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Need an easy, last-minute, but thoughtful gift? Look no further, because these Cranberry-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar are fun, festive, thoughtful and so simple to make.
I'm back again with another DIY gift idea for your friends and family. Just yesterday, I posted these Buttery Soft Jam Thumbprint Cookies, and today I'm presenting these Cranberry-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar! It may be a tongue-twister of a title, but they are so easy to make and ridiculously delicious!
With the holidays just around the corner, finding the perfect gifts for everyone on your list can become overwhelming and stressful. You'll be asking yourself "Will they like it?", "Will they use it?", "Can I afford this?" and that can take the joy right out of the gift-giving season. Not to mention the ginormous crowd of people at the store on the same mission. Bah humbug!
For the holiday time, I enjoy giving handmade items and my friends and family look forward to them every year. They are unique, and fun, and bring tons of smiles. This year I’ll be handing out these Snowmen Meringue Cookies, my Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, and of course these gorgeous and tasty, Cranberry-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar.
Why is DIY the way to go?
DIY gifts are becoming increasingly popular over the years because they save time, and money and are incredibly thoughtful and fun to give. The other big reason is because of Pinterest.
There are so many eye-catching, creative ideas on there, and the photos make us feel like DIY superstars until the finished product doesn't quite look the same. I couldn't tell you how many times this has happened to me. I'm crafty, but I'm no Martha and perfection isn't my forte.
So, with that said, I promise this isn't some Pinterest fail setup. What you see, is what you get and it's so darn easy for you, and the gift recipient. So, you can put the fun back into gift-giving with these adorable cookies in a jar.
It's creative, unique, and tasty! It's the perfect DIY gift for the cookie lover in your life or the cookie lover in you. Yep, you can gift these to yourself, because...why the heck not?
What do I need for cookies in a jar?
Just a few common baking ingredients, a sealable jar, your best decorating skills, and some holiday spirit!
You can find a jar at Target, grocery stores, hardware stores, and dollar stores, or just use a clean sauce jar. It all works! Jars are great because they can be reused over & over until they are eventually recycled. I love it when gifts are eco-friendly, too.
For the jar contents, you'll need all-purpose flour, baking soda, white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, rolled oats, dried cranberries, and vegan chocolate chips. You might have everything in your pantry already, but if not, you will most likely find it all at your local grocer.
For the decoration, you can use festive ribbon & baker twine to attach name tags, small ornaments, cinnamon sticks, candy canes, or anything that strikes your fancy.
Can you believe it? That's all you'll need to make a festive, fun, and gorgeous gift!
How to assemble cookies in a jar
1- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together. Add contents carefully to the bottom of the jar (a funnel can be used for easy pouring). Pack down each layer gently with the back of a spoon.
2- Gently pour the white sugar on top as evenly as possible.
3- Add brown sugar and cinnamon on top.
4- Pour rolled oats on top.
5- Pour a layer of cranberries and then the chocolate chips.
6- Close jar and dress up with some ribbon. Tie on a name tag and write the baking ingredients & instructions on the back.
*Note: if you have terrible handwriting like me, you can print out the recipe on paper & attach it to the back of the name tag, or make a mini scroll and tie it on. There are also free printable tags online, but I'm too lazy for that. They are super cute though!
If you'd like to add a fun fact to the recipe card, you can write that the cookie dough is completely edible in the raw! This will amaze your non-vegan gift recipients and maybe plant a little seed.
Let's talk more about the end result. How do these cookies taste?
These Cranberry-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar have a classic taste and texture that we all love. They are lightly crisp on the outside, and soft & chewy on the inside. They are sweet, chocolatey, oaty & have a slight zing from the dried cranberries (I highly recommend them). They are hearty enough for dunking and soft enough for that classic melt-in-your-mouth feeling!
Alright, let’s get cracking on one of the easiest gifts you’ll give this season! Want more? Here is a list of my favorite Holiday Vegan Gifts that are all under $50!
Cookies in a Jar
Ingredients
Ingredients For Jar:
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup cane sugar
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup vegan chocolate chips
Ingredients For Gift Recipient
- ¾ cup softened vegan butter
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup plant-based milk (or water)
Recommended Equipment
- 1 32-Ounce Jar with Lid (1 quart)
Instructions
Instructions For Gift Giver:
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together. Add contents carefully to the bottom of a 32-ounce jar (a funnel can be used for easy pouring). Pack down each layer gently with the back of a spoon.
- Gently pour the white sugar on top as evenly as possible.
- Add brown sugar and cinnamon on top.
- Pour rolled oats on top.
- Pour a layer or cranberries and then the chocolate chips.
