Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

The best oatmeal raisin cookies are soft and chewy on the inside but crunchy around the edges. They have a lightly spiced flavor and are loaded with rolled oats and raisins!

These cookies are inspired by my grandmother’s recipe, and the version I’ve landed on keeps everything that made hers memorable while tightening the technique. I have been developing these oatmeal raisin cookies for years, and I can tell you with certainty that they are the best. They spread just enough to allow for a thick cookie with a little crunch, the ideal combination of crispy and chewy!

Oatmeal raisin cookies share that warm, cinnamon-forward spice profile with many of my favorite bakes, which is why I find myself making them in the same rotation as my cinnamon sugar cookies and these chewy molasses cookies. Both lean into that nostalgic spice note, but the oat-and-raisin combination gives this one a heartier, chewier bite.

Ingredients & Substitutions

• All-Purpose Flour: Flour provides the structure that keeps these cookies thick and holds all the mix-ins in place. Weighing the flour using a kitchen scale is the only way to guarantee consistent results, because too much flour is the most common reason cookies don’t spread correctly.
• Baking Soda: Baking soda is the leavening here, reacting with the trace acidity in brown sugar and butter to create lift and a more tender crumb. It produces a more dramatic initial rise than baking powder, which is exactly what you want for a cookie that stays tall.
• Kosher Salt
• Cinnamon and Nutmeg: Cinnamon is the dominant warm spice in these cookies; it is pronounced without turning them into a spice cookie. Nutmeg adds a deeper, slightly nutty warmth in the background; if you are using freshly ground nutmeg, reduce the amount by half because it is significantly more potent than pre-ground nutmeg.
• Unsalted Butter
• Granulated Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens and encourages spread and crisp edges because it melts without retaining moisture.
• Light Brown Sugar: Brown sugar adds sweetness, a little moisture, and a subtle molasses flavor. Its hygroscopic quality keeps the cookies softer for longer after baking.
• Eggs
• Old Fashioned Rolled Oats: Oats create the signature hearty, chewy texture and give these cookies their nutty, toasty backbone. If you have quick oats, I suggest you make these old fashioned oatmeal raisin cookies.
• Raisins: Raisins add concentrated pockets of sweetness and a soft, chewy texture that balances the spice and oat flavors. If you enjoy baking with dreid fruit, the same principle of choosing high-quality dried fruit applies in a classic Fruit Cake.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Variations on This Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

• Smaller Cookies. Portion the dough into smaller balls and reduce the baking time accordingly. Start checking a few minutes early so you don’t overbake them.
• Chocolate Chip Addition. Add up to ½ cup of chocolate chips; the ratio of oats and flour can handle the extra mix-ins without any other adjustment. Any leftover chocolate chips are excellent in a batch of chewy chocolate chip cookies.
• Rum-Soaked Raisins. Soak the raisins in dark rum at a ratio of 2 tablespoons rum per ½ cup raisins until plump, and the rum is nearly absorbed; you can speed this up by warming them gently in a small saucepan over low heat, adding an extra tablespoon of rum if you go that route, and letting them cool completely before adding to the batter.
• Spice Swap. Replace the cinnamon with pumpkin spice recipe or apple pie spice for a seasonal variation.
• Dried Fruit Substitution. Swap the raisins for cranberries, chopped dried mango, or dried apricots in equal measure for a fruit-forward cookie that keeps all the same texture.

Professional Tips

• Weigh your flour. Too much flour is the most common reason these cookies don’t spread correctly and bake up dry or dense. A kitchen scale removes the variable entirely.
• Freeze the portioned dough balls before baking, not just refrigerate them. Freezing limits spread more effectively than chilling in the refrigerator, which is how you get that tall, thick center with crisp edges. Spreading the balls in a single layer on the baking sheet gets them frozen solid in under 30 minutes.
• Stop mixing the moment the flour disappears. Overdeveloped gluten makes the cookies tough regardless of how well you creamed the butter. Add the flour mixture gradually and keep the mixer on low once it goes in.

How to Make Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Use these instructions to make the very best oatmeal raisin cookies every time! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below!

Step 1: Whisk the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until evenly combined. Set aside.

Step 3: Cream the butter and sugars. Add the butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.

Step 4: Add the eggs. Turn the mixer up slightly and add the eggs one at a time, letting each fully incorporate before adding the next. The mixture will look smooth and a little glossy when the eggs are fully beaten in.

Step 5: Add the flour mixture. Reduce the mixer to low speed and add the dry ingredients slowly in a continuous stream. Stop the mixer when a bit of flour is left. The dough will look thick and slightly rough at this stage, which is correct.

Step 6: Add the oats and raisins. With the mixer still on low, add the rolled oats and raisins. Mix just until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.

Not fully incorporating the flour before adding the oats and raisins helps you avoid a tough cookie. Mixing the flour in all the way, then adding the oats and raisins, can result in a tough cookie.

Step 7: Portion and freeze the dough. Scoop the dough into portions approximately the size of half a tennis ball, about 70 grams each. Roll each portion into a smooth sphere, then place them directly onto a parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer. Slide the tray into the freezer. The dough balls should feel firm and hold their shape before baking.

I like to chill my dough in the fridge before dividing. This will make it easier to work with and give you smoother cookie dough balls.

Step 8: Preheat the oven. Set your oven to 325°F convection or 350°F conventional. Let it fully preheat while the dough finishes freezing.

Step 9: Arrange the cookies. Place the frozen dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them at least 2 inches apart. They will spread as they bake, and crowding them together traps steam and affects how the edges crisp.

Step 10: Bake. Bake straight from frozen for 20 to 23 minutes. Rotate the cookies at 10 minutes for even browning. The outsides should be golden brown, and the centers should look set and matte rather than wet or shiny.

Step 11: Cool on the pan. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving them to a wire rack. They are still setting up during this time, and moving them too soon can cause them to fall apart or lose that domed shape. After 5 minutes, they will be sturdy enough to transfer and will continue to firm as they cool completely.

Recipe FAQs

Before You Go

If these chewy, spiced oatmeal raisin cookies made it onto your regular baking rotation, there is plenty more where that came from. Browse my Cookie Recipes or make this ccarmelitas recipe next!