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Oatmeal Cookies

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My favorite oatmeal cookies recipe that’s perfectly soft and chewy, easy to make, and full of the best oatmeal cinnamon flavors. Feel free to add raisins, chocolate chips or nuts too if you would like!

Oatmeal Cookies on Sheet Pan

How do you like your oatmeal cookies?! ♡

After five years together, I just recently learned that my husband is pro-chocolate-chips in his oatmeal cookies and — lol — apparently strongly opposed to raisins. Whereas I am the exact opposite and consider oatmeal and raisins the perfect match made in cookie heaven, and would rather just make classic chocolate chip cookies if I’m craving chocolate. Growing up, my mom was always a fan of adding butterscotch chips to hers. My best friend loves oatmeal cookies made with a generous sprinkling of nuts, while her husband prefers his cookies plain. And my 11-year-old next door neighbor recently told me he has concluded that M&Ms in cookies are, without a doubt, the coolest.

Pretty sure that everyone has an opinion when it comes to what add-ins (or lack thereof) constitute the best oatmeal cookies. ;)  But hey, the good news is that I’m here today with my favorite base oatmeal cookie recipe that can be customized pretty much however you’d like! It’s quick and easy to make, perfectly soft and chewy, and perfectly balanced with the most delicious cinnamon-y flavors. And it will work with whatever raisins, baking chips, nuts, candies or other fun ingredients you’d like to add in.

So grab those old-fashioned oats and let’s bake up a batch together!

Oatmeal Cookies | 1-Minute Video

Oatmeal Cookie Dough with Raisins

Oatmeal Cookie Ingredients:

First, a few notes about the oatmeal cookie ingredients that you will need to make this recipe:

  • Butter: I used unsalted butter, but if you only have salted on hand, just decrease the amount of salt in the recipe by 1/4 teaspoon.
  • Light brown sugar: This recipe is sweetened with light brown sugar, which needs to be firmly packed into the measuring cup when you are measuring it out.
  • Egg: To bind all of our ingredients together.
  • Vanilla extract: Be sure to use pure vanilla extract for optimum flavor.
  • Oats: This recipe calls for old-fashioned oats (also known as rolled oats), which will make the cookies nice and chewy.
  • Flour: I’ve only tested this recipe with all-purpose flour, but it may work with some alternate kinds of flour as well.
  • Cinnamon: I love my oatmeal cookies nice and cinnamon-y, but feel free to add in any other warming spices that you like as well.
  • Sea salt: I prefer to use fine sea salt in my cooking. But if you only have iodized (table) salt on hand, just note that you will need to use slightly less since its flavor is stronger. I also like to sprinkle the cookies with a pinch of flaky sea salt after they have baked.
  • Baking soda: To help our cookies rise.
  • Optional add-ins: Feel free to add in some raisins (or dried cranberries or other chopped dried fruit), baking chips (chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, toffee chips, etc), and/or chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, etc) too if you would like.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies with Flaky Sea Salt

Tips For How To Make Oatmeal Cookies:

Full recipe is included below, but here are a few tips for how to make the best oatmeal cookies!

  • Use old-fashioned oats. Double-check that you didn’t accidentally buy quick oats or instant oats. Old-fashioned oats (also known as rolled oats) will give these a better, chewier, texture and cook in the correct amount of time.
  • Start with room-temperature butter. In order for the butter to properly cream with the sugars, it’s important that your butter be room temperature (not melted, not hard and cold) when starting the recipe.
  • Correctly measure the flour. If you are measuring flour by volume (with a measuring cup instead of a scale), avoid scooping the measuring cup directly into the bag of flour to measure it, since this tends to pack in excess flour. Instead, fluff the flour in the bag briefly with a fork, then lightly spoon it into your measuring cup and level it out with a knife.
  • Chill the dough. In order for these cookies not to flatten too much in the oven, it helps to refrigerate the dough until it is chilled. You can either refrigerate the entire batch of dough and wait an hour or two until is it chilled. Or for a speedier method, you can go ahead and roll out however many dough balls you would like to bake and refrigerate them on the parchment-covered baking sheet for about 15-20 minutes until they are chilled.
  • Customize your add-ins however you’d like. Everyone has their own opinion about exactly what should go in an oatmeal cookie. So see options below for fun ways that you can customize yours exactly as you’d like!