- Close jar and dress up with some ribbon. Tie on a name tag and write the baking ingredients & instructions on back.
Instructions For Gift Recipient:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Pour the jar contents into a large bowl and combine well. Set aside
- In a medium bowl, cream the butter, vanilla and milk together until smooth.
- Add the butter mixture to the large bowl and combine until a dough is formed. Dough will be slightly sticky & slightly crumbly. If dough is too crumbly, add 1-2 teaspoons of milk & combine.
- Roll dough into 1 ½ inch balls, and place onto baking sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes, or until edges are light golden brown. Don't over cook. They will look slightly undercooked on top & that's normal. Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack. Enjoy right away or store in an airtight container.
Notes
- All-Purpose Flour: for accurate results, do not scoop the flour with a measuring cup directly from the flour container. Instead, aerate the flour first, then scoop it out of the container with a spoon and then into a measuring cup. Don’t pack or tap the cup. After filling, lightly sweep a butter knife across the top to remove the excess flour. Adding too much flour can alter the final results.
- Yields: 25-30 cookies
Nutrition
Shannon
This looks wonderful! Can’t wait to make some for gifts. Just wondering what size jars? I’ve read the recipe a couple times and haven’t been able to see if you said already. If you have I apologize. I’d hate to have them half assembled and run out of room in the jar.
Melissa Huggins
Hi Shannon, I used a 32-ounce jar with a hinged lid (1 quart). Let me know if you have any other questions. Have a Happy Holiday! 🙂
Laurence
A quoi correspond une tasse en gramme svp????
Alison
Great recipe - especially for my daughter who has an egg allergy although I found that 2 days after making the jars the brown sugar row had become rock solid - any suggestions on how to avoid this?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Alison, I'm so glad that you liked the recipe. Thank you for giving it a try. I haven't had the brown sugar layer harden so fast like that, but maybe you can try to layer that in first and place the other ingredients on top. It'll likely stay fresher that way. Make sure the jars are airtight too. I hope this helps. 🙂
Molly
Made these jars for family for the holidays. So simple and I always have all these ingredients on hand so it was very cheap to put together. Looks like I put a lot of effort into something and the most labor was writing out the instructions for them.
Did not have cranberries but did have walnuts on hand so made a little twist to the recipe.
Great gift idea and I will make again for a quick last minute gift I can whip up and still be thoughtful!
Thank you!
Also had my four year old help on this one, great together project but he was a little sad cookies weren’t at the end so he asked if we could keep a jar for ourselves!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Molly, thank you for trying them out for your special gifts. The walnuts sound perfect in them! I'm glad your little was able to keep a jar too. 🙂
Deborah
Beautiful. I want to leave out the oatmeal though. I'm wondering if that will totally mess up the recipe? Any suggestions?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Deborah, I haven't tried this recipe without the oatmeal, but it can be done, I just don't know the exact measurements. Baking is very precise and small changes can yield undesired results. I'm sorry I couldn't be more help.
Sharon
HI, can you use coconut oil instead of vegan butter? Im sure most people I know will have this anyhow so it would be great if I could add that as an alternative?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Sharon, I haven't tried the cookies with coconut oil, but I believe it will work as long as the oil is not melted. I hope this helps. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Cici
Are the amounts of sugar and brown sugar reversed possibly? The jar shows more sugar than brown sugar
Melissa Huggins
Hi Cici, the sugar amount is correct. The cookies will come out perfect! Have a happy holiday! 🙂
Mel | avirtualvegan.com
This is such a great gift idea Melissa. I would love to receive this jar on Christmas morning and it looks so festive!
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Melanie! I love giving them out every year. So much fun 🙂
Ginny McMeans
Love the colors. I think I want to give myself 5 jars 🙂
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Ginny! I saved a jar for myself this year. 😉
Becky Striepe
What a beautiful gift idea!
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Becky 🙂
Cadry
So fun, Melissa! The wonderful thing about homemade gifts is that you don't have to worry about if the recipient already has it or if it will fit. Plus, it shows a lot of heart to give DIY presents.
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Cadry! DIY gifts are much less stressful 🙂
Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day
What a beautiful gift! I know I would love to receive this cookie mix. And the cookies look so delicious!
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Amy! I saved one for myself this year 😉
Sarah
I love making DIY gifts! They're lots of fun, and you can personalize them too! These cookies in a jar are so cute!
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Sarah! DIY gifts never get boring, I love them 🙂
Jenn
Ok, I just woke up, I'm hungry and now all I want are these delicious looking cookies!! I love the layers in the jar - so pretty - and would make a perfect gift!
Dianne's Vegan Kitchen
This is such a cute gift idea!
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Dianne 🙂