These oatmeal raisin cookies are soft and chewy, full of raisins and old fashioned oats, flavored with vanilla and cinnamon for one of the best cookies there is!
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The BEST Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe
Oatmeal raisin cookies are often the unwanted step mom of cookies, but these will change your mind. They’re a soft and chewy cookie, with a nice touch of spice. And hey, you can always use chocolate chips instead of raisins if desired.
Ingredients for Soft Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
This is a quick overview of the ingredients you’ll need for this Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe . Specific measurements and full recipe instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
- unsalted butter
- shortening
- granulated sugar
- brown sugar
- vanilla extract
- eggs
- all purpose flour
- baking soda
- baking powder
- salt
- ground cinnamon
- old fashioned oats
- raisins
How to Make Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Mix together the wet ingredients. Add the butter, shortening and sugars to a large bowl and cream them together for a couple of minutes. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract and stir them into the dough.
- Add in the dry ingredients. Add in the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and mix them into the dough. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Add in the oats and mix until you have a nice soft dough.
- Add in the raisins and mix until they spread evenly throughout the dough.
- Bake the cookies. Spoon the cookies by the Tablespoonful onto a lined cookie sheet, keeping them a couple inches apart to allow for spreading. Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes until the sides are golden and the tops are just set. Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes on the cookie sheet then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool more.
Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe Substitutions
- Cranberries – swap the raisins for dried cranberries for a different flavor profile.
- Chocolate chips – Add 1 cup of chocolate chips, or white baking chips to the batter to add a little extra sweetness and creaminess. You can also substitute 2 cups of chocolate chips and remove the raisins if desired.
- Applesauce – Substitute half the butter for applesauce for a little less fat.
- Nuts – Add 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped nuts, like walnuts or pecans for an added crunch
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Tips
- Soak the raisins – Soak the raisins in warm water for 10 minutes, then blot them with paper towels to dry. This will make them extra plump for the cookies.
How to store Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
The cookies will stay fresh in an airtight, or other covered container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Can you freeze oatmeal raisin cookies?
The baked cookies also freeze well. You can freeze them in a freezer safe bag or container, once cooled, for up to 3 months.
Can you freeze oatmeal raisin cookie dough?
You can also freeze the frozen cookie dough. Scoop the dough into cookie dough balls, then flash freeze them on a lined baking sheet for about 1 hour. Transfer the frozen cookie balls to a freezer safe ziplock bag and store for up to 3 months.
The cookies can be baked directly from frozen. They will need an extra minute or two to bake.
Recipe for Oatmeal Raisin Cookies FAQs
To prevent your cookies from spreading too much when baked you can chill the dough first. This will allow the flour and oats to soak up the wet ingredients, and keep your cookies from going flat. Chill the dough for about 1 hour before baking if you have this problem.
This is a personal preference, but can improve the overall texture and moisture content of your cookies. The raisins will be juicier and plumper if you soak them for about 10 minutes in warm water before using. Make sure you blot them after soaking them to avoid adding extra moisture to the dough.
This recipe doesn’t need the dough to be chilled before baking, however chilling the dough can result in a richer flavor allowing the ingredients to meld together, and a thicker cookie.
Be careful not to over bake the cookies, you want to bake them until the sides are just golden as they will continue to cook on the cookie sheet after they are removed from the oven.
You can consider adding an extra egg, or egg yolk, or a Tablespoon or two of milk as needed to add a little extra moisture to the dough if it is too dry.
Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter (melted and cooled)
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 TBS vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 3/4 cup old fashioned oats
- 1 cup raisins
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Grease cookie sheets lightly with cooking spray
- In a large mixing bowl; add the melted butter, shortening, and sugars – mix together
- Whisk in the 2 eggs and vanilla
- Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon; mix together, scraping down sides to get all the flour
- Add in oats and mix
- Add raisins and mix until spread evenly throughout batter
- Spoon onto cookie sheet
- Bake for 10 minutes
- Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, remove to cooling rack
What makes these oatmeal raisin cookies better – 1 tablespoon of vanilla and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon – for a lot more flavor.
I hope they become a favorite of yours too.
Kelly says
Oatmeal raisin cookies are and will always be my favorite too! These look perfect! Love how soft and chewy they are!
Ellen Garrett says
So nice to have fellow oatmeal cookie lovers. These are perfectly soft and chewy, I hope you enjoy them.
Megan - The Emotional Baker says
Ha ha! What a great baking story! Oh – & these look phenomenal, too 😉
Ellen Garrett says
Ha ha thanks, I hope you enjoy the cookies.