Soft and chewy with that trademark homemade flavor, these are the best soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies. Made with brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, chewy oats, sweet raisins, and a secret ingredient, this recipe wins for flavor and texture. Your family will love these easy oatmeal raisin cookies!
There are two types of people in this world. Raisin haters and raisin lovers. I fall into the latter category. Besides homemade apple pie, oatmeal raisin cookies are my favorite dessert. There’s something incredibly magical about the chewy texture, soft centers, plump raisins, and cinnamon flavor. Please tell me I’m not the only raisin lover!!
What Makes These Oatmeal Raisin Cookies The Best
The competition is strong, but here’s why you’ll fall in love with these cookies.
- Moist and tender centers
- Slight crisp on the edges
- Sweetened with brown sugar
- Loaded with oats
- Studded with raisins
- Cinnamon spiced
- Buttery flavor
- 30 minute chill time
It doesn’t get much better than this!
Ingredients in Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Oatmeal raisin cookies are made with very basic ingredients.
- Butter: Butter is the base of any delicious cookie recipe. Make sure you are using room temperature butter.
- Brown Sugar + Granulated Sugar: Sugar is not only used for sweetness, but also for providing structure and tenderness. I like to use more brown sugar than white sugar because (1) brown sugar has incredible flavor and (2) brown sugar contains more moisture than white, which produces a softer cookie.
- Eggs: Eggs help bind everything together. You need 2 eggs in this recipe.
- Pure Vanilla Extract + Salt: Both provide flavor.
- Cinnamon: Raisins, oats, and cinnamon are winning flavor combination.
- Baking Soda: Baking soda helps the cookies rise.
- Molasses: Molasses is my secret ingredient! 1 scant Tablespoon enhances all the wonderful flavors of these buttery, cinnamon-sweet oatmeal raisin cookies.
- Flour: Flour is the structure of the cookies.
- Oats: There are a ton of oats in this recipe! Oats provide a fabulously chewy texture. I use and recommend old fashioned whole oats here—just like I do for flourless peanut butter oatmeal cookies.
- Raisins: I love to soak the raisins in warm water before using. This step is optional, but it guarantees they are plump and soft. Blot dry before adding to cookie dough. (You can also use this cookie dough to make my white chocolate chip cherry oatmeal cookies.)
I like to add chopped walnuts. Nuts are totally optional but highly recommended. These simple ingredients combine to make the best oatmeal raisin cookies!
How to Make Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
There’s only a few steps between now and a batch of warm oatmeal cookies. 🙂
- Cream butter + sugars: Use a hand or stand mixer to cream the softened butter with both sugars until smooth, about 2 minutes on medium speed.
- Add eggs, vanilla, + molasses: Add eggs, then mix on high for about 1 minute until incorporated. Add vanilla and molasses, mix until combined.
- Dry ingredients: Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together in a separate bowl. Pour this into the wet ingredients. Combine together on low.
- Add the extras: Beat in the oats and raisins on low speed. Dough will be thick and sticky.
- Chill: Refrigerate the cookie dough for 30-60 minutes.
- Roll: Roll cookie dough into balls and place on a lined baking sheet. I love using these baking mats.
- Bake: Bake the cookies at 350°F (177°C) for 12-13 minutes until lightly browned. The cookies might look under-baked, but they will continue to set as they cool. This is the secret to a soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookie!
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Dough is Sticky
This oatmeal raisin cookie dough is sticky, so don’t be alarmed. The cookie dough needs to chill for about 30 minutes before baking. I don’t recommend keeping this cookie dough in the refrigerator for much longer because your cookies won’t spread. The oats will begin to absorb all of the wonderful moisture from the eggs, butter, and sugar and won’t expand as they bake. Sticky dough is good dough!
More Favorite Cookie Recipes
If you love these oatmeal raisin cookies, try any of these SOFT cookie recipes. You’ll wonder why you haven’t baked them sooner!
- Iced Oatmeal Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Oatmeal Scotchies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Monster Cookies
- Maple Brown Sugar Cookies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 26-30 cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Soft and chewy with that trademark homemade flavor, these are the best soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies. Your family will love these easy oatmeal raisin cookies!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs*
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract (yes, Tablespoon!)
