This is one of the best vegan cookies I've ever made! Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies have a fluffy, chewy, soft and flavorful oat base with tart berries and decadent dark chocolate chunks! They're free of refined sugars, flour, soy, eggs and dairy so it's a healthy and flavorful treat that everyone will enjoy.
This is a healthier version of Jill Biden's favorite cookie recipe! As soon as I saw Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies I knew I needed a version to enjoy. I kept them free of gluten, flour, dairy, eggs, and refined sugars, so they're an awesome snack or dessert cookie. Trust me when I say these do NOT last long in my house. My family has been so happy that I've been perfecting this recipe because they get to be my cookie taste testers! It was a unanimous decision that this final version was the VERY BEST Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookie.
These cookies are perfectly soft and chewy and yet sturdy. They are flavored with a hint of vanilla and cinnamon for that classic oatmeal cookie flavor. And every bite has puddles of rich melted dark chocolate chunks and chewy, tart, sweet dried cranberries. We are talking total cookie heaven. These cookies are always so perfectly satisfying.
Gluten-Free Cookies with Oatmeal
I use gluten-free oats as a base for this cookie! You can use your blender to create flour out of oats and it makes for an incredible, flavorful cookie. I love baking with oatmeal because it's full of soluble fiber, and they’re higher in protein and healthful fats than most other whole grains. I love getting an energy boost and feeling full a little longer after eating oats!
Baking with Vegan Butter
I usually rely on Miyoko's brand vegan butter for baking. It melts perfectly and tastes just like regular butter! You can find it at Whole Foods, Sprouts, or the health food section of most grocery stores. It's just right for these Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies!
Best Vegan Chocolate Chips
I love using Hu chocolate gems for these cookies! They're the perfect refined sugar-free dark chocolate to add a little richness to these cookies. Any of your favorite chocolate bars will work here (roughly chopped into chunks), but make sure to check the label if you're hoping for vegan cookies free of refined sugars. You can purchase Hu chocolate gems HERE. Use my affiliate code: "ELAINE" for 15% off your purchase.
Refined Sugar-Free Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies
I sweetened these cookies with pure maple sugar, which is made from pure maple syrup. When you add water to this sugar, it actually turns back into maple syrup! This is a natural sweetener that isn't touched by chemical processing or any artificial flavoring. I love how it tastes and I feel so much better eating pure maple instead of refined sugar.
I also found unsweetened dried cranberries at Whole Foods. It wasn't easy as most brands and even bulk varieties contain added sugars.
Health Benefits of Cranberry
Cranberries are so, so good for you! In addition to being a tasty snack and adding a bright flavor to some of your favorite foods, they have incredible health benefits. Most people know that cranberries help promote a healthy urinary tract and digestive health due to their naturally occurring compounds called PACS (proanthocyanins). They’re also great for your cardiovascular health. Their deep red pigment contains important nutrients that play a role in preventing heart disease, cancer, and age-related mental decline. When included as part of a low-sodium diet, cranberries may even reduce the risk of high blood pressure. Bake with them, snack on them, juice them, but whatever you do...eat more cranberries!
This is a gluten-free, soy-free, vegan cookie recipe without any refined sugar. To make it nut-free you could swap the almond butter for tahini, pumpkin seed butter or sunflower seed butter.
More Vegan and Gluten-Free Cookie Recipes
Classic Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Dark Chocolate Chunk Almond Flour Cookies
No-Bake Flourless Brownie Energy Bites
Print
Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies (vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free)
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 13 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This is one of the best vegan cookies I've ever made! Cranberry and Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies have a fluffy, chewy, soft and flavorful oat base with tart dried cranberries berries and decadent dark chocolate chunks! They're free of refined sugars, flour, soy, eggs and dairy so it's a healthy and flavorful treat that everyone will enjoy.
Ingredients
- 1 cup gluten-free oats, ground into a fine flour in your blender
- 2 cups gluten-free quick cooking oats (not old fashioned oats)
- 1 cup pure maple sugar (or coconut sugar)
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder (also known as arrowroot starch)
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ½ cup + 1 tablespoon room temperature soy-free, vegan butter (I use Miyoko's brand)
- 1 tablespoon non-dairy milk
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup unsweetened dried cranberries (or cherries)
- 1 cup vegan and refined sugar-free dark chocolate chunks (I use Hu dark chocolate gems)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a half-sheet baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl at oat flour, oats, maple sugar, arrowroot powder, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir.
- Add room temperature vegan butter, non-dairy milk, and vanilla to the mixing bowl. Use an electric hand mixer and mix until all ingredients are well incorporated.
- Add unsweetened dried cranberries and chocolate. Mix again with the hand mixer or fold in with a spoon. The cookie batter will feel a bit crumbly like granola and that is okay. It will gel together as it bakes and then cools.
- Use a quarter cup measuring cup to scoop out ¼ cup servings of the cookie batter. You want to really pack the cookie dough firmly into the measuring cup before inverting the measuring cup overtop the parchment paper lined baking sheet. If any cranberries, chocolate, or oatmeal flakes fall out of the cookie mounds, press them back in with your fingers. The batter should make 13 cookie mounds. The cookies will spread when they bake so leave room between the cookies and use two baking sheets if needed.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Allow the cookies to rest on the baking sheet for thirty minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to fully cool. The cookies will firm up as they cool. If you touch them too early they will fall apart.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven Baked
Kristi says
These cookies are SO DELICIOUS! ❤️ Being gluten free for 18 years, I have become used to no desserts, and then these came in to my life through your Vegan and Gluten Free Winter Meal Plan I bought everything to use that meal plan to incorporate more fiber into our diets. My mushroom and veggie hating daughter loves the mushroom fettuccine recipe. In fact, she likes your recipes consistently. Also, I trust your recipes as written. I recently tried a mug PB&J Brownie recipe that came in an email from a well-known collagen brand and it failed. I was taught to follow a recipe as written before making changes, so I prepared as written even though my instincts told me otherwise. The items I questioned were incorrect in proportion to the other ingredients. Thank you for testing and perfecting your recipes!
Thank you for a great plan!
Elaine Gordon says
Thank you SO much, Kristi! I really appreciate this thoughtful comment and for sharing your successes with my recipes. I'm glad they have all worked out well for you and you and your family have been able to enjoy them and try new foods! That makes me SO happy! All the best, Elaine