A classic cookie and many people’s favorite are the oatmeal raisin cookies. I love this chewy oatmeal raisin cookies recipe so much, it is one of my go-to cookie recipes. It is almost like eating breakfast and dessert at the same time! Well not really, but almost…
Did you know that the oatmeal cookie is a descendant of the Scottish oatcake? I have some ancestors from Scotland, I wonder if they made oatcakes. Oatmeal raisin cookies are consistently in the top 10 lists of favorite cookies in the United States, and most of the time they are in the top 5. And I can see why they are super amazing and easy to make. If I can make them, you can make them. Let’s get baking!
Step 1: Gather the ingredients and tools
In order to make this chewy oatmeal raisin cookies recipe you will need the following ingredients and tools:
- Large Eggs – The eggs will act as a binder for the other ingredients as well as help make the cookies soft and chewy. They will also add a bit of protein.
- Raisins – You can’t have oatmeal raisin cookies without the raisins. Although you could substitute them with craisins if you wanted.
- Butter – I generally use unsalted butter, if you use salted butter, reduce the amount of salt by half. The butter will help give the cookies body and texture.
- Brown sugar – The brown sugar will give lots of flavor and sweetness as well as help make the cookies chewier.
- White Granulated Sugar – The white sugar will give sweetness to the cookies. As well as give the cookies a nice golden brown color when baked.
- Vanilla extract – The vanilla will add flavor to the cookies and enhance the flavor of the other ingredients.
- All-Purpose four – In other countries it is also known as plain flour.
- Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats – The oats are the star of this cookie recipe. You can’t have chewy oatmeal raisin cookies without the oats!
- Salt – The salt enhances the flavors and provides a balance to the sweetness.
- Cinnamon – The cinnamon helps amp up the flavor a little bit, but it is optional.
- Baking soda – the baking soda is the main leavening agent, although the eggs will help a bit with the leavening as well.
Tools
- Hand or stand mixer
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Wooden spoon
- Spoon
- Baking sheet (un-greased)
Step 2: How to make chewy oatmeal raisin cookies
In a medium bowl, crack open the eggs and whisk them. Then add in the raisins. Soak the raisins in the egg for 15 to 20 minutes. This technique of soaking the raisins will help them to remain soft while baking.
Step 3: Cream the butter with the sugars
Next, in a large bowl add the softened butter and the brown sugar, white granulated sugar, and vanilla extract. Cream those ingredients together using a hand mixer or stand mixer. Afterward, scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
Step 4: Oatmeal cookies dry ingredients
The chewy oatmeal raisin cookie dough is starting to come together. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
Step 5: Complete the chewy oatmeal raisin cookies dough
Now add in one-third of the dry ingredients with the cookie dough. Use the mixer to combine those ingredients. After this, you may remove the beaters and clean them and put them away. Next, add in the eggs and raisins. Combine them well with the cookie dough using a wooden spoon. Why aren’t we using the mixer? Because we don’t want to tear up the raisins and we don’t want to overmix the dough.
Then, add in another third of the dry ingredients and mix with the spoon, and then finally the remaining dry ingredients and the old-fashioned rolled oats. You will wind up with a nice thick oatmeal raisin cookie dough.
Step 6: Bake the oatmeal raisin cookies
Preheat the oven to 350 F/176 C. Then use a spoon or cookie dough scoop and place dollops of cookie dough on an ungreased baking sheet or cookie sheet. Bake the cookies on the middle rack position for 10 to 12 minutes until they are lightly golden brown. Once they come out of the oven allow them to cool for a few minutes on the pan and then transfer them to a wire cookie rack to cool completely.
How long to oatmeal raisin cookies last?
Well, it depends on how quickly you eat them. At my house, not very long. If you store them in an airtight ziplock bag or in Tupperware, they will last for a few weeks at room temperature. The cookies will last a little longer in the fridge. The best long term storage is to freeze them where they will be good for a few months.
Can I use quick oats in these chewy oatmeal raisin cookies?
No, quick oats are finer and smaller and will wind up making these cookies too dry, if you did a straight swap of ingredients. The texture will be off as well. Old-fashioned rolled oats are the traditional ingredient for these kinds of cookies. But with that said, it is fun experimenting in the kitchen and with recipes, so go for it!
Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Equipment
- hand or stand mixer
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Wooden spoon
- spoon
- baking sheet (un-greased)
Ingredients
- 3 Large eggs
- 1 cup raisins 150g
- 1 cup of unsalted butter 227g
- 1 cup of brown sugar light or dark (200g)
- 1 cup of white granulated sugar 200g
- 1 tsp of vanilla extract 4ml
- 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour 320g
- 2 cups of old-fashioned rolled oats 180g
- 1 tsp of salt 5g
- 1 tsp of cinnamon 4g
- 2 tsp of baking soda 8g
- chopped nuts are optional
Instructions
- In a medium bowl add the eggs and whisk them. Next, add the raisins to the eggs and let them soak for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Now in a large bowl add the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, and vanilla extract and cream them together on medium speed with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed throughout this cookie making process.
- In a separate bowl, add the flour, salt, baking soda, and ground cinnamon. Whisk those ingredients together until well combined.
- Add about 1/3 of the flour mixture with the bowl with the butter, and sugar. Use the mixer for this, and then put the mixer away and use a wooden or sturdy spoon for the rest of the mixing.
- Next, add in the eggs and raisins. Combine well and then add the second third of the flour mixture. Once that is incorporated add in the oats and remaining flour mixture and combine until you are left with a nice oatmeal raisin cookie dough.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F/176 C. Then scoop out some dough and place it on an ungreased baking sheet. You should be able to get 12 cookies on each baking sheet, about 1.5 to 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until slightly golden brown. After they are done baking allow them to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes then remove them and place them on a wire cookie rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Do you like the recipe? Please give it a rating and comment down below, I really appreciate it. If you make it tag me on Instagram @inthekitchenwithmatt. Also, sign up for the newsletter so you won’t miss out on any of my new posts and recipes.
Here are a few more recipes you may like:
Easy Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream
Giving this a try!
Please do! 🙂
Although I had to mix the dough by hand at the end because it was so dense (meaning literally hand-kneading it), these are probably in the top 5 best cookies I’ve ever made and I’ve made a LOT of cookies. It also made over 70. So there were a whole lot of happy people today. Thank you, Matt.
So glad you tried the recipe and liked it! 🙂 You are very welcome!!
Hi Matt, another amazing recipe ??
I tried your eggless choco chip cookies (yum) so can I substitute eggs in this recipe the same way ( With each egg that is replaced add in 2 Tablespoons of water, 1 teaspoon of oil, and 2 teaspoons of baking powder)
Also, if I powder the oats would it ruin the cookies ?
Thanks so much
Hello! I haven’t tried an eggless version of this recipe. So I can’t say for certain. Glad you like the eggless chocolate chip cookies!
Matt, these are still baking, so far I have a dozen 1 3/4-2 in cookies and I am putting in the remainder of the dough. They are very classic and delicious. Nice texture. I halved the recipe for a total of 2 doz and used one large egg!
Awesome! So glad you tried them out. 🙂
Matt, In the recipe you need to add the vanilla to the egg and raisin mixture. I followed the recipe and when ready to form the cookies, I realized the bottle of vanilla was still on the table. So I measured the vanilla and sprinkled it all over the entire mixture. The cookies still came out fine.
Great catch, Thomas! The vanilla actually gets added in when you cream together the butter and the sugars. 🙂 I updated the post. Thanks for letting me know!