Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies are really big cookies that are both crunchy and chewy. The crunchy comes from crispy rice cereal. The chewy comes from the brown sugar dough and sweet-tart dried cranberries. Add this delicious cookie to your baking list this holiday season!
Why you'll love this recipe
White chocolate and cranberry cookies are bursting with flavor and crunch. Creamy white chocolate is the perfect match for the tang of dried cranberries. Crispy rice cereal adds lots of crunch to the cookie dough.
These are great treats to store in the freezer unbaked. Then, make fresh baked cookies whenever you need them!
Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.
- With a stand mixer, cream butter, sugars, and orange zest until fluffy. Mix in the vanilla and eggs. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Combine with the butter mixture. Fold in the Craisins, chopped white chocolate, and cereal.
- Scoop the dough into balls and place on a wax paper lined baking sheet. Freeze for at least 2 hours.
- Frozen dough balls can be stored in the freezer, in a freezer weight ziplock bag.
- When ready to bake, bake desired number of dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet until golden.
Baking tips
- If you don’t have or don’t like Craisins, substitute with another dried fruit such as raisins, cherries, or currants.
- Instead of crispy rice cereal you can substitute with another crunchy cereal such as corn flakes, Chex, or Wheaties.
- For a sweet-salty mix, substitute potato chips for the crispy rice cereal. No need to crush the chips. Just add them to the mixer just as you would add the cereal. The chips will crush as the dough mixes.
- White chocolate chips can be used instead of chopped white chocolate, but they don't melt into the dough. For cookies developed for minimally melting white chocolate chips, try Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Cookies.
- Those who like nuts in their baked goods can add up to 1 cup of chopped or slivered nuts.
- These cookies are frozen before baking to keep them thick and rounded and to allow time for the flavors to develop. You can bake them without freezing. They will only spread a little bit but the flavor won’t be the same if the dough isn’t frozen. Also, the baking time will be shorter, 12-14 minutes.
- Though I prefer these very large (4 tablespoons of dough), they can be made smaller, but end up crunchier. Smaller cookies lose their chewiness faster. If you make them smaller, the baking time will be around 10 minutes.
Tips for gifting and shipping
- These cookies have a relatively short time that they remain soft and chewy. Over time they become only crunchy. To lengthen shelf life, wrap pairs in plastic wrap as soon as they are completely cool.
- For care package travel longer than 5 days, vacuum sealing is recommended. Vacuum sealing prolongs the shelf life to 2-3 weeks.
- For gifting locally, wrap pairs, with the bottoms together, in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped bundles in a cellophane bag and close with a twist tie or ribbon.
- These are also perfect cookies for Christmas cookie platters and holiday cookie trays.
Tools you may need
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My favorite baking sheets are Airbake cookie sheets. The insulated pans help keep the bottoms of the cookies from baking too quickly, allowing for even doneness inside and out.
I consider cookie scoops to be an essential baking tool. When your cookies are all the same size, they all are perfectly done at the same time. No more sheets of mixed over baked and under baked treats.
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I used a heaping large (3 tablepoon) scoop for the ¼ cup of dough for this recipe. I also recommend owning a medium (1 ½ tablespoons) and small (1 tablespoon) scoop.
Related recipes
If you love the cranberry and orange flavor combination in these cookies, next time try Ocean Spray Cranberry Orange Bread. This delicious quick bread is great for breakfast and snacking.
Banana Pudding Cookies are thick, chewy cookies with lots of banana flavor.
If you like thin, crisp cookies then Frosted Flakes Sugar Cookies will be your new favorite. These treats are rolled out on top of crushed cereal for a super crunch.
No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies are a great choice for times when you don't want to turn on the oven. Puffed cereal coated in chocolate is a cross between a cookie and candy.
How about a cookie recipe that lets you decide which cereal to use? Special Order Cereal Cookies can be made with your choice of cereal.
Steel Cut Oats Cookies are made with Irish oatmeal for an extra chewy texture and nutty flavor.
Chocolate Coconut Cookies are like a Mounds candy bar in cookie form. These soft, chewy brownie cookies have chocolate chips and shredded coconut inside!
My experience with this recipe
We've been getting our groceries delivered from Amazon Whole Foods delivery. Unfortunately, their stock is frequently low and their shoppers use computer generated substitutions.
Artificial intelligence makes a lousy grocery shopper. I requested 2 boxes of brown rice. To be fair, I did mark the box that allowed substitutions.
