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These Dark Chocolate Cranberry Walnut Cookies are thick, chewy, and freezer friendly! Loaded with dried cranberries, crunchy walnuts, gooey chocolate chips, and just a touch of cinnamon. They’re sure to be the star of any holiday cookie tray!
Cranberry Walnut Cookies
Oh my gosh it’s been forever since I’ve posted a new recipe for you! But really, I can explain. I can tell you all about moving, and family drama, and the stress of writing a book…
or I can just say sorry and offer you ALL of these dark chocolate cranberry walnut cookies ↓
How to Make Chocolate Cranberry Walnut Cookies
I’m no prophet, but I feel like you’re probably voting for the cookie option! And I can’t blame you. These dark chocolate cranberry walnut cookies have it going on!
Each bite is:
- Thick and chewy! Because who doesn’t love a gooey center and crunchy edges, right?
- LOADED with chunks of dark chocolate, toasted walnuts, and dried cranberries! And trust me, the combination of gooey chocolate, crunchy walnuts, and tart cranberries is pure BLISS.
- Super flavorful thanks to brown butter, cinnamon, pure vanilla extract, and dark brown sugar.
And did I mention this recipe is freezer friendly, too? Because it is! Just scoop the cookie dough on a baking sheet, freeze until firm, and then bake as needed.
Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success:
- Make sure your oven is the correct temperature before you begin baking! You can check this by buying an oven thermometer and preheating your oven. If the thermometer doesn’t reach the temperature you set it at, you may need to get your oven calibrated.
- The browned butter must come back to room temperature before incorporating it into this recipe. Using liquefied butter will cause your cookies to spread and possibly burn.
- Although I don’t find chilling necessary for this recipe, you may refrigerate your cookie dough if you’d like! Just wrap it tightly and use it within 72 hours.
- And as I mentioned earlier, you may also freeze this cookie dough! Just scoop in onto a cookie sheet, freeze until firm, and place the cookie dough balls in a freezer bag for up to two months. You may need to add an extra minute or two onto the bake time when baking from a frozen state.
- Because I know some of you are allergic to nuts, I wanted to mentioned you can totally omit them from the recipe without making any other changes. And if you can eat nuts, but don’t like them, try using chopped pecans or even almonds instead!
I’ll be working hard in the kitchen for you this week! I have big pie goals and a cheesecake in the works, plus some candy experiments I hope to try over the weekend. So be sure to come back soon. Because we have lots of baking to do this Fall! But for now, I hope you enjoy these cookies… and your Wednesday!
If you try this recipe for Dark Chocolate Cranberry Walnut Cookies, let me know what you think! Leave a comment below, and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it #bakerbynature on instagram! Seeing your creations makes my day ♥
More Cranberry Cookie Recipes:
- Dark Chocolate Cranberry Orange Slice & Bake Cookies
- Chewy White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
- Cranberry White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Thick and Chewy White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies
- Whole Wheat Cranberry Ginger Chocolate Chip Cookies
Dark Chocolate Cranberry Walnut Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, melted until browned, and brought back to room temperature
- 2 and 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large egg plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 8 ounces high-quality dark chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt, for sprinkling, optional
Instructions
To brown the butter:
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat; continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. About 6 to 8 minutes, depending on your stove top.
- Remove pan from heat and scrape butter - and any golden bits - into a medium sized, heatproof bowl. Place bowl in the fridge until butter has come back to room temperature; about 1 hour and 30 minutes.
- You'll know it's ready when the butter is solid, but just soft enough that you can scrape it out of the bowl (use a strong metal spoon).
Make the cookies:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl combine flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda; whisk well to combine then set aside until needed.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, combine the chilled brown butter and both sugars; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in vanilla. Beat in egg and egg yolk, one at a time, beating until just combined, and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour, stirring until just combined. Fold in the chocolate, cranberries, and walnuts.
- Scoop 3 tablespoon sized rounds of dough onto the prepared sheet, leaving 2 inches in between each cookie for spreading. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes, or until edges are set and the center is still a little jiggly.
- Remove cookies from oven and sprinkle with sea salt, if using.
- Allow cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully transfer to a cooling rack. Repeat with remaining cookie dough.
Notes
- For decorative purposes, you can press extra chocolate chunks on top of the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven.
- Cookies will stay "fresh" for 3 days when stored in an airtight container.
- Cookie dough will keep in the fridge for 72 hours. Alternatively, you may scoop and freeze the cookie dough for up to 2 months. You will need to add an extra minute or two to the bake time if baking frozen dough.
- You can make smaller sized cookies, but you'll need to decrease the bake time by a minute or two.
I totally LOVE this recipe! I added a little bit of vanilla powder (1 tablespoon) and some toffee and cashew bits and it was amazing. I had to chill the dough overnight, though, ’cause it was too soft when I immediately baked it. This is a keeper 🙂
I made it following your exact recipe and they’re divine! I didn’t have any trouble with them being dry or spreading. New favorite fall treat. Thanks!!