Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe we’ve ever made! Soft and chewy on the outside, crispy around the edges, packed with raisins and spice… You’ve got to try them.
Oatmeal Cookies
Oatmeal cookies are one of the simplest cookies to make well. Even grocery stores can do it.
If I ever grab a cookie off of a pre-made cookie platter, I always go for the oatmeal raisin cookies because they are the most likely to taste somewhat homemade.
Even so, there are definite standouts in the oatmeal cookie category. Today I’m sharing The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies I’ve ever made or tasted.
Although the ingredients are humble pantry staples, the cookies are ridiculously divine. I’ve been tweaking this recipe for a long time, so I’m very excited to share it with you!
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe
The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are crispy on the outside, and moist on the inside. The oat-to-raisin ratio is perfectly balanced.
A little hint of baking spices accentuates the comforting oat flavor, making them taste the way your very best childhood memory feels.
So here’s what you’ll need to make these fabulous cookies:
- Flour – Use all-purpose flour, or you can actually use Gluten Free Baking Mix in this recipe!
- Baking Powder – To help the cookies rise.
- Salt – This enhances and balances all the flavors mingling together.
- Apple Pie Spice – You can also use a mixture of cinnamon and nutmeg to achieve the same taste.
- Unsalted Butter – Softened. Use three sticks (1 1/2 cups) which sounds like a lot, but trust me on this one.
- Granulated Sugar – To sweeten.
- Brown Sugar – To sweeten with a molasses taste. The darker the brown sugar the more molasses flavor.
- Eggs – For structure.
- Vanilla Extract – A simple yet important ingredient to add depth.
- Old Fashioned Oats – These are the flat and flaky oats. Also called Rolled Oats.
- Raisins – You can also use other dried fruits here!
How To Make Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and apple pie spice.
- In another bowl, with an electric mixer, cream the butter and both sugars on high until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Scrape the bowl with a spatula, then beat in the vanilla and eggs. Turn the mixer on low and slowly add in the flour mixture. Scrape the bowl again then turn the mixer on low and mix in the oats and raisins.
- Using a 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop the dough into equal portions and spread the balls out two inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, until slightly golden around the edges. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets before moving.
Get The Printable How To Make The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe + Video. Enjoy!
A Perfect Make-Ahead
And best of all, unlike most cookies that dry out over time, The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies seem to improve over time!
Honestly, my whole family agrees they are even better day-old.
Oats have a distinct ability to hold in moisture. When combined with just the right amount of sugar and butter, oats keep cookies from drying out.
That means The Best Oatmeal Cookies are crisp when they first come out of the oven, but soften after several hours.
This also makes this Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe a marvelous treat to make-ahead for school or work events and weekend gatherings!
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the Best Oats For Oatmeal Cookies?
Old-Fashioned Oats are the best choice to create the right flavor and texture in oatmeal cookies. However, in a pinch, you can use Quick Oats.
Can I Make Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookies?
Yes! Make sure your oats are fully gluten-free, and processed in a gluten-free facility. Then swap the wheat flour for Gluten-Free Baking Flour Mix.
Why Are My Oatmeal Cookies Dry?
There are three possibilities… There’s a chance you mismeasured the flour, or you did not add enough butter, or you might have baked the cookies too long. Be extra careful when you measure your ingredients to ensure soft cookies.
Also, try this super-moist recipe for Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies!
Why Do My Cookies Always Flatten Out In The Oven?
The two most common causes of flat cookies are A) Skipping the parchment paper and putting the cookies straight on the baking sheet. B) Using an oven with a faulty thermostat. It is common for thermostats to wear out over time. You can check your oven temperature accuracy by hanging a small oven thermometer off the rack.
Do Soft Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Freeze Well?
Yes! Freeze them flat on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Then once frozen, move the cookies to an airtight freezer bag or container. You can freeze these cookies for up to 6 months.
More Favorite Cookie Recipes
- Best Ever Sugar Cookies Recipe
- Best Chocolate Sugar Cookies Recipe
- Best Ever Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
- Soft Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies Recipe
- Gluten Free Monster Cookies Recipe
- Chewy Molasses Cookies Recipe
- Snickerdoodle Whoopie Pies Recipe
- Caramel Shortbread Recipe
- Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies Recipe
- Chai Latte Cookies Recipe
Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon apple pie spice or 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon + 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened (3 sticks)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 1/2 cups raisins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and apple pie spice.
- In another bowl, with an electric mixer, cream the butter and both sugars on high until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Scrape the bowl with a spatula, then beat in the vanilla and eggs. Turn the mixer on low and slowly add in the flour mixture. Scrape the bowl again then turn the mixer on low and mix in the oats and raisins.
- Using a 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop the dough into equal portions and spread the balls out two inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, until slightly golden around the edges. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets before moving.
