You may know these oatmeal craisin cookies as Hooty Creeks. I've made them even better with a quick dip in chocolate!
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❤️ Why you'll love it
- Simple to Make - They're simple to whip up when you need a chewy and chocolaty cookie.
- Beautiful - Huge chunks of white chocolate, cranberries, and oats in this craisin cookies recipe which is dipped in more chocolate.
- They stay fresh during shipping!
- Perfect gathering - A great gathering cookie (holiday cookie exchange, maybe?) as they can be made ahead of time, freezing well.
Don't overcook them - 8 ½ minutes is just about right. Take the cookies out when they are just barely done and the centers will continue to cook as they cool.
🧾 Ingredients
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- unsalted butter
- dark brown sugar
- sugar
- egg
- vanilla extract
- orange extract
- orange zest
- all-purpose flour
- baking soda
- baking powder
- salt
- old fashioned oats
- dried cranberries
- pecans
- white chocolate chips
- vanilla candy coating
🔪 Instructions
Note: This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the green recipe card below.
- Heat oven to 350F. Cream together butter and sugar, then add in egg, Tripe Sec (or orange extract) and vanilla extract.
- Blend in the dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix until combined.
- Mix together oats, cranberries, pecans and white chocolate chips, then add to the flour mixture.
- Drop onto a prepared baking sheets by teaspoon fulls and bake.
🥄 Equipment
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You'll need the following items to make this recipe successfully.
🥫 Storage
Once your hooty creek cookies have cooled completely move them to an airtight container and store them in a cool dry place for up to one week.
These cookies can also be frozen for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe bag or container. Just don't glaze them before you put them in the freezer.
📖 Variations
- White Chocolate, Strawberry & Almond Cookies - Replace cranberries with dried strawberries and replace oatmeal with sliced almonds.
- White Chocolate, Apricot & Macadamia Nut Cookies - Replace cranberries with chopped dried apricots and replace oatmeal with toasted (skinned) macadamia nuts.
- Oatmeal Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies - Replace white chocolate chunks with dark or milk chocolate for a chocolately twist on this recipe.
- Light brown sugar will give you a slightly different flavor.
💭 Tips
Expert Tip: I like to use white chocolate chips instead of chopped white chocolate as I find they melt more evenly throughout the cookie.
- The dough will be sticky due to the cranberries, but don't worry your white chocolate cranberry cookies recipe will still be the perfect texture.
- Don't overcook! The tops should still be a touch under
- You can also freeze baked cookies in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks.
- If you want softer cranberries in your cookies, soak the dried cranberries in warm water for 10 minutes, drain well and pat dry. The moisture will really soften the cranberries.
- Keep your cookie dough balls about the same size for even baking.
- Use old fashioned oats or quick oats in this recipe, not instant oatmeal.
👩🍳 FAQs
Cookies should be baked for 8-9 minutes.
The dough does not need to be chilled before baking.
The cookies are ready when they begin to look puffed and set, but still appear very soft and fragile.
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🍽️ Serve with...
I like to put these on a holiday cookie tray with:
- Chocolate covered cherries are an update on the traditional ones. I soak the cherries in bourbon then dip in chocolate. SO yummy!
- Classic cranberry cookies are made with fresh cranberries and orange.
- Of course, decorated sugar cookies are a must!
- For the adults add a steaming cup of this spiked Mexican hot chocolate.
These are probably my favorite white chocolate chip cookies, ever. The chewy centers and crispy edges get me every time!
Give them a try and let me know what you think.
Next time try these chewy cinnamon cookies.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need. Don't forget that you can click on "add to collection" to save it to your own, private recipe box!
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Cranberry Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies
Print Pin Recipe SaveEquipment Needed
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup pure cane sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon Triple Sec, or ¼ teaspoon orange extract
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups old fashioned oats, uncooked
- 1 ½ cups dried cranberries, usually called craisins
- 1 cup pecans, chopped and toasted
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 12 oz vanilla candy coating, often called "candy melts"
- Holiday sprinkles as desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Beat butter and sugars together until well combined.
- Beat in egg, Triple Sec or orange flavoring, and vanilla extract and beat well.
- Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, orange zest, and salt.
- Mix until combined.
- Mix oats, cranberries, pecans, and white chocolate chips.