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups (255g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats*
- 1 cup (140g) raisins (see Note below)
- optional: 1/2 cup (64g) chopped toasted walnuts
Instructions
- Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream the softened butter and both sugars together on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and mix on high until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla and molasses and mix on high until combined. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Add to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. Beat in the oats, raisins, and walnuts (if using) on low speed. Dough will be thick, yet very sticky. Chill the dough for 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator (do the full hour if you’re afraid of the cookies spreading too much). If chilling for longer (up to 2 days), allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Roll balls of dough (about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie) and place 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. I recommend using a cookie scoop since the dough can be sticky. Bake for 12-14 minutes until lightly browned on the sides. The centers will look very soft and under-baked. Remove from the oven and let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies will continue to “set” on the baking sheet during this time.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. Baked cookies freeze well—up to three months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well—up to three months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Here’s how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack
- Oats: For these oatmeal raisin cookies, I use old-fashioned whole oats. They provide the ultimate hearty, chewy, thick texture we love!
- Eggs: Room temperature eggs preferred. Good rule of thumb: always use room temperature eggs when using room temperature butter.
- Raisins: Soak your raisins in warm water for 10 minutes before using (blot very well to dry them) – this makes them nice and plump for your cookies.
- Adapted from Loaded Oatmeal Cookies & Oatmeal Creme Pies. Recipe originally published on Sally’s Baking Addiction in 2014.
Hi Sally! You are an expert cook and appreciate all your knowledge on baking.
I will be baking these cookies for a big crowd on Saturday. Is it okay if i make the dough in the morning and let it sit in the fridge til the evening? Will it dry out? If not can I skip the refridgeration?
Grateful for any advice!
God bless!
Hi Alex, absolutely. Just make sure the dough is covered and then allow it to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking. Hope they’re a hit!
I followed recipe. Carefully measured. They are the is the worst recipe i have ever made. Cookies spread apart. I have been baking for over 40 years. I would not recommend to anyone
My first time making oatmeal raisin cookies using this recipe, and they’re delish, not too sweet, just right! The molasses gave a wonderful taste.
Made these tonight with cranberries and white chocolate chips! Seriously the best oatmeal cookies I have ever tasted!
I only chilled the cookie dough for 30 mins, but my cookies didn’t spread. What might have gone wrong?
Hi Tara! Make sure you are Properly Measuring your Ingredients, especially your flour. Spoon and level instead of scooping or you will end up with too much which will dry out your cookies and keep them from spreading.
Any tips for potentially soaking the oats?
Hi Haley, We don’t recommend pre-soaking the oats for this recipe. During the 30 minutes of chill time the oats will begin to absorb all of the wonderful moisture from the eggs, butter, and sugar!
I love oatmeal cookies and this recipe is very delicious.
I made two batches, followed everything the same. First batch perfect and the second batch spread all over the cookie sheet. I left the dough sit in the refrigerator for about 50 minutes. Any idea why this may have happened?
Hi Sally,
I love the cookies. I have made them many times.
I would like to make a much larger cookie. If I used 4 tablespoons instead of 2 how long would they need to bake?
Hi Penny, I’m so glad that you enjoy these cookies. I can’t say what the exact bake time would be. It’s best to use your eyes as the timer (instead of the oven). Once those edges look set and lightly browned, they’re done.
Hi Sally! I just absolutely love these cookies, they are a family favorite. To mix it up this year, I thought about swapping 1 cup of raisins for 1/3 cup of raisins, 1/3 cup dried cranberries, and 1/3 cup of dried apricots. Do you think that would be okay? I want to make an oatmeal and dried fruit cookie.
Thank you!
Thank you for a yummy soft, cinnamony cookie. However, I don’t share your love of raisins, so substituted fresh cranberries. No less than 2 people told me they were “perfect” and 1 insists they are the best cookies he’s ever eaten. The taste is amazing, but with the added moisture of fresh fruit, the consistency was too soft for my preference; they needed a little bit more firmness to hold together. And almost everything is improved with chocolate chips. Please consider developing an oatmeal-based cranberry chocolate chip (or maybe toffee chip?) cookie recipe. Not that my own recipe testing/tweaking is painful, but you always get the recipe just right. Thanks for your clear, delicious recipes.
Amazing cookies! Cut back on the vanilla (to 1 tsp) as I’m not a big fan of that flavour. Noticed my husband was going through the kitchen much more frequently than usual – cookies disappeared from the cooling rack with each visit. Great directions, easy to follow.
Thank you.
Hi! I just made this but used dried cranberries instead. I soaked them in milk. The cookies taste so good however I find it too soft. I wanted it to have a little crisp on the outside and chewy in the inside. If I lessen the dark brown sugar and increase the white sugar, will it turn out a little crispy? If so, by how much can I increase/decrease the sugar? Also, the dark brown + molasses is genius! But the cookies turned out a little too dark..
Hi Kae, you can certainly swap out some brown sugar for more granulated sugar. What always helps, though, is baking the cookies for a couple extra minutes– they’ll be a little crispier that way.
