Chocolate Cranberry Drop Cookies

By mariannefeldman

One-Bowl White Chocolate-Cranberry Drop Cookies
Recipe excerpt from Simply Sensational Cookies
Nancy Baggett
Browse more recipes from the book:

Bittersweet Chocolate Cracks

Butter-Pecan Shortbread

Almost anyone who's ever tried white chocolate and cranberries together will tell you it's a winning combination. The mild, creamy-sweet white chocolate and zingy-tasting fresh berries balance one another nicely, plus they provide a pretty eye-catching color contrast. In this recipe, orange zest and spices also heighten the full-bodied flavor and dried cranberries add chew, so these drops seem special and festive even though they are fairly fuss-free.


Since fresh cranberries are in our stores in late autumn, people seem to think of these as mostly Thanksgiving and Christmas cookies. But frozen cranberries will work just as well in the recipe, and they make it possible to enjoy these in other seasons, too (which I do!).

Ingredients

• Yield: Makes about thirty-five 2 1/2-inch cookies
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
• 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
• 1 large egg
• Grated zest (orange part of the peel) of 1 small orange
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 2/3 cups unbleached or all-purpose white flour
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups (one 10- to 11-ounce bag) white chocolate morsels
• 2/3 cup chopped fresh or frozen (partially thawed) cranberries

Preparation

Step 1

Baking Preliminaries: Position a rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 350°F. Grease several baking sheets or coat with nonstick spray; or line them with baking parchment.

In a large microwave-safe bowl with the microwave on 50 percent power, melt the butter just until mostly melted and fluid; stop and stir every 20 to 30 seconds. Vigorously stir in the sugar until the butter completely melts; mash out any lumps as necessary. Stir in the dried cranberries. Let cool till warm. Stir in the egg, orange zest, vanilla, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and salt until the mixture is well blended and smooth. Stir in the flour and morsels just until evenly incorporated. Gently fold in the fresh cranberries until evenly incorporated. If the dough is crumbly, gradually stir in a few teaspoons of water until it holds together.

Using a small (1 1/2-inch) spring-loaded ice cream scoop or heaping soupspoon, drop the dough into mounds about 2 1/2 inches apart on the sheets. Bake (middle rack) one sheet at a time for 11 to 13 minutes or until the cookies are tinged with brown and feel almost firm when pressed in the middle.

Remove from the oven; let stand until the cookies firm up just slightly, about 2 minutes. Using a wide spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks. Cool completely. Cool the baking sheets between batches or the cookies may spread too much.

Storage: Store these, airtight, for up to 1 week. They can be frozen, airtight, for 3 to 4 weeks.