The BEST Vegan Cranberry Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies filled with tart dried cranberries, fresh orange zest, & pools of melty dark chocolate! You are going to love these dairy-free & egg-free cranberry orange cookies with chewy centers and crispy edges.
*Recipe originally shared December 2019 and updated October 2023*
If you loved my Classic Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies or my Orange Cardamom Sugar Cookies, then you have to try these chewy cranberry orange chocolate chunk cookies next.
They are a bit of a hybrid between those two SGTO cookie favorites but packed with chewy dried cranberries, fresh orange zest, and rich & melty chocolate chunks!
Ingredients:
Ingredient notes:
- Dried cranberries: Any variety works, however, I prefer to add the Ocean Spray less sweetened cranberries as they add a really nice tart flavor to these cookies.
- Flax egg: This acts as the vegan egg replacement in these cookies! You have to use ground flaxseed for the right consistency (NOT whole flax seeds) but you can also use chia seeds for similar results.
- Brown sugar: The molasses in brown sugar adds a depth of flavor that white sugar just doesn't have. It also provides the acidic component needed to work with the baking soda to make the cookies softer and help them spread.
- Chocolate chunks: I used Enjoy Life chocolate chunks, however, any dairy-free chocolate brand works!
Steps to make cranberry chocolate chip cookies
I knew I wanted a chewy cookie that wasn't too thin, but that still spread a bit while baking for a crispier edge. After a few tests, I can tell you this is exactly the texture of the cranberry chocolate chip cookie recipe you have here!
Cream butter, sugar, & orange zest
For this recipe, you're going to use room-temperature vegan butter, white sugar, AND brown sugar. It's incredibly important that the butter is cold, but is still soft enough to leave an indent when pressed to get the right texture.
Creaming together the cold butter and sugar together helps to beat air into the dough and provide structure. We also add the orange zest at this point because creaming it directly into the fat will give the best flavor.
Mix in flax egg & vanilla
Wet ingredients usually refer to anything that isn't flour, salt, dried spice, or a leavening agent such as baking powder or baking soda.
In this recipe, the wet ingredients include vanilla bean paste (or extract) and a flax egg.
Add dry ingredients & mix into dough
While you can sift the dry ingredients, I prefer to add them right to the bowl and just add the flour first. Then, mix them with the wet ingredients until you have a thick orange cookie dough.
Fold in cranberries & chocolate chips
For this recipe, I used dried cranberries and Enjoy Life Chocolate Chunks. I like to use a spatula to fold them into the dough and evenly distribute them.
Chill the dough 30 minutes- 1 hour
Once the dough has formed, the cookies go into the fridge for 30 minutes- 1 hour. This helps make the cookies easier to scoop and also makes them sweeter!
The cookies you see in the pictures here were only in the fridge for around 45 minutes.
Bake the orange cranberry cookies
Remove the cookies from the fridge and use a 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop out 10 evenly sized cookies.
Add them to a parchment-lined baking sheet, making sure to keep them at least 2 inches apart as they will spread while baking.
Add the tray of cranberry chocolate chip cookies to the oven and bake for 14-16 minutes.
The cookies will be done when they are cooked through yet still soft in the center. Basically, you want the cookie centers to just barely be cooked, but no longer glossy, when you remove them from the oven.
I like to let my cookies rest on the warm baking sheet for a few minutes and use a large mug to make them more round while they are still warm. Then, move the chocolate orange cranberry cookies to a cookie rack to finish cooling.
FAQ & Tips:
Can I make these orange chocolate chip cookies gluten-free?
Yes! Just use a 1:1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour mix like Bob's Red Mill to make these vegan chocolate chip cookies gluten-free too. Please note- you cannot substitute alternatives like coconut flour or almond flour 1:1 in this recipe.
How do I store these cranberry orange cookies?
Once baked, these cookies can be stored in a closed container at room temperature for 3-4 days, in the fridge for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Cookie dough balls can be frozen and stored in a freezer-safe bag for about 1 month before baking as well.
Whether you are on the hunt for the perfect vegan Christmas cookie, a cookie filled with dried cranberries, or one filled with oozing pools of chocolate- these Vegan Cranberry Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies will deliver. Enjoy!
-TSG
More Vegan Cookies Recipes You Will Love:
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Vegan Cranberry Orange Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup vegan butter room temperature, salted- if not salted add ¼ teaspoon salt to cookie dough
- ¼ cup white sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon orange zest
- 2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 flax egg 1 tablespoon ground flax (8 grams) mixed with 3 tablespoon water, let sit 5 minutes
- 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup dried cranberries add more as desired
- ¼ cup vegan chocolate chunks or chocolate chips, add more as desired
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt optional, as topping
Instructions
Make the cookie dough:
- Begin by creaming the butter, white sugar, brown sugar, and orange zest with an electric mixer. Once creamed, add in the vanilla and flax egg. Mix to combine, about 30 seconds.
- Next, add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to the bowl of wet ingredients. Mix until a thick dough forms. The dough should be slightly sticky, but not wet.
- Once the orange cookie dough has formed, gently fold in the dried cranberries and chocolate chunks with a spatula. Cover the bowl of dough and add to the fridge for 30 minutes- 1 hour to chill.
Bake the cookies:
- About 10 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the cookie dough from the fridge and use a 2 tablespoon cookie scooper to scoop out 10 evenly-sized cookie dough balls. Place them onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Make sure to leave space between the dough balls as the cookies will spread while baking. If cookies do not fit on one tray, it's best to bake only one tray at a time.
- Add the tray of cookies to the oven and bake for 14-16 minutes or until cooked through. You want the centers to be barely cooked, but not glossy, for the best chewy texture.
- Remove the cookie tray from the oven and immediately tap the tray on the counter to produce a more “wrinkly” cookie and help deflate the cookies. For round cookies, use a round cookie cutter (or large mug in my case!) that is slightly larger than the cookie and swirl the cookies around inside to form them into a round cookie. This step will only work if you do it while the cookies are still warm. Then, let the cookies rest on the warm tray for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, transfer the cookies to a wire rack to continue cooling. Then, serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Once baked, these cookies can be stored in a closed container at room temperature for 3-4 days, in the fridge for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
- I do not recommend storing the cookies in the fridge any longer as it dries out baked goods.
- Please see blog post for substitution ideas and more recipe tips!
Radmila Dolokhanova says
I made these over the weekend for my parents - they both had several! A very soft cookie, so if you’re into that texture, make these bc you’ll love!
Megan says
Thanks for the review and so glad the whole fam loved them!
LAURA GRISWOLD says
Quick Question: can the dough be moulded and then frozen to bake a few days later?
These are delicious and would like to make for gifts. Just hoping to be able to make ahead and save time.
Megan says
Definitely- just scoop the cookie dough into balls and then add to a parchment-lined baking sheet or plate so they're not touching to freeze. Once frozen, you can store them in a freezer-safe bag for up to 1 month. They will need a little more baking time in the oven (about 2-3 minutes) but you can add them in from the freezer. I also actually prefer baking them and then freezing the baked cookies.They keep their texture perfectly when frozen for about 1 month as well.
Laura g says
Thank you. I will try both.
Katie says
These were AMAZING. The salt at the end makes these cookies. So chewy and delish.
Megan Horowitch says
Thank you for sharing so happy you liked them!!