Cranberry Orange Cookies

Cranberry Orange Cookies are soft, chewy, and bursting with holiday flavor. Fresh cranberries and bright orange zest make every bite tangy, sweet, and festive. Perfect for cookie swaps, gifting, or enjoying with a warm mug of cocoa.

Love More Cookies Desserts? Try My Chewy Blueberry Cookies or this Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

These cookies perfectly capture the cozy flavors of the holidays, with tart cranberries balanced by bright orange. Soft, chewy, and easy to make without any complicated steps, they’re a reliable favorite even for those who don’t usually bake. Perfect for sharing at parties, swaps, or with neighbors—just be ready for everyone to ask for the recipe!

Print

Ingredient List

Real ingredients that won’t break your budget:

• 1 cup butter, softened (leave it out for two hours or you’ll hate yourself later)
• 1 cup white sugar (regular sugar, nothing fancy)
• 1 large egg (room temperature if you remember, cold if you don’t)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (the cheap stuff works fine)
• 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice (squeeze it yourself or buy the carton)
• 2 teaspoons orange zest (use a cheese grater if that’s what you’ve got)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (King Arthur if you’re feeling fancy, store brand if you’re like me)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup dried cranberries (Craisins work, whatever’s on sale works better)

When you’re out of stuff:

• No fresh cranberries? Good, dried ones are easier anyway
• No orange? Lemon works but don’t tell Grandma Betty
• Out of vanilla? Skip it, these have enough flavor without it
• Want them less tart? Add some mini chocolate chips and call it fusion cooking

Why These Ingredients Work

Butter and sugar creamed together make these cookies chewy instead of crunchy – don’t rush this part or you’ll get hockey pucks. Orange juice keeps them moist for days, and orange zest is where all the good smell comes from. Those cranberries add the perfect amount of sour to balance out all that sugar. Honestly, I don’t know why it works but it does.

Essential Tools and Equipment

You’ll need:

• Two mixing bowls (or one if you’re lazy like me)
• Electric mixer (hand mixer from 1995 works fine)
• Cookie sheets (mine are warped but whatever)
• Parchment paper (saves your sanity during cleanup)
• Wire racks for cooling (or clean dish towels)
• Something to zest with (microplane, cheese grater, potato peeler in desperate times)
• Cookie scoop or regular spoon

How To Make Cranberry Orange Cookies

Step 1: Get Your Oven Ready

Heat it to 350°F and line your cookie sheets with parchment paper. I learned this the hard way after scraping burned cookie bottoms off my pans for an hour last Christmas Eve.

Step 2: Beat the Butter and Sugar

Cream them together for about four minutes until it looks fluffy and pale. My arm used to get tired doing this by hand, then my sister got me a $20 hand mixer that changed my life.

Step 3: Add Everything Wet

Beat in the egg, vanilla, orange juice, and zest. The smell alone will make your mouth water. If it doesn’t smell amazing, you probably forgot the zest.

Step 4: Mix in the Dry Stuff

Whisk your flour, baking powder, and salt in another bowl, then slowly add it to your wet mixture. Don’t dump it all in at once unless you want flour everywhere including your hair.

Step 5: Fold in the Cranberries

Gently mix in those cranberries like you’re handling something precious. I used to stir too hard and ended up with purple cookie dough that looked like Play-Doh.

Step 6: Drop and Space

Scoop spoonfuls onto your pans with about two inches between each cookie. They spread out while baking, and merged cookies are sad cookies.

Step 7: Bake Them Right

Ten to twelve minutes until the edges look golden but the centers still seem a little raw. Don’t overbake these or they’ll turn into cardboard. I set two timers because I have ADHD and forget things.

Step 8: Cool Without Crying

Let them sit on the hot pan for five minutes before moving them to cooling racks. Moving them too soon makes them fall apart, and nobody has time for broken cookie drama.

You Must Know

Your butter needs to be actually soft, not melted and not rock hard. I stick mine on top of the fridge in the morning and it’s perfect by afternoon. Cold eggs crack your butter mixture, so leave that out too if you remember.

My secret trick: I zest the orange directly into the sugar bowl before measuring. All those oils get mixed right in and make everything smell incredible.

Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

• Don’t overbake these suckers – they keep cooking on the hot pan even after you take them out
• Chill your dough if it’s too sticky to handle, about twenty minutes in the fridge
• Use a cookie scoop if you want them all the same size, but honestly who cares
• Rotate your pans halfway through if you have a crappy oven like mine that heats unevenly
• Room temperature ingredients mix better, but I forget half the time and they still turn out fine

Flavor Variations & Suggestions

Want to mess around with the recipe? Try these:

• White chocolate cranberry: Add half a cup of white chocolate chips because chocolate makes everything better
• Spiced up: Throw in some cinnamon and nutmeg if you’re feeling fancy
• Lemon version: Use lemon instead of orange – different but still good
• Cherry orange: Dried cherries instead of cranberries work great too
• With glaze: Mix powdered sugar and orange juice for a drizzle on top

Make-Ahead Options

Make the dough up to three days ahead and keep it covered in the fridge. Let it warm up for fifteen minutes before scooping or it’ll be too hard to work with. You can also freeze balls of dough on a tray, then toss them in freezer bags for up to three months. Bake them straight from frozen – just add a minute or two extra.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

• Orange zest hack: Only scrape the colored part – the white stuff underneath tastes bitter and will ruin your day
• Hard cranberries? Soak them in warm water for ten minutes, then pat them dry with paper towels
• High altitude baking: Cut the baking powder down to 3/4 teaspoon if you live in the mountains like my sister

Serving Suggestions

These work for:

• Cookie swaps (they always go first)
• Coffee dates with friends
• Lunch box treats that make you the cool mom
• Gift giving in mason jars tied with ribbon
• Midnight snacking with a glass of milk

I like putting them on my grandmother’s glass cake stand with some orange slices around the edge. Makes them look fancy even though they’re dead simple to make.

How to Store Your Cranberry Orange Cookies

Keep these in an airtight container on your counter for up to a week, assuming they last that long in your house. For longer storage, freeze them in freezer bags for up to three months. They thaw out perfectly and taste just as good as fresh.

Want them warm again? Stick them in a 300°F oven for about five minutes. Makes them taste like you just baked them.

Allergy Information

Contains: Wheat, eggs, dairy (the usual suspects) Gluten-free: Use Cup4Cup or whatever gluten-free flour blend you trust Dairy-free: Earth Balance butter substitute actually works pretty well here Egg-free: Mix one tablespoon ground flaxseed with three tablespoons water, let it sit five minutes until gooey

Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Can I use fresh cranberries instead?

Sure, but chop them up first and add an extra tablespoon of sugar. Fresh ones are really tart.

My cookies are spreading too much, what gives?

Your butter was probably too warm, or your kitchen is hot. Chill the dough for thirty minutes and try again.

I don’t have orange zest, now what?

Orange zest is really what makes these special. You could try a teaspoon of orange extract but it won’t be the same.

💬 Made these? Tell me how they turned out! I love hearing about your baking adventures, especially when things go hilariously wrong.