Stack of Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Oatmeal Cookie Variations:

Here are a few options for how to customize this easy oatmeal cookie recipe! You could…

  • Add baking chips: To make oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, add in 1/2 cup of your favorite chocolate chips (semisweet, dark, white, etc). Or I also love adding in other fun baking chips or candies too (such as butterscotch chips, toffee chips or M&Ms).
  • Add raisins: To make oatmeal raisin cookies, add in 1/2 cup of raisins. Or you can make oatmeal cranberry cookies by adding in dried cranberries, or toss in some dried cherries, chopped dried apricots, or any other type of dried fruit that you may love.
  • Add nuts: To make oatmeal nut cookies, add in 1/2 cup of your favorite chopped nuts, such as chopped walnuts or pecans.
  • Add cardamom: For a different twist, I also love making these cookies with 1 teaspoon of ground cardamom plus 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Closeup

More Classic Cookie Recipes:

Looking for more delicious cookie inspiration this season? Here are a few of my favorite classic cookie recipes:

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Oatmeal Cookies

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 22 reviews
  • Author: Ali
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 10 mins
  • Total Time: 25 mins
  • Yield: 16 to 18 cookies 1x

Description

My favorite oatmeal cookies recipe that’s perfectly soft and chewy, easy to make, and full of the best oatmeal cinnamon flavors. Feel free to stir in whatever other add-ins you would like!


Ingredients

Scale

Instructions

  1. Combine the dry ingredients. Combine the oats, flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda in a medium mixing bowl and stir to combine.
  2. Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate large mixing bowl, either with a stand mixer or a hand mixer, cream together the softened butter and brown sugar on medium-high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally as needed. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat on medium speed until combined, about 30 seconds.
  3. Add in the dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredient mixture and beat on low-speed until combined.
  4. Stir in any (optional) add-ins. Sprinkle any add-ins evenly over the dough and stir by hand until they are evenly combined.
  5. Chill the dough. Transfer the dough to a food storage container and refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours until chilled.  (Or see a faster chilling method below.)
  6. Prep the cookies. Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Use a medium cookie scoop to form the dough into 2-tablespoon balls and place them a few inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
  7. Bake. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden around the edges and the centers are set.
  8. Cool. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool for 5 minutes.  (You can also sprinkle them with a pinch of flaky sea salt, if you’d like.)  Then serve warm and enjoy!


Notes

Type of salt: Please note that this recipe is written with fine sea salt, which is different than iodized (table) salt.  If you only have table salt on hand, you will need to reduce the amount to 1/2 teaspoon.

Faster chilling method: To chill the cookie dough faster, go ahead and roll out however many dough balls you would like to bake. Place them on the parchment-covered baking sheet.  Then place the entire baking sheet in the refrigerator for about 15-20 minutes until the dough balls are chilled.

Prep time. Prep time listed above does not include chilling time, which can range from an additional 15 minutes to 2 hours.

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40 comments on “Oatmeal Cookies”

  1. With dried Michigan cherries and my homemade vanilla.

    • 10/10! I made these today using whole wheat pastry flour instead of all-purpose flour, and they turned out great! I used 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips + 1/2 cup walnuts and everyone loved them!






    • These are so delicious and a new favorite recipe! I substituted whole wheat pastry flour for the white flour and used salted butter since it’s all I had (I eliminated the sea salt). Everyone loved them! :)






  2. I often replace raisins with dried blueberries when I know there are anti-raisin people at the table. They are delicious. My grandmother always paired fresh made applesauce and oatmeal cookies. Still my favorite fall pairing tied with fresh homemade applesauce over warm gingerbread fresh from the oven. Don’t knock it until you have tried it. I greatly enjoy your newsletter and look forward to each issue.






  3. Delicious recipe. Can you freeze the leftover dough.






  4. Thank you, thank you! I have been wanting to make
    Oatmeal cookies for the last couple of weeks. Lo and behold
    I check my e-mails and there you are with an Oatmeal
    cookie recipe, Yahoo, Gimmesomeoven♥️ Like you read my mind. A happy camper from Texas now living in Alabama

  5. What’s the result if you use quick oats?

  6. Those look awesome! Not a fan of raisins myself, but I will definitely try these with dried cherries or cranberries

  7. I live at just under 7500 ft. Does this work at high altitude?

  8. I just made these and whilst my house smelled lovely, they were WAY too salty! Is there a measurement mistake in the amount of salt? I normally always follow your recipes blindly and they are always amazing, so I didn’t think of the 1 teaspoon being too much?

    • I too found these very salty! I did reduce to 3/4 tsp since I was using salted butter but next time may omit or use unsalted butter. Did not add the sea salt thank goodness. Otherwise tasty.






  9. If you don’t have eggs or don’t eat them switch the egg out with chia egg. You take 1 tablespoon of chia seeds pour over 2.5 tablespoon of water and let it rest for 5 min and stur. And you have chia egg. Delicious recipe.

