Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies (Gluten Free)

Name: Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 1 cup dried cranberries; hot water (enough to cover cranberries); 1 ½ cups gluten-free flour (see Notes); 1 teaspoon baking soda; ½ teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; ½ cup unsalted butter (at room temperature, cut into small pieces); ½ packed cup brown sugar; ⅓ cup granulated sugar; 2 large eggs (at room temperature); 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract; 2 ¼ cups old-fashioned oats (or rolled oats)

Cheryl Malik Posted: 12/08/22 Updated: 02/11/25

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GF Gluten Free

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Chewy oatmeal cranberry cookies are a real treat. Equal parts stunning and delicious, they’re full of warm holiday flavors, all from a handful of pantry-staple ingredients. Bake them right away or freeze the dough for small-batch cookies whenever a craving strikes.

Overhead view of oatmeal cranberry cookies in a napkin-lined basket on a table.

What Makes This Recipe So Good

Oatmeal cranberry cookies absolutely SCREAM holidays. Warm cinnamon, rich brown sugar, sweet & tart cranberries, earthy oats. If you’re looking for something that’s festive AND nutritious, you’re in the right place. These are like oatmeal raisin cookies that are really channeling that Christmas spirit.
This recipe’s written to be gluten-free, but you’d never know from tasting the finished product. Your gluten-eating guests will absolutely love them, but if you don’t need them to be gluten free, feel free to use traditional all-purpose flour instead.
As written, this recipe makes at least 2 dozen cranberry oatmeal cookies. Perfect for parties, cookie exchanges, holiday gifts, or just snacking on a few while you’re cooking dinner. We won’t tell!

Overhead view of cranberry oatmeal cookie on a napkin next to a wooden spoon with cranberries and oats.

Chef’s Tips

Soaking the cranberries first is totally optional. We like to rehydrate them a little to make them more plump and moist. It also keeps them from soaking up moisture from the cookie dough, which will keep the cookies from being dry. Feel free to skip the soaking step and use the cranberries straight out of the package – they’ll have a texture that’s reminiscent of raisins.
Be careful not to overbake the cookies! They really don’t need long in the oven, and they should look a little underdone in the middles when you take them out. They’ll continue baking as they rest on the pan, so if you wait to take them out until they “look done”, you’ll end up with oatmeal cranberry pucks, not cookies.
To really put these cookies over the top, fold in half a cup of white chocolate chips. White chocolate and cranberry pair together SO WELL, it takes this already-incredible cookie recipe to a whole other level.

Can I Freeze These Cookies?

You can! All you need to do is prepare the recipe as written. Once you’ve rolled and flattened the cookie dough balls, put the cookie sheet in the freezer instead of the oven.

Freeze the cookies on the baking sheet for 30 minutes or so – once the cookies have hardened, you can transfer them to an airtight freezer container and freeze them until you’re ready for them. The frozen oatmeal cranberry cookie dough will keep up to 2 months in an airtight container.

When a cookie craving hits, there’s no need to thaw the dough first. Just take out the number of oatmeal cranberry cookies you want to make, line them up on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, and pop them in the oven. You’ll need to increase the bake time a little since they’re starting out cold, but they’ll bake up beautifully!