Countdown to Christmas 11: Cranberry and Chocolate Cookies with Jo from "Standing on Solid Ground"

Time for another lovely visitor today... I'll let her introduce herself!

I’m Jo, Claire’s sister-in-law. I love all things craft and cooking. My latest venture has been making lip balms and bath products but for this post I have returned to my primary passion, baking.

These cookies are so easy to make but the flavour is great and, whilst cranberries always make me think of Christmas and Turkey, they can be made anytime of the year. Every time I have made them they have been a hit!
 
Serves 18 (or more if you want smaller bitesize pieces)
You need:

2.5oz / 70g Caster Sugar
2oz / 60g Light Brown Sugar
4oz / 125g Plain flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking powder
1/8 teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda
1/8 teaspoon Salt
3oz / 100g Quick cook oats
6 oz / 170g Dried cranberries
4oz / 120g White chocolate chopped, or white chocolate drops
4oz / 120g Butter melted
1 Egg
1 teaspoon of Vanilla extract


Method:

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl add the butter and egg and mix in well. Put the cookie mix in the fridge and leave to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to Gas 4/180°C/350°F. Line a baking tray or 2 with greaseproof or baking paper. Drop spoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking tray leaving enough distance between the cookies for them to spread. If you want the mixture is solid enough to roll into balls and press down with a fork.
Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes until golden, remove and leave on a rack to cool, they can be served warm or cold and taste great with a glass of milk.

These cookies also makes a great Christmas gift, by layering the dry ingredients in an airtight jar in the order above, sieving together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt before adding them in, it will last for up to 6 months. All you need to do is add a label with the method and the amount of butter, egg and vanilla essence required. If you have Vanilla Sugar you can substitute 1 teaspoon of it for the Vanilla extract and would be a great gift for someone who doesn’t normally bake & wouldn’t ever use vanilla extract.

NB Vanilla sugar isn’t ordinary sugar flavoured with vanilla but a product used widely on the continent instead of vanilla extract.

Thanks Jo! I will admit, I was with Jo one day when she made these and I scoffed a few down - they are utterly yum!! I highly recommend giving them a go, and I will be giving them a go myself once the holidays begin (and the end of term/pre-christmas chaos ends!)