- Add oat mixture to flour mixture and blend well.
- Place heaping teaspoon-sized balls of cookie dough onto a Silpat lined cookie sheet.
- Bake 8-9 minutes.
- Do not over bake. They'll look a little undercooked when you take them out.
- Let cookies cool.
- Once cookies are cool, melt the coating in a bowl in the microwave. It takes about 2 minutes.
- Dip cookies, one at a time, into the glaze.
- Sprinkle with holiday sprinkles, colored sugar, or whatever you like.
Notes
- The dough will be sticky due to the cranberries, but don't worry your white chocolate cranberry cookies recipe will still be the perfect texture.
- Don't overcook! The tops should still be a touch underdone for the chewiest cookies.
- You can also freeze baked cookies in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks.
- If you want softer cranberries in your cookies, soak the dried cranberries in warm water for 10 minutes, drain well and pat dry. The moisture will really soften the cranberries.
- Keep your cookie dough balls about the same size for even baking.
- Use old fashioned oats or quick oats in this recipe, not instant oatmeal.
Nutrition Facts
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December 1, 2014
Cranberry oatmeal white chocolate cookies are as much a mouthful to say as they are to eat. You might also know them as Hooty Creeks.
Chewy oatmeal cookies with a crispy edge are filled with tangy dried cranberries, buttery toasted pecans, rich white chocolate chips, and a burst of citrus flavor from a combination of Triple Sec and orange zest.
As Kyrie would say, "Boom, y'all!"
My mom did not bake except at Christmas so growing up the lowliest cookie was considered a holiday cookie.
Oatmeal, chocolate chip - whatever she made meant Christmas was on its way! These cookies are in that category.
They are perfect in lunch boxes all year long, although I'd leave off the glaze. With the glaze and the sprinkles they make a wonderful addition to any cookie tray at Christmas.
I am picky about texture.
I like a good, chewy cookie with crispy edges. I can promise you that unless I tell it differently every drop cookie recipe on this blog will have that same texture.
I work for it because by golly if I am going to nosh down a couple of hundred empty calories they'd better be delicious ones. These are.
The dried cranberries keep them moist so they travel well.
This batch will be split up and heading for Las Vegas, Virginia Beach, and Okinawa, Japan. I've sent cookies with dried fruit to far off places before -- Korea, Iraq, Misawa... so I am feeling pretty good about them arriving OK.
It takes 11 days for a box to get from Dallas to Okinawa so I try to make things that will stay fresh.
Cookies with dried fruit are almost always a great choice because the dried fruit releases moisture.
Flavor-wise these are like your favorite oatmeal cookies with a slightly caramel flavor from the brown sugar. The cranberries keep them from being too sweet and the citrus just makes them taste fresh.
If you don't want to use Triple Sec then just use about ¼ teaspoon of orange extract. You want it to be a hint of flavor.
I have made this recipe for years but this year I tweaked it and dipped half in chocolate after they were cool.
First published December 1, 2014. Last updated November 26, 2021 for better images and reader experience overall.
Sarah Walker Caron (Sarah's Cucina Bella)
LOVING all the flavors in these cookies! YUM!
Marye Audet
Thanks Sarah!
Kirsten/ComfortablyDomestic
With all of the flashy Christmas cookies around this time of year, sometimes it's nice to see a cookie that's like an old, familiar friend. The white chocolate and sprinkles are sure to bring a little festive cheer to the recipients of your shipments.
Marye Audet
I totally agree! Thank you!
Joanie @ Zagleft
Dried cranberries in cookies are so good! I love how festive these look too.
Kimberly Ann @ Bake Love Give
I love that these are so festive - both in their flavor and decorations!
Dee Dee (My Midlife Kitchen)
I assume many of these are headed to those who serve. My husband is one of those, and when he's been overseas I've loved sending treats like these his way. Of course, I would have to keep a few of these particular cookies at home, just for quality control of course. :o)
Karen @ The Food Charlatan
Isn't it funny how we all have our own special chewy texture that we are going for? These cookies have all my favorite things in them!!
allie @ Through Her Looking Glass
Gorgeous cookies Marye and great to know they send well! I love dried cranberries in anything. Boom!
Marye Audet
LOL! I do, too.