no dry bits of flour remain.120 grams all-purpose flour, 4 grams baking soda, 5 grams salt, 245 grams old-fashioned oats
- Add mix-ins: Fold in the cranberries and chocolate chips until everything is well distributed.100 grams dried cranberries, 100 grams white chocolate chips
- Portion out the dough: Using a large cookie scoop, portion out the dough (3-tablespoon portions) and place them on the prepared baking sheet, at least 2 inches apart to allow them to spread. Flatten the cookies lightly.
- Bake: Bake the baking sheets one at a time for 12 to 14 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned, the tops of the cookies may still look wet. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet, for about 5 minutes. Don’t move your cookies too soon or they will break apart.
- Enjoy and store: Enjoy them warm, once the cookies have set completely. These cookies get even better once they have cooled completely and their flavor has fully developed. Store leftover cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Tips
These recipes were developed and tested using grams for precise measurements. To increase your chances of success, I recommend investing in a kitchen scale. I've included rough volume estimates (in tablespoons and cups), but they might not be totally accurate.
Remember all ovens are unique, these recipes were tested in my oven which runs cooler than others. You might need to lower the temperature if your bake appears to be browning too quickly. Monitor your bake closely and make adjustments if needed.
Notes
- Space out the dough on the cookie sheets to allow them to spread.
- Only bake 1 baking sheet at a time and do not use the bottom rack.
- Do not overbake these cookies or they will turn out hard and dry instead of soft and chewy.
- Your cookies won’t be fully set after you take them out of the oven, let them cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before moving them to a wire rack.
- If you don’t have a sourdough discard, but still want to try out this recipe, simply add 56 grams of all-purpose flour and 56 grams of water to your cookie dough.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist or dietitian, any nutrition information provided is an estimate.
Jan says
Hi!
This recipe appears to be just what I was looking for. I used to make cookies like this w/o discard and went looking for a version using discard and found yours! Thank you!
Wondering what you think, or if you have tried, subbing applesauce for the oil?
Thanks!
Hannah Dela Cruz says
No! I've never tried applesauce in cookies. It might add too much moisture which would cause your cookies to spread.
Laura says
Hi! Wondering if you have tried any with fresh cranberries?
Hannah Dela Cruz says
I've never tried these with fresh cranberries but I think they would add too much moisture to the dough and would cause the cookie to spread out too much.
Candice says
I am so glad I found your website! All of your recipes I've tried have been incredible, especially these cookies! I really appreciate you putting these recipes out here for free. Thanks for being amazing! Note for other bakers: I was out of eggs so I made an "egg" out of chia seeds and some water and it worked wonderfully.
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Ooh I'm so glad to hear the egg substitute worked well for this recipe! Thank you for your feedback!
Amy R says
These cookies are delicious. I added coconut, pecans, mini M&M's, cranberries, oatmeal, white vanilla chips. I did not adjust anything else. There are many combinations that could be added. I recently dried strawberries and will try adding those next time. I will definitely add this recipe to my book.
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Wow these loaded cookies sound incredible!
Eva says
Made these last week using the sourdough discard from my husband's bread making, and as a family of four (two pre-teens), we ate 12 of the cookies within 3 days, they were that good!
I followed the recipe as printed, using gram measurements (which I prefer for baking), and the only deviation was I subbed out the white chocolate with pecans, they still came out perfect. I scooped out the remaining batter and froze them so we can bake these up when we want a warm, fresh, out of the oven cookie.
I'm glad to have found a tasty (non-bread) use for the discard, this one's definitely a keeper and will be on rotation in our house. Excited to try the Sourdough Discard Apple Muffins with Streusel Topping recipe today. Thank you Hannah for sharing a lovely recipe, so glad I discovered your site.
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Thank you for your feedback! Loved that the recipe worked for you!