These were delicious!!! I made them pretty much as noted in original recipe except that I toasted the oats in a frying pan as another reviewer had suggested, and I soaked my raisins in some rum water for about 30 minutes. Could not taste a strong rum taste once baked, only that there is something a little “different” about these cookies. Yummy different! They were buttery tasting and a little chewy in the middle with a light crispness around the edges. I did use the full amount of butter. I can’t wait to make again!! Thank you, Sommer.
Your ideas sound excellent. I’m going to add ¼ teaspoon cardaman (did I spell that correctly?). Not sure what you mean by, “rum water” so I’m going to soak the raisins in dark spice rum for a few days. I used to shop at a jewelry store that offered dark spiced rum soaked raisins while I tried things on. I guess, the more raisins you eat the bigger the diamonds sparkle. Lol
My cookies do not flatten, follow recipe. Please
I make this recipe all the time! Maybe every other week. I also add after the raisins 1.5 cups of almonds or walnuts, 1.5 cups of dark chocolate chips, and 1 cup dried Goji berries.
Then I lay down a good length of plastic wrap and place half of the mixture on it and roll it up length wise to create something that resembles a long sausage, twisting and taping first one end, then squeezing the other end to make it as tight and round as possible. Then it’s refrigerated usually overnight and in the morning I heat up the oven and unwrap the plastic wrap and with a very sharp knife, cut my cookies into even thickness and cook away.
I’m left with no mess and no waste. Also saves a lot of time. But the best part is how pretty they look with the cross cut. Is Sometimes I add 1 cup dark cocoa powder. But this can take away some of the different tastes the previous cookies possess. Delivering instead one solid flavor. It really depends on personal preferences.
I absolutely loved this recipe and everyone I’ve baked these cookies for loves them too! Even picky oatmeal cookie eaters. I followed the recipe to a T multiple times and recently I decided to use gluten free flour and I really liked them. First round I left them in the normal scoop form but they didn’t bake well or taste as great so the remaining dough I scooped the suggested amount (1 1/2 tablespoons, generously) and then flattened them in my hand and baked 12-13 minutes and they were amazing! My family asks that I make them again. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Yes these are the best oatmeal raisin cookies!! I already made this recipe twice in five days. I shared with family and friends and they loved them and asked for more! I did reduce the white sugar amount to 3/4 cup and needed to use 1 stick of margarine because I had only two sticks of butter. These modifications still made an absolutely delicious cookie.
Very good recipe. The first time I made them I accidentally out of habit left it at 350 and baked them for about 9-10 mins and they came out perfectly. This second time I followed and only put them in for 9 mins at 375 and they were way to overcooked and starting to turn black on the bottom. Baking at 350 works out perfectly if you don’t like darker bottom cookies like myself .
Do you use light or dark brown sugar for this recipe? Can’t wait to make these. They look amazing!
Hi Cindy!
You can use either, but I prefer light brown sugar. :)
Best oatmeal cookie recipe I’ve found! My family loves it and I make it often. Recipe used, as is.
Thank you for sharing!
Yes I did it. It was awesome and l like it so much and I am trying to save it in my favourite . To repeat again and again
Thanks for the recipe Sommer.
Really love Oatmeal Raisin Cookies :)
I am in the process of making this recipe. I would find it very helpful if you could put the weight in grams of your dough balls. By using a scale for portioning when baking it gives much better consistency. Thanks
Hi Cindy,
You can use the metric button in the recipe form to change the measures to metric. As for the dough balls, 1 1/2 tablespoons in approximately 20.5 grams. Hope this helps! :)
you can get a cookie scoop, I have 5 I think, all different sizes but thats the quickest way to get them all perfect and the same size
Ok, made these yesterday. Hubbies favorite cookie. No complaints, I did however read through the comments before I made these, only thing I adjusted was the amount of spice, added more, just in case. They were perfect. Thanks for sharing. I also made your sugar cookies, OMG is all I can say ❤❤
Fabulous cookies! A perfect blend of cinnamon & nutmeg and texture is perfect! My new favorite Oatmeal Raisin Cookie recipe. Thank you!
Oatmeal raisin cookies were never my go to, but I loved the texture from these cookies and not it is something that I end up craving!
Best ever recipe! Bake it, you won’t regret it.
Made recipe as provided, without changes.
I TRIED BUT USED MELTED BUTTER AND IT CAME OUT REALLY FLUFFY AND SOFT ,CRANCHY ON A TOP. LOVE IT
Excellent cookie! I also added a teaspoon of molasses and one cup raisins one cup chocolate chips 😉
Best recipe for oatmeal raisin cookie that I’ve found, so far.
Tried at both 350 degrees and 375, does better at 375 in my oven. Left them in there between 10 or 12 minutes, never longer than that. I let them finish cooking outside the oven, on the hot baking sheet. This way, the middle firmed up. You could put them in the fridge, to keep the height on the cookies, I would recommend 20 minutes though, not the full hour.