Wasn’t thrilled with texture! My eggs may have been to big ! Will try again and will swap some of the brown sugar with white also ! ( my eggs appear a little more jumbo then large possible problem)
Mine turned out a bit dry and clumpy also. Not sure what I did wrong.
Hi Mary, did you over-measure the flour by chance? Make sure you are Properly Measuring your Ingredients, especially your flour. Spoon and level instead of scooping or you will end up with too much which will dry out your cookies.
I hate these cookies !! They are soooooo yummy. I think I’ve gained 10 pounds eating these this month. Chewy, the sweetness of the raisin, the hint of cinnamon. So good with a glass of milk. I’m turning into “The Santa Claus” !
Let me start by saying I hate it when people make all kinds of changes to a recipe, then go on to rate the original. But, we are not molasses people. Instead I used dark chocolate chips and slivered almonds instead of walnuts because it’s what I had on hand. My husband is all about oatmeal cookies and I have tried many, many recipes for them. He also likes them more crispy than soft (not me though) so I didn’t soak the raisins. I cooked them five minutes longer for a more crispy cookie for him. This recipe is the BEST I’ve found, so much so that this will be my go to from now on. My husband agrees with me on this. Thank you Sally, it’s been a long oatmeal cookie recipe quest and now I can relax in the knowledge that I have a really great recipe that will be consistently delicious!
Hi Sally! I love your recipes! I put your “Cookie Addiction” cookbook on my Christmas wish list, hopefully Santa will bring it! But I have a question- Have you ever used rum soaked raisins for this recipe? Will it alter the flavor too much or enhance?
Thanks!
Hi Malinda, We haven’t but you definitely can for a different flavor! Just blot the raisins very well to dry them before adding them to the dough. Let us know if you try it!
Been making this recipe for like 6 times now lol my hubby loves it! Thank you for this excellent recipe❤
The molasses gave it a lovely taste!
I am a raisin hater, like in your first paragraph, my whole family are raisin lovers. I have to say I made these and they smelt and looked so good that I ate 2. When my husband got home from working tried one, pickiest family member ever, he said nothing at all. The last bite I got the nod. Which is the equivalent of him squealing and jumping for joy. Excellent recipe thank you so much. No more store bought for us!
Everybody who has one of these absolutely loves them!!
Great directions, came out awesome….thanks
I hate molasses and did not use it, even though it asked for a minute amount. Best oatmeal cookies we’ve ever tasted!!
Best oatmeal cookies I’ve ever tasted. Easy to follow directions. I didn’t have molasses otherwise made no other changes. Absolutely my only recipe for oatmeal cookies from now on. Just scrumptious!!
The molasses is an absolute GAME CHANGER in the oatmeal cookie division! If you thought you knew a good oatmeal cookie recipe, take an adventure with this recipe. I used rolled oats and it turns out well. I dont soak the raisins (i like them more chewy than soft and plump but by all means I’m sure its excellent soaked, too!) The tablespoon of vanilla is my go-to measurement for ANY recipe which calls for vanilla. Between that and the molasses, THIS recipe will set your cookies apart from anyone’s! I promise! If you don’t like this recipe, you may not be an oatmeal cookie fan. It’s amazing. Thank you Sally!
I finally got around to make this cookies. They are amazing!!! One of the best cookies I have ever made. Thank you so much.
Delicious and chewy thanks for the extra tips . They are just perfect.!
I just made this recipe. It came out very good. I didn’t use salt. I substituted oat with cinnamon and brown sugar instant oats. Indiv.packets because I didn’t have regular oats. It turned out to work well yummy flavor.
This is a wonderful recipe! I used dark brown sugar. And I added 1/2 tsp. almond extract. I substituted dried cranberries for the raisins as that is what I had in my pantry. So yummy! They will be added to my Holiday baking list every year.
I’m 80 years old and have been making cookies for a long time. However I made these today and must compliment you because they are the very best oatmeal, raisin cookies I’ve ever made. I followed the instructions exactly the way they were written. Congratulations.
Thank you for this recipe. My first time making oatmeal cookies. They are good, but, I would have to agree with a previous comment, that they are more of a ” breakfast cookie density”. What can be changed? Also, they’re not as sweet as expected. Made them for my boyfriend, we’ll see how he likes them.
Turned out great! Big, soft, chewy, will definitely make again. Quite likely be making more for Christmas gifts. :). Didn’t have enough brown sugar, so we made our own using molasses. Fluffy and awesome brown sugar. Made about 30 big cookies. Thanks for a great recipe!
Good but a little grainy.