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.
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! Everybody LOVE these cookies. I have a good batch of frozen cookie dough ready for whenever we MUST have some!
I am a true Sally fan and also have been a professional baker for years! I tell everyone about her recipes bc they are usually no-fail, but for some reason even after two attempts this recipe came out very flat and too crunchy. I weigh all ingredients, no substitutions, room temp butter and eggs. The recipe notes said you could add anything you like so I opted for butterscotch chips instead of walnuts. Maybe that is what was wrong? I noticed the chips got melty and bc they are artificially flavored perhaps the chemicals altered the recipe? I used a 3 tbsp scoop for a bakery style sized cookie. They spread so much and the edges were too done and the centers were not. I salvaged some in each batch with a lot of scooting them around into circles. In the first batch I used blackstrap molasses and the second batch regular molasses. I actually preferred the blackstrap tho the recipe says not to use it. I hope these comments help.
Everyone loves your oatmeal raisin cookies. Think i can substitute cranberries instead?
Hi Donna, dried cranberries are a fantastic replacement!
Hi Sally, I love these cookies! I love the brown sugar and molasses combo. My family loved them, they were gone by the end of the day.
Yummy! I didn’t even have the patience to refrigerate them and they turned out GREAT!
Hi Sally… I made these today and I love the flavor. However, my cookies did not spread out at all. They remained balls. I followed instructions exactly.
Hi Cherie, How did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to measure your flour. This ensures it isn’t over measured, which can soak up too much of the wet ingredients and prevent the cookies from spreading properly. If you find they’re not spreading, you can always take the pan out and gently bang it on the counter a few times, then return it to the oven. This should help initiate spread. Hope this helps for your next batch!
I am 71 and have always used my mother’s oatmeal cookie recipe. I didn’t like them and after 47 years, my husband fessed up that he didn’t either! So tried at least six recipes but none were any better than Moms until these. I followed her recipe exactly because I was trying to find the perfect cookie. I found it. These cookies are delicious!!! Thank you so much for sharing these with the rest of us. It will now become a family go to. Now I look forward to trying some other recipes of yours. If they are like the cookies, I’ll be hooked for life!
Absolute fail, not good don’t try it use a different one, it needs nutmeg ect and more sugar!!!!!
Hi sally , can I substitute vanilla chips for the walnuts?
Definitely!
I made these cookies today! I used steel cut oats, plumped the raisins and toasted the walnuts and they are absolutely delish! My son in law couldn’t stop eating them! Congratulations on a primo recipe! I’m saving it!
Has anyone tested these with brown butter? I’m tempted to try…I suspect with soaked raisins they wouldn’t suffer much loss of moisture…
A great recipe as is though. Love the molasses addition! It really gives a nice flavor without overpowering the classic cinnamon raisin.
Hi Melisa, we haven’t tested this particular recipe with brown butter, but you could give it a try! Please report back and let us know how it turns out.
Love this recipe!
What am I doing wrong. They turn out so thin and even though I space them they still run together. I even refrigerated dough thinking that would help.
Here’s our best tips for preventing cookies from spreading for your next batch! Starting with butter that’s too warm is the most common mistake. This dough should chill for 30-60 minutes before baking (see step 2).
Great recipe. Everyone loves them. I have now purchased a scoop as recommended. I did not have one at the time, so I weighed two tablespoons of dough. It was 34 grams. So I weighed each scoop to get consistent results. It was easy after just a few tries.
The only molasses in the house, I did use it against your advice. It was good. We eat a lot of molasses around here, so our palates are used to it.
This was great!!! Everybody loved them (even the picky eaters!)
I really enjoy these cookies. If I wanted to increase the molasses flavor (maybe by another tbsp?) how would I adjust the recipe to account for the extra liquid?
Hi Patti! You can try adding extra molasses, but it would take some testing to keep the cookies from spreading too much. You can also use dark brown sugar to increase the molasses-y flavor.
These have been tried and true for years! Substituting chocolate chips for raisins, the molasses, the oats-a dream! Any way you have some macros on this recipe?
Hi Serena, we don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
This was a great recipe. The molasses was a fun addition. Next time I’ll add another cup of raisins, a little more cinnamon and some nutmeg.
Made this recipe as a late-night family snack!!! It was a hit with everyone from adults to children. I am keeping this recipe for the books. I used salted butter and omitted the salt because that’s what I had. In the words of my two-year-old twins, mmmm, delicious delicious delicious.
Looks amazing but can I skip the molasses?
Hi Jay, you can omit the molasses if needed—no other changes.
What a great recipe! I was looking for an exceptional oatmeal raisin cookie – soft, moist, and chewy – and this recipe delivered. It’s definitely a keeper – like every other recipe on this site that I have tried!
I made your cookie recipe and the only thing different I did was add some cranberries instead of raisins and some chocolate chips and some other dried fruits. This is the best oatmeal cookie recipe I’ve ever found! And I want to say thank you thank you thank you!
These cookies were very good. I didn’t have any molasses on hand, so I used pancake syrup instead. I made them for a bake sale and they were a hit. I loved the idea of soaking the raisins in water, but I didn’t do it this time. I will keep this recipe as a favorite for oatmeal cookies. Thank you Sally!
I have made many of Sally’s recipes, and each is a winner. I came here today to say an old trick I use when rehydrating raisins is to use hot tea instead of hot water. I use regular black tea, nothing exotic.
I’ve made this quite a few times already and they were a HIT each time!! So easy to make and my trusty kitchen machine handles most of it. I brought them to work and shared with friends and they were gone by the day!!
I just made these cookies and they are just the recipe I was lookin for. I followed the step by step directions and the cookies were in the oven before I read that I should have soaked the raisins. It would be great if you could put that into the actual instructions instead of after the very end. Thnks
Hi Eileen, soaking the raisins is an optional step, if you want the raisins to be extra soft in the baked cookies. Some people prefer them to stay more chewy, it’s really a personal preference! Glad you enjoyed the cookies!
Delicious. You should include the tips portion in the actual recipe. People like me sometimes forget to read ahead lol.
I made these with my daughter and they were so delicious. We ran late on time and did not let it chill, I’ll be sure to do it next time. We split the dough and out chocolate chips in half and raising in the other. Everyone at our house love them.
Prep time is a little longer than usual, but well worth following the tips and notes! Delicious!
I loved this recipe, Sally! I’d like to make them larger, like “bakery” cookies, but I’m not sure how to adjust the bake time. I’ll be using a larger scoop that I use for ice cream– size 12, I think. any suggestions? Thanks, Sally. I love your recipes!
Hi Maureen, You can make larger cookies with this dough. We 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. Let us know how it goes!
Can I halve this recipe?
Hi Clara, absolutely, simply halve all the ingredients.