I foolishly thought that meant that I might end up with a different brand of rice or a different sized box. I understood that it was possible that I could end up with white rice or some other type of rice.
What I didn’t expect was to end up with 2 giant boxes of Crispy Brown Rice Cereal. We don’t eat cereal.
I had no choice but to make cereal cookies. They are so delicious that crispy rice cereal will now be standard on my grocery list! I strongly suggest you do the same.
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Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- ⅔ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ cups Craisins
- 6 oz. white chocolate chunks
- 3 cups crispy rice cereal
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and orange zest until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl
- Mix in the vanilla and eggs, one at a time, scraping in between additions.
- In a medium mixing bowl bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda.
- Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture on low speed, until combined
- Fold in the Craisins, white chocolate, and crispy rice cereal, until well distributed.
- Line a baking sheet with wax paper.
- Use a large cookie scoop (¼ cup/61 grams/ 2.2 ounces) to portion the dough and roll into balls.
- Place the cookie dough balls close together, but not touching on the cookie sheet.
- Place the filled cookie sheet in the freezer until the dough balls are frozen (about 2 hours).
- Once frozen, the dough balls can be placed in a freezer weight zip lock bag in the freezer until ready to bake.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375° F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the desired number of cookies on the cookie sheet 2”-3” apart.
- Bake for 13-16 minutes, or until they turn golden brown all over and are slightly undercooked in the center.
- Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days. These cookies will lose their chewiness over time.
Notes
- If you don’t have or don’t like Craisins, substitute with another dried fruit such as raisins, cherries, or currants.
- Instead of crispy rice cereal you can substitute with another crunchy cereal such as corn flakes, Chex, or Wheaties.
- For a sweet-salty mix, substitute potato chips for the crispy rice cereal. No need to crush the chips. Just add them to the mixer just as you would add the cereal. The chips will crush as the dough mixes.
- Those who like nuts in their cookies can add up to 1 cup of chopped or slivered nuts.
- These cookies are frozen before baking to keep them thick and rounded and to allow time for the flavors to develop. You can bake these cookies without freezing. They will only spread a little bit but the flavor won’t be the same if the dough isn’t frozen. Also, the baking time will be shorter, 12-14 minutes.
- Though I prefer these cookies very large, they can be made smaller, but end up crunchier. Smaller cookies lose their chewiness faster. If you make them smaller, the baking time will be around 10 minutes. Smaller cookies lose their chewiness faster.
- These cookies have a relatively short time that they remain soft and chewy. Over time they become only crunchy. To lengthen shelf life, wrap pairs of cookies in plastic wrap as soon as they are completely cool.
- For care package travel longer than 5 days, vacuum sealing is recommended. Vacuum sealing prolongs the shelf life to 2-3 weeks.
- For gifting locally, wrap pairs of cookies, with the bottoms together, in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped bundles in a cellophane bag and close with a twist tie or ribbon.
Nutrition
First Published: May 3, 2020. Last Updated: October 24, 2021. Updated for additional information, improved photographs, and better reader experience.
Pettia
I would love to try this recipe. May I sk what is crispy rice cereal.? Suggestions?
Wendy Sondov
Pettia, it would help me offer suggestions if I knew what country you live in. In the US/Canada you can buy brand name Rice Krispies (Kellogg's brand) or generic puffed rice cereal with the same texture. Not all generic puffed rice cereal has the same crisp, light texture that remains crunchy when baked in cookie batter.
Jane
These cookies are way too sweet and greasy. I followed the recipe exactly as written. I do like the o orange, cranberry and white chocolate flavor but I won’t be making g them again.
Wendy Sondov
Though these are a sweet cookie, they certainly shouldn't be greasy. As this is my favorite cookie, I make them often and they've never been greasy for me. The only thing I can think of is that the white chocolate you used provided additional additional fat and possibly the extra sweetness. I also wonder if you waited for the cookies to cool completely before reviewing them. High butter content cookies (like chocolate chip cookies for instance) often leave a greasy feel on your fingers and mouth when eaten warm.
frugal hausfrau
Wendy, I don't know how you come up with fabulous cookies week after week, year after year! The world is definitely a better place with you in it!
Hope you're staying safe and sound,
Mollie
Wendy Sondov
Oh, Molly! That is such a very kind thing to say! I really do appreciate it. It turns out that baking is my love language. 🙂 I feel so much more positive about the world when I've baked and and shared with others. Luckily there are enough cookie types and variations to keep me baking for a long time! I hope you and yours are doing well. Be safe and healthy!
Wendy