Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

This apple cranberry oatmeal cookie with walnuts makes for the perfect fall treat.

Fall brings fresh apples and tart cranberries. Pair these two fall flavors together with a dash of cinnamon for a delicious oatmeal cookie.

If you are looking for a fall cookie, I don’t think you could find one more suited for the season.

These cookies are best eaten the same day or possibly the next but they don’t stay fresh for long. Not that they would last that long anyway.

cookies on plate with apples and cranberries.

This is a delicate cookie with subtle flavors that will satisfy a hearty appetite.

In each bite of cookie, you get a bite of apple and the next a bite of cranberry. But always oatmeal.

With the addition of walnuts, this cookie is delightfully crunchy.

I especially like using walnuts over pecans, which is my nut of choice.

cookies with green apples next to it.

As in all of my recipes, I prefer to use real butter and vanilla. Using pure ingredients always make the cookies more flavorful. Not to mention, more wholesome.

plate of Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies with green apples and walnuts and oats on a table.

This is a sweater weather cookie that goes with sipping a cup of hot apple cider next to a roaring bonfire.

Or even bring to your next tailgate.

Substitutions Or Additions

If cranberries are not your favorite, you could use raisins instead.

For even more flavor, add some white chocolate chips. So, decadent. Or chocolate chips.

The Best Apple For Baking

Use a tart apple like Granny Smith for baking. They hold their shape the best when cooked.

I would recommend chopping the apples fairly small since they are going into a cookie. You want bites of apple but not too much.

Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies on a plate on table.

What type of oatmeal is best for cookies?

The three types of oatmeal are old fashioned, quick cooking and steel cut oats.

It is best to use old fashioned oats for a chewier oatmeal cookie. They are not precooked like instant oats are. But they are rolled for quicker cooking unlike steel cut oats. Old fashioned oats are what you want in a good cookie.

Quick cooking oats are meant for breakfast food.

They are the most processed of the three types of oatmeal.

When processed, quick cooking oats are cut into smaller pieces, so they don’t have much texture. They are also parboiled to enable them to cook faster.

So, If using quick cooking oats, you will end up with a cookie tasting like oatmeal without any substance. It will have a mushy consistency since the oats are already cooked. They would dissolve within the cookie batter.

Not what you want in a good, hearty oatmeal cookie.

Steel cut oats are the least processed of the three. However, they shouldn’t be used in a cookie since they wouldn’t cook completely during the short baking time. You would have a very hard cookie.

Enjoy this apple cranberry oatmeal cookie!

Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Cookie being  broken in half with two hands.
Several apple cranberry oatmeal cookies on a plate.

Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Carol
Fall brings fresh apples and tart cranberries. Pair these two fall flavors together with a dash of cinnamon for a delicious oatmeal cookie. This apple cranberry oatmeal cookie makes for the perfect fall treat.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 3 dozen

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ cup butter (softened)
  • 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1 ½ teaspoons real vanilla extract
  • 3 cups old fashioned oats
  • 1 cup Granny Smith apple (peeled and finely chopped)
  • 1 ½ cups dried cranberries
  • ½ cup walnuts (chopped)

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 375° F.
  • In a medium size bowl, whisk together (dry ingredients) all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.
    1 cup all-purpose flour, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 ¼ teaspoons cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, cream softened butter and brown sugar till light and fluffy. A hand mixer could be used instead.
    ½ cup butter, 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
  • Add milk, egg and vanilla to creamed mixture. Stir till combined.
    ¼ cup milk, 1 egg, 1 ½ teaspoons real vanilla extract
  • Slowly mix in dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Stir till just combined.
  • Stir in old fashioned oats, chopped apple, dried cranberries and walnuts.
    3 cups old fashioned oats, 1 ½ cups dried cranberries, 1 cup Granny Smith apple, ½ cup walnuts
  • Scoop dough by tablespoonful then drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. Keep them 2 inches apart.
  • Bake in 375° F oven for 15 minutes or till browned.
  • Transfer cookies to a cooling rack.
  • Store tightly covered for up to two days at room temperature.

Notes

Adapted from Taste of Home
Keyword apple, cinnamon, cookies, cranberry, oatmeal, walnuts
Did you make this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Fall Treats You’ll Love

apple cranberry oatmeal cookies on plate and a  broken apart cookie with two hands.

6 Comments

  1. I suggest making these cookies much bigger than a tablespoon and flattening them. They don’t settle while baking, Also you should almost mince the apples. These are very crumbly.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.