Soft Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Cookies are a great way to learn to bake. They are small, affordable, easy to make and can often be made in half batches for practice or just to try something new. My father has a real sweet tooth and loved to bake oatmeal raisin cookies for us when I was a child. Oatmeal cookies come in many variations: crispy, chewy, soft, with or without nuts or dried fruit, sandwiched with creme or iced—there is sure to be an oatmeal cookie that will fit your mood. I like my oatmeal cookies soft, chewy and with raisins, arguably one of the few times I actually want raisins in my dessert. I wanted to share the hearty and sweet dependability of the oatmeal raisin cookie with the next generation of kids in my family, so I developed this recipe with little mouths and lunch boxes in mind.
These cookies are soft, slightly chewy and magically get softer with time. This is great for kids who may have difficulty eating the huge gourmet, extra chewy oatmeal cookies you find in fancy bakeries. They utilize organic instant oatmeal, whose smaller pieces are easier for kids to chew. These cookies also stay soft for up to 3 days when stored in an air tight container. This makes them perfect for parents who want to bake a batch of all natural homemade cookies that can be parceled out in lunch boxes or enjoyed as part of an after school snack for much of the school week. This cookie’s soft chew is thanks to a splash of milk and a touch of maple syrup that provide just the right amount of moisture to keep these cookies pleasantly soft. Just don’t over bake them or all will be lost!
This dough is a little softer than average for cookies, so don’t skip the chill, but feel free to substitute dried cranberries or other diced dried fruit for raisins if you don’t like them. Also, if you have very small children or children who have lost a tooth recently, you may want to omit the dried fruit altogether or use dried currants or zante raisins, which are tiny miniature raisins and may be easier for them to chew.
Check out the video version of this recipe here!
Directions:
Combine flour and baking soda in a medium bowl. Whisk well and set aside.
Combine brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt, milk, maple syrup, cinnamon and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Whisk together until smooth and set aside.
In a large skillet set over low-medium heat, brown butter to a medium chestnut color, whisking frequently with a flat whisk to prevent splatters. (See Video) Add the hot, browned butter to the sugar mixture and whisk until smooth and shiny. Cover and let cool for 10-15 minutes.
Whisk eggs into sugar/butter mixture until smooth and shiny.
Whisk flour into sugar mixture until completely smooth and no lumps remain.
Use silicone spatula or spoon to fold oats and raisins into cookie dough until they are evenly incorporated. Cover dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 90 minutes to firm.
You will want to portion all of your dough balls at once because the dough will become difficult to scoop if it continues to chill past 90 minutes. Scoop 2 tbsp portions of chilled dough onto a plastic lined baking sheet. Cover prepared dough balls with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated until ready to bake.
To Freeze: Roll scooped and chilled cookie dough between your palms to form smooth balls. Smoothing the edges helps the dough maintain freshness while frozen. Flatten each dough ball slightly so it does not roll around on the baking sheet. (See video) Cover with plastic wrap and freeze in one layer until solid. Transfer the frozen dough balls to a zip top freezer bag or air tight container. When ready to bake, place the frozen dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and let them defrost in the refrigerator until soft but very firm. (This can take a few hours.) Once completely thawed, follow the baking instructions below.
To Bake: Preheat oven to 375° F. Line baking sheet with parchment and place 12 cookie dough balls on sheet, evenly spaced with about 2-3 inches between cookies. Bake in the center of the oven for 10-12 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through cooking time. Cookies should be brown around the edges and on the bottoms and look just set on the top.
Remove baking sheet from oven and cool cookies on tray for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Cool completely before eating. These cookies are better cool or room temperature rather than hot out of the oven. These cookies actually develop a better texture after cooling and storing in an airtight container for 8 hours.
Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. (Cookies maintain absolute best texture for 2 days after baking.)
(Makes 48 Cookies)
Ingredients:
270 grams (about 2 ¼ Cups) AP Flour
180 grams (2 Cups) Plain Organic Instant Oatmeal
2 ½ Ground Cinnamon
½ tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Table Salt
2 Sticks Salted Butter (Melted, browned and hot.)
192 grams (about 1 Cup) Dark Brown Sugar
86 grams (about ¼ Cup + 3 Tbsp) Granulated White Sugar
30 grams (2 Tbsp) Maple Syrup
¼ Cup Whole Milk
2 Large Eggs
160 grams (1 Cup) Raisins
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Cookies are a great way to learn to bake. They are small, affordable, easy to make and can often be made in half batches for practice or just to try something new. My father has a real sweet tooth and loved to bake oatmeal raisin cookies for us when I was a child. Oatmeal cookies come in many variations: crispy, chewy, soft, with or without nuts or dried fruit, sandwiched with creme or iced—there is sure to be an oatmeal cookie that will fit your mood. I like my oatmeal cookies soft, chewy and with raisins, arguably one of the few times I actually want raisins in my dessert. I wanted to share the hearty and sweet dependability of the oatmeal raisin cookie with the next generation of kids in my family, so I developed this recipe with little mouths and lunch boxes in mind.
These cookies are soft, slightly chewy and magically get softer with time. This is great for kids who may have difficulty eating the huge gourmet, extra chewy oatmeal cookies you find in fancy bakeries. They utilize organic instant oatmeal, whose smaller pieces are easier for kids to chew. These cookies also stay soft for up to 3 days when stored in an air tight container. This makes them perfect for parents who want to bake a batch of all natural homemade cookies that can be parceled out in lunch boxes or enjoyed as part of an after school snack for much of the school week. This cookie’s soft chew is thanks to a splash of milk and a touch of maple syrup that provide just the right amount of moisture to keep these cookies pleasantly soft. Just don’t over bake them or all will be lost!
This dough is a little softer than average for cookies, so don’t skip the chill, but feel free to substitute dried cranberries or other diced dried fruit for raisins if you don’t like them. Also, if you have very small children or children who have lost a tooth recently, you may want to omit the dried fruit altogether or use dried currants or zante raisins, which are tiny miniature raisins and may be easier for them to chew.
Check out the video version of this recipe here!
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