Cranberry Orange Cookies

Chris and I got a new toy this weekend -- a vacuum sealer which we've been playing with quite a bit. It's also why I've made all the cookies this weekend. I will only be bringing a few cookies from each batch in to work, since most of the dough has gone into the freezer for an "off" day. (so far I haven't actually had an off day, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it...)

In my search for cookie recipes I ran across this recipe from Baking Bites. I like the cranberry orange combination (which should be fairly obvious...) and it looked similar to a recipe I have made before using vanilla chips. When I made it I only made a couple of changes -- I doubled it since the portions were a bit odd, and I added chips at the end. I also added vanilla since all recipes seem to call for vanilla, but this one oddly left it out.

I did mess up though. When I added the chips at the end, I thought I grabbed the bag of Guitard Vanilla Chips, but I only realized after I poured the whole thing in that I had grabbed the bag of Guitard White Chocolate Chips instead. It might seem like a small difference, but it really irritated me since there is quite a significant difference in flavor. The white chocolate chips are sweeter, and to me leave a funny aftertaste -- I also don't like white chocolate all that much, which didn't help matters any. It probably didn't make that much of a difference ultimately, but I still think they would have been better with the vanilla chips...

The recipe is written here just as I found it on Baking Bites. If you want to add chips to the portions here, I would suggest using only a cup of vanilla (or white chocolate) chips instead of the whole bag.

2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, room temp
1 cup white sugar
1 large egg
zest of one large orange (about 1 tbsp)
3/4 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350 and line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar, beating with an electric mixer until light. Beat in egg and orange zest. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add in the flour mixture, stirring only until just combined. Stir in the cranberries.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls (about 1 1/4 inch balls) onto prepared cookie sheets and bake for 9 -12 minutes, until edges are very lightly browned. Cool for 3-4 minutes on baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.