These soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies are a family favorite in our house. Made with old fashioned oats, sweet raisins, and the comforting flavors of vanilla and brown sugar, they're a taste of happiness.
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Cookies are happiness. I mean, think about it. Don't we all have happy memories of mom baking up a warm batch of chocolate chip cookies or maybe some peanut butter blossoms with a Hershey's Kiss on top? And on a beautiful spring day, you might treat yourself to a few matcha crinkle cookies or lemon lavender cookies alongside a cup of tea. Or maybe you're feeling a little silly and creative and want to make some coffee bean cookies that look like real coffee beans!
No matter what your choice of cookie is, they all make you feel good and put a smile on your face. I know that these soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies bring back nostalgic memories of grandmom's house for me. It was such a treat, enjoying an oatmeal cookie (or two) for a sweet snack on a Sunday afternoon.
And they're super easy to make too! In less than 30 minutes, your family will love these cookies, biting into their soft and chewy texture, with wholesome oats and sweet, juicy raisins sprinkled throughout. I'm willing to bet you already have all the ingredients in your pantry, too.
Oh, and if you're not a raisin person...I've got you covered too. Just check below under "Add ins" for lots of options!
🍪 The history of oatmeal raisin cookies
Did you know that oatmeal cookies were first created around 1900 in the United States, as a descendent of the Scotish oatcake (which is a type of flatbread that's cooked on a griddle). These cookies quickly became very popular and were even considered a health food! Of course we know better today, but that certainly doesn't stop us from enjoying them and telling ourselves that hey, they're not so bad, they have oats and fruit! Raisins were added later, though, partially influenced by the fact that starting in the early 1900s, there was a recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies on all Quaker Oats containers.
🧾 Ingredients
- Old fashioned oats
- Raisins
- Butter
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- All purpose flour
- Cinnamon
- Baking soda
See the recipe card below for full list of ingredients and their measurements.
⭐ Ingredient notes
- Oats - Old fashioned rolled oats work best in this recipe to provide a soft and chewy texture.
- Raisins - The raisins are totally optional! If you're not a raisin person, you can either leave them out completely or substitute with one of the ideas I've listed below in "Add ins."
- Cinnamon - When working with ground spices, always make sure they're as fresh as possible. Even dried and ground spices lose their potency after a while. All of your recipes will taste better with fresher ingredients.
- Room temperature ingredients - Letting your butter and eggs come to room temperature on the countertop before adding to the cookie batter allows them to mix more smoothly with the other ingredients.
🥣 Making the cookie dough
Preheat the oven to 350℉.
Using a large mixing bowl, whisk together the butter, both sugars, eggs, and vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl, stir together the dry ingredients of flour, baking soda, and cinnamon.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together. Don't overmix, though.
Finally, stir in the oatmeal and raisins until evenly distributed throughout.
⏲️ Baking
With a spoon, scoop out some dough and roll into 1" to 1-½" balls. Place on a lined baking sheet.
Bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉ for 10-12 minutes.
Let cool on a cooling rack for a few minutes, then enjoy!
🧺 Storage
When stored in an airtight container on the counter, these soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies will stay good for several days.
📖 Add ins
Not a big raisin fan? No worries! Try one of these ideas instead:
- Other dried chopped fruits, like currants, cranberries, cherries, dates, prunes, or even dehydrated strawberries!
- Chopped walnuts or pecans
- Chocolate chips or butterscotch chips
- Sprinkle a little sweetened dried coconut into the cookie batter
🧑🍳 Pro tip
If you like your oatmeal raisin cookies super thin, with an almost lacy texture, just increase the amount of butter to ¾ or even 1 cup. They'll spread really thin when baking in the oven. If you haven't tried it, I'd definitely recommend it. Delish!
❓ FAQ
Be careful that you're not overmixing the batter. Overmixing causes gluten formation to develop more, which will result in a tougher cookie.
I wouldn't recommend it. Old fashioned rolled oats give these cookies the best chewy texture. Instant oats are much finer ground and may lead to a firmer cookie, and steel cut oats are just the opposite in terms of ground (they're much coarser) and will be too coarse to result in a soft and chewy cookie.
Absolutely! Just portion it out into little balls of cookie dough (like you're getting ready to put them in the oven). Place them on a baking sheet and put in the freezer for several hours until frozen. Once the balls of dough are frozen, place them in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 4 months. To bake, just take them right from the freezer to the oven...you may just need to add a few minutes to the baking time. This way, you can bake up the whole batch or just a few whenever the mood strikes!
Do you love sweet treats as much as I do? Check out a few more of my recipes now!
- Mom's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Soft Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Matcha Crinkle Cookies
- Biscoff Buttter Cookies
- Lemon Lavender Cookies
- Coffee Bean Cookies
- White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies
- Banana Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins
- Single Serve Baked Oatmeal - 5 Ways!
Did you make these Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies? Let us know in the comments below!
📝 Recipe
Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter, softened to room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 cup raisins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉.
- Using a large mixing bowl, whisk together the butter, both sugars, eggs, and vanilla extract.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the dry ingredients of flour, baking soda, and cinnamon.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together. Don't overmix, though.
- Finally, stir in the oatmeal and raisins until evenly distributed throughout.
- With a spoon, scoop out some dough and roll into 1" to 1-½" balls. Place on a lined baking sheet.
- Bake on the middle rack of the oven at 350℉ for 10-12 minutes.
- Let cool on a cooling rack for a few minutes, then enjoy!
Notes
- 🧺 Storage: When stored in an airtight container on the counter, these soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies will stay good for several days.
-
📖 Add ins: Not a big raisin fan? No worries! Try one of these ideas instead:
- Other dried chopped fruits, like currants, cranberries, cherries, dates, prunes, or even dehydrated strawberries!
- Chopped walnuts or pecans
- Chocolate chips or butterscotch chips
- Sprinkle a little sweetened dried coconut into the cookie batter
- Why are my cookies not chewy? Be careful that you're not overmixing the batter. Overmixing causes gluten formation to develop more, which will result in a tougher cookie.
- Can I use instant oats or steel cut oats instead? I wouldn't recommend it. Old fashioned rolled oats give these cookies the best chewy texture. Instant oats are much finer ground and may lead to a firmer cookie, and steel cut oats are just the opposite in terms of ground (they're much coarser) and will be too coarse to result in a soft and chewy cookie.
- Can I freeze the dough and bake the cookies later? Absolutely! Just portion it out into little balls of cookie dough (like you're getting ready to put them in the oven). Place them on a baking sheet and put in the freezer for several hours until frozen. Once the balls of dough are frozen, place them in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 4 months. To bake, just take them right from the freezer to the oven...you may just need to add a few minutes to the baking time. This way, you can bake up the whole batch or just a few whenever the mood strikes!
- Suggestion: If you enjoyed this, you're gonna love my chocolate chip cookies!
Kimberly Calderon
These cookies turned out amazing! Thank you so much.
maplewoodroad
Thanks so much! 🙂