Oatmeal, White Chocolate, and Cranberry Cookies

In my junior year of college, I lived in a “row house”–basically a fraternity house, but run by the university, coed, and no fraternity.
We had a truly amazing cook who made desserts that were beyond spectacular. Some of them had more butter in them by weight than flour.

One of my favorites was always her oatmeal cookies, with cranberries and white chocolate.
Eventually I learned that grated orange zest was her secret to making the flavors all work together perfectly.

This recipe is unabashedly inspired by Janice’s cookies from Storey House.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups (7 ½ ounces) all purpose flour

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • ¼ teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

  • ½ teaspoon baking powder

  • 2 sticks (½ pound), butter softened but still firm

  • 1 cup (7 ounces) light brown sugar

  • 7⁄8 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar

  • 2 eggs

  • grated zest of one orange

  • 3 cups (240 grams) rolled oats

  • 1 cup dried cranberries

  • 1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions

  • Adjust oven racks to low and middle positions; heat oven to 350 degrees.

  • In a small bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg together and set aside

  • In bowl of electric mixer or by hand, beat butter until creamy.

  • Add sugars; beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes.

  • Beat in eggs one at a time.

  • When eggs are fully mixed in, add the orange zest.

  • Stir the flour mixture into the butter-sugar mixture. At this point you may want to switch to a spoon – or keep the mixer on low.

  • Stir in oats until well combined, then add cranberries and white chocolate

  • Form dough into sixteen to twenty 2-inch balls, placing each dough round onto one of two parchment paper–covered, large cookie sheets.

  • Bake until cookie edges turn golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes. (The cookies will be even more perfect if halfway during baking, turn cookie sheets from front to back and also switch them from top to bottom.)

  • Slide cookies on parchment onto cooling rack. Let cool at least 30 minutes before serving.