  10. These are Wonderful. I used Craisins and a tablespoon or two of old mixed dry fruit. Great flavor and texture! Couldn’t be happier. Very forgiving recipe, too. I think of brown sugar as a dry so mixed that with my dry bowl. I no Ali said go wet but some mornings I’m not too swift. I mixed the dough until the texture seemed correct and proceeded as written. All went well. Love returning to the house to these smells after walking the dog. Thank You??






  11. Ohhhh can’t wait to try the cookies with cardamom! Trust you are well and all is coming along perfectly. Looking forward to wonderful news soon. Wishing you all the very best.

  12. Delicious! Will now be my go-to oatmeal cookie!

  13. The best oatmeal cookies I’ve ever made. Thank you for this recipe! I added raisins and walnuts, really good. I needed to bake for 14 minutes for consistent texture, probably because of the size of the cookies (made 18). Will be baking these again for sure.






    • I followed the recipe, but double it and added 1/2cup of whole milk, the cookies came out delicious!






  14. I did not chill my dough and they came out perfect, they were a little too moist but quite eatible.






  15. These taste incredible! My daughter and I had a lot of fun making them together today. We did half with white chocolate pieces and half with M&Ms. Love your site! Directions are always easy to follow and everything is always delicious.






  16. I have to be wheat-free(gluten) .. has anyone had luck modifying the recipe for this? I LOVE your recipes ( just successfully made your well- loved and praised “smashed potatoes recipe;)

    • I use a combination of amaranth and oat flour with success. I also use palm shortening instead of butter for my son who can’t have dairy.






  17. So good! I like to add dark chocolate chips to mine!






  18. Just found out I have to cut out dairy while I’m nursing my little one. Do you have an alternative recommendation for the unsalted butter I can use?

  19. I agree with Victoria; that the salt is very dominating. I was kind of shocked to see 3/4 t. sea salt, but thought I’d make as written and give it a try. Since I was using salted butter, I did reduce the sea salt to 1/2 t. (I measured very carefully), but the cookies are more salty than sweet. I’m glad I didn’t sprinkle salt on top before tasting. I added 1/2 C. of chopped walnuts and 1/2 C. of Craisins, and other than the salt being too much, it’s a great cookie.






  20. Can you substitute the brown sugar for maple syrup or honey or applesauce

  21. Made this recipe during the Eid holiday, my family loved it! I added raisins and a tablespoon of chopped orange rind, tasted divine! Thank you for this recipe.






  22. The BEST! FINALLY FOUND A GREAT RECIPE. MADE IT With dried cherries, blueberries & cranberries!💞






  23. Um wow! These are incredible!!!!!! Definitely will be making again!!






  24. Delicious base batter! I subbed half cup of dark chocolate chips and half cup of dried cherries for the raisins. I love a good oatmeal cookie and will happily use this recipe again.






  25. Does the recipe double successfully? Thanks.

  26. These were very salty and lacked flavor but I did need to leave out cinnamon. I did not use salted butter. Would halve salt.

  27. First time ever to bake from scratch for any cookies. I added raisins, coconut and chopped pecans. Great recipe and instructions. Will use this as my go to recipe.
    Thanks for the instruction.
    There were great for an 82 yr first timer.






  28. Funny reading all the coments about the salt, i used salted butter and I wanted to reduce the salt but I forgot so I was worried but it came out and me and my partner both had the statement that this is too sweet and there’s too much sugar in it. 😅 otherwise it was great

  29. Good base recipe – nice size – not too large. For a change-up I used a cup or so of Rice Krispies for an add-in. Turned out quite well really, would do again. Definitely not too sweet.






  30. My favorite oatmeal cookie recipe I’ve found!! I used salted butter and didn’t add any extra salt and they are perfect! Not too salty and not too sweet. We added semi sweet chocolate chips, and craisens in the other half the batter. Will be making these again!






  31. You should adjust the recipe to read, mix all dry ingredients EXCEPT brown sugar. When I made them, I read all dry ingredients and added the sugar since it is a dry ingredient. I still used it so we will see how they come out.






  32. Curious if using a flax egg would work? My son can’t have eggs and that’s the substitute I’ve used for many things, but never cookies.

  33. Did not bother chilling. Just made cookies that were more likely 1 Tbsp balls. Also used milk chocolate chips, and half the cinnamon. Gives nice mellow warm feeling to eating oatmeal! Want to try them again with the cardamom. Overall, a very tasty cookie, one I will keep making.

  34. Excellent recipe ! Easy to make and delicious !