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
- Soft & Thick 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*
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand)
- 1 and 2/3 cups (209g) 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 3 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) 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.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I like to cook my raisins for 20 minutes with a cup of water and a shot of brandy. Never tried the molasses before, will let you know thanks!
Best cookies ever! I’m calling them breakfast cookies ☺️. Shared with friends, they loved them. Thanks!
I love oatmeal cookies but not fond of the raisins. Would I have to change anything if I omit them?
Hi Mo, no changes necessary. You can just leave them out, or replace with chocolate chips or chopped nuts if desired.
I loved this recipe so much
These are these best cookies I’ve ever made. THANK YOU!
I would like to make these as a bar cookie, for the ease of baking it all in one pan. What would I need to do in order to accomplish this, please? Thank you in advance for your kind assistance.
Hi Sheri, we’d recommend making them as bars in a 9×13 pan. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. Hope they’re a hit!
These are the best cookies on earth!! I’m serious!! Turned out perfect and gone in a day! Going to double up next time! Thank you so very much for this amazing recipe and all the wonderful other recipes too! Cheers!
These are the best cookies on earth!! I’m serious!! Turned out perfect and gone in a day! Going to double up next time! Thank you so very much for this amazing recipe and all the wonderful other recipes too!
Needed to make plant based, so I used 2 tbsp of ground flax in 6 tbsp of water, and plant based butter….. perfect!!
The best oatmeal raisin recipe! I’ve made it 3 times!
I like this recipe, but how do I get them to spread out more? They hardly spread at all!
Hi Bev! When cookies aren’t spreading, it usually means that there’s too much dry ingredient (flour) soaking up all the liquid. When measuring flour, use the spoon & level method. Do not scoop the flour out of the container/bag. Doing so leaves you with excess flour in the cookie dough.
My cookies came out more cake like than chewy. Any suggestions?
How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
Best oatmeal raisin cookies I have ever baked!
Thank you Sally for your amazing recipes. I’ve made many.
QUESTION:: WHY DO YOU NOT SUGGEST BLACKSTRAP MOLASSES? I SEE THAT COMMENT BY MANY PEOPLE.
Hi Shelly, Blackstrap molasses can be quite intense— we don’t bake with it too often.
I love the oatmeal raisin cookies. They are the best cookies I have ever made. My family was here for my daughter’s wedding, and I made several dozen of them and they could not get enough of them and they all wanted the recipe. Absolutely wonderful recipe. I would love to find a molasses cookie, soft and chewy recipe as good as this one
Hi Lisa, we’re so glad you and your family enjoyed these. You might want to give our Seriously Soft Molasses Cookies a try! Let us know if you do.
What’s the secret ingredient?
Molasses is the secret ingredient! 1 scant Tablespoon enhances all the wonderful flavors of these buttery, cinnamon-sweet oatmeal raisin cookies.
Great cookie recipe although mine would not spread unless I push down with a spoon to partially flatten. They were a hit!
Made these this morning! Turned out great!
I loved this recipe. Would you help me with the raisins used here? Black or golden?
You can use either, but we typically use the dark ones.
I love this recipe, I’ve made it easily a dozen times. Today I made them on a whim, but only had a half a cup of butter lying around. I added half a cup of almond butter to try and balance it out and add some protein and it worked perfectly!
I love this recipe. I have made it twice. It is delicious. So easy to make
I didnt have the cinnamon but I had some mixed spices: i didnt have any molasses but I used the pancake syrup.
THE BEST OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIE EVER! This is my favorite cookie, and I just had to try it, since every Sally’s recipe that I have tried has been amazing – this was no exception! I subbed date syrup for molasses, and added an additional half cup of Craisins, along with the walnuts – that was it! This is my forever OR Cookie recipe! Thank you!
I was so disappointed in these. I followed directions, even read all notes and tips and they still didn’t turn out. They spread out too much and just disintegrated when picked up, even after completely cooled. My room temp butter is always cool enough (our house is 68°F) . I even weigh vs measuring my ingredients. I’ll try freezing them next time and maybe adding a touch more flour to see if it helps.
Hi Mandy, I’m so sorry to hear the cookies didn’t turn out well for you! It sounds like you did everything right, so I’m not sure what to suggest. This post on how to prevent cookies from spreading is a helpful resource. If all else fails, you can try adding a couple extra tablespoons of flour to your dough. Thank you so much for giving these cookies a try!
This is my second time trying this recipe and these cookies are just as good as the first time. I have tried dozens of oatmeal cookie recipes and they were all a fail….okay taste wise, but they ended up spreading out so thin I was left with oatmeal cookie crumbles. I first baked them with my grandkids before their ride back home and their Mom said the cookies never made it home. I’m adding this to my recipe box because it’s definitely a keeper. I can’t wait to make these for my client. I think she’ll live these more than my gingersnaps. Thank you for this AMAZING recipe!!!
I have made this recipe at least 5 times. Cookies are delicious, but ALWAYS flat. I follow directions to a tee and still flat. What am I doing wrong? I do everything the recipe tells me to do and my oven is always at correct temp
Hi Lisa! We’re happy to help troubleshoot. Perhaps your butter is starting off a bit warmer than necessary. Here is more on what room temperature butter means (it may be cooler than you think!). This post on how to prevent cookies from spreading will also be a helpful resource. If all else fails, you can try adding a couple extra Tbs flour to your dough. Thank you so much for giving these cookies a try!
Best cookie ever!!
Omg these were n are the best I have ever baked. They held they’re size they are a huge hit. Thank u Sally. I wanted to load a picture to show how perfect they came out using your amazing recipe, but idk how
Hi Millie, we’re so glad to hear these cookies were a hit! Feel free to send us a photo at sally@sallysbakingaddiction.com—we’d love to see how they turned out!
I have struggled for a long time to find the perfect oatmeal raisin cookies. Sally, you’ve done it AGAIN! These are absolutely fabulous. I don’t have molasses (I only have black strap) and they are just right! Thank you!!