Soft and chewy, perfectly spiced oatmeal raisin cookies.
You know that meme that goes “all of my trust issues are because of oatmeal raisin cookies” or something along those lines? I mean, I guess I get that – if you bite into a cookie expecting chocolate and you get a raisin instead, I can see where you might feel a little bit betrayed. But I just don’t understand people who actively don’t like oatmeal raisin cookies? What’s not to like? The delicious flavor? The warming spices? The nostalgic feeling of sitting in your grandma’s kitchen on a rainy Saturday afternoon knowing that you’ve got nothing more pressing on your plate than being her taste tester? Maybe that last one is just me? But seriously – will an oatmeal raisin hater please explain to me what it is about them that you don’t like? But before you do that, please try these cookies, because I think these will be the ones to change your mind.
Go into them with an open mind and let yourself experience the pure simple joy of a well-made, chewy, spicy, delicious oatmeal raisin cookie.
These cookies are from America’s Test Kitchen so you know that basically decades of training went into make them as perfect as they can possibly be.
Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
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To start, you’re going to bloom the cinnamon in browned butter, which intensifies the cinnamon flavor without it being overwhelming. So many mediocre oatmeal raisin cookies tend to basically slap you in the face with spices, but this one doesn’t need to do that. The only spice is cinnamon, and it’s the perfect amount.
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You also make these with minimal butter, only four tablespoons, and supplement the fat in the cookie with oil. This allows it to remain soft and chewy without getting too cakey. You also use more brown sugar than regular sugar which helps promote the spiciness of the cookies. The recipe calls for dark brown, and while I generally use brown sugars interchangeably, this is a recipe that really benefits from dark brown sugar. It just has more flavor than light brown sugar.
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You want to use old fashioned oats here, not quick cooking oats. If you use quick oats they’ll be way too overdone by the time you finish baking the cookies.
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You can also opt to leave out the raisins. I don’t know why you would. They’re essential, but as someone who appreciates a plain oatmeal cookie, I can see that it might be the move for some people. You don’t want to sub in chocolate though – the flavor of chocolate wont go that well with the rest of this recipe.
24
Sara Rauckhorst
10 Min
10 Min
20 Min
Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups old fashioned oats
- ½ cup raisins (optional, but I wouldn't sub with chocolate)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375, and line a large baking sheet with parchment or a silpat.
- Whisk the flour, salt and baking soda together in a bowl.
- In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat until browned with a nutty aroma (around 1-2 minutes). Once browned, transfer to a large bowl, making sure to scrape all the butter out of the skillet, and add the cinnamon.
- Add the brown and white sugars and the oil to the bowl with the cinnamon butter, and whisk to combine. Add the egg, the egg yolk and vanilla, and stir until smooth.
- Stir in the flour until fully combined, then add the oats and raisins. The dough will be stiff - this will take some muscle.
- Scoop dough into 3 tablespoon sized balls, and space dough balls 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Dampen the heel of your hand, and press each dough ball out a little bit.
- Bake the cookies, 1 sheet at a time until the edges are set and lightly browned but the middles are still soft - about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a cooling rack.
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