Oatmeal raisin cookies
Oatmeal raisin cookies are soft and chewy, fragrant with cinnamon and brown sugar, and every bite carries the gentle sweet-tart flavor of raisins. Rolled oats make them satisfying with a wonderful chew, a homey snack that goes perfectly with a glass of warm milk.
- Difficulty
- Very easy
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 12 min
- Rising or chilling
- 30 min
- Total time
- 1 hr 7 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
Oat cookie dough
Raisins
Instructions
Step 1
Soak 220 g raisins in warm water for about ten minutes, then drain them and pat them very dry with paper towels. Soaked raisins turn plump and juicy and won't steal moisture from the dough as it bakes. The raisins are right when they are round, soft and have no water clinging to them.
Step 2
Put 170 g softened unsalted butter, 200 g brown sugar and 50 g granulated sugar in a bowl and beat at medium speed for about three minutes. Beating just enough gives the cookies chew rather than a cakey texture. Stop when the mixture is slightly paler and soft and smooth like frosting.
Step 3
Add 100 g eggs to the bowl one at a time, then add 6 g vanilla extract and beat on low speed. Adding the eggs one by one keeps the mixture from curdling or turning greasy. The mixture is right when it is uniform, creamy and clings lightly to the sides of the bowl.
Step 4
Mix 190 g all-purpose flour, 4 g baking soda, 3 g salt and 3 g ground cinnamon in a separate bowl, add it to the butter mixture, then add 240 g rolled oats along with the drained raisins. Fold gently with a spatula so the oats don't break up and keep their chew. The dough is right when it is thick and sticky with the oats and raisins evenly distributed.
Step 5
Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate the dough for about 30 minutes, preheating the oven to 175 degrees C in the meantime. The oats need time to absorb moisture, which helps the cookies stay thick as they bake. The dough is ready when it feels firmer and you can roll it into balls without it turning mushy.
Step 6
Use an ice cream scoop or two tablespoons to portion the dough into balls about the size of a small lime, set them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and press them down slightly. Pressing them first helps the cookies bake evenly from edge to center. The sheet is right when the dough balls are about 2 cm tall and about 5 cm apart.
Step 7
Bake on the middle rack at 175 degrees C for about 11 to 13 minutes. Taking them out at the right moment keeps the soft, chewy texture that oats are known for. The cookies are done when the edges are deep golden and the tops look dry while the centers are still slightly soft to a light touch.
Step 8
Leave the cookies on the sheet for about five minutes to firm up, then move them to a wire rack to cool completely. If you lift them while still hot, they break in half easily because the centers haven't set yet. They are right when they are completely cool and bend slightly when you hold them instead of crumbling.
Equipment
- Oven
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Hand mixer
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- Kitchen scale
- Wire cooling rack
Tips
- Use whole old-fashioned rolled oats instead of instant oats for a more noticeable chew.
- You can swap the raisins for dried cranberries or add a few toasted walnuts for a richer, nuttier cookie.
- Adding a pinch of ground nutmeg along with the cinnamon gives the cookies a warmer, deeper aroma.
Storage
Cooled cookies stored in an airtight container at room temperature stay soft and chewy for about five days. You can freeze baked cookies for up to two months; thaw them at room temperature for about thirty minutes before eating.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The cookies spread out wide and paper-thin.
- The butter was too soft or the dough wasn't chilled long enough. Put the dough back in the refrigerator for fifteen minutes more and bake on a cooled baking sheet.
- The raisins burned black on top of the cookies.
- Raisins poking out of the dough burn easily. When rolling the balls, press the raisins into the dough, and bake on the middle rack instead of